<p>There are a lot of reasons why the record number of high school graduates going off to college has not meant prosperity for so many of them. First, nearly half of the students who matriculate as freshmen will never earn a Bachelor’s degree. Graduating from high school is not very difficult, earning a four year college degree requires a much higher level of cognitive ability and motivation. Completing a year or two of college does not mean much to employers, either you are a college graduate and as a result deemed qualified for a certain career track or you are not a college graduate and therefore not qualified for the better positions.</p>
<p>A very large number of students who do get their degree get it in majors such as Psychology, Communications, English Literature and other fields that provide the knowledge and skills most employers are looking for. They often end up in jobs that they could have gotten without a college degree such as receptionists and retail clercks. Far more students enter college as pre-meds majoring in Biology, Chemistry and Biochemistry than there are spots for at U.S. medical schools. Many of them will not finish college. The majority of the ones who do graduate will not get into medical school and swell the ranks of of Biology and Chemistry graduates competing for a limited number of low wage lab technician jobs.</p>
<p>I have two sons in college, one majoring in Geology and the other in Physics which I have strongly supported. I am hoping that they first are able to complete degrees in these majors which have many challenging courses and second that they will have educations in fields that there will be employers who will need their skills, particularly their quantitative training.</p>