Let’s have a look at the importance of higher education! After you’ve attended college, your career opportunities may have improved. You may receive a higher pay as well as experience greater cultural awareness. You’ll live a life with more choices and possibilities. In this article, we’ll discuss the benefits as well as the importance of higher education.
The Importance of Higher Education
Making a choice to pursue a higher or more advanced education, such as an associate’s degree or a bachelor’s degree, may lead you to better job opportunities as well as higher-paying positions. Higher education may also lead to a healthier and more balanced life. Some research has shown all of which may factor into your decision to study at this level.
The Purpose of Higher Education
The design of higher education is to broaden an individual’s knowledge as well as experience. Graduates will leave with a good record of their accomplishments that is recognized as well as valued by future employers and colleagues. Generally, undergraduate degrees have not only courses in your chosen field of study but general courses as well. This will, in turn, provide foundational knowledge in a wide variety of fields. Master’s- and doctoral-level programs generally become more specific and specialized in order to extend knowledge across your chosen field.
Important Facts About Different Types of Higher Education – The Importance of Higher Education
- Degree/Certificate: Associate, undergraduate, graduate, doctorate, post-doctorate
- Prerequisites: May vary by degree level. The most basic requirement to begin an associate’s or undergraduate degree program is a high school diploma or GED. Most graduate programs require at least a bachelor’s degree to enter.
- Specialization: The degree concentrations are available in various academic and professional fields such as: humanities, sciences, engineering, education, law, medicine, psychology, and technology.
- Continuing Education: Continuing education options may include things such as further study or pursuit of a non-degree certificate program or licensing. This depends on the degree level.
The Career Benefits of a Higher Education
You’ll generally make more money if you have a college education. According to the “U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS),” the weekly earnings median in 2018 for high school graduates that are aged 25 and older were $730, while the median for individuals that are aged 25 and older with bachelor’s degrees was $1,198.
The unemployment rates are affected by higher education as well. The BLS reported that those that have high school diplomas experienced a 4.1% unemployment rate in 2018. The unemployment rate for individuals that held bachelor’s degrees was only 2.2%.
Along with all these various benefits, your career choices are more likely to be varied, and making a career change will come easier than for those who have not completed some form of higher education. If you already have a bachelor’s degree on hand, there are various economic benefits to completing additional graduate-level studies. A BLS survey done in 2018 shows that individuals that hold a master’s degree earned a median weekly income of $1,434 and experienced a low unemployment rate of around only 2.1%.
The Social Value of Higher Education
The statistics above have shown that you’re more likely to earn more money if you have a college degree. A higher education, however, has social benefits as well – this goes to show the lifelong importance of higher education. If you have earned a college degree, you’ll most probably be better able to spend money in order to stimulate the economy. You’ll be more likely to volunteer and help in the community in which you live as well. Additionally, individuals that have a higher education are more likely to participate in voting and much less likely to commit any crimes.
The Personal Benefits of Higher Education
When you pursue a higher education, you are more likely to become more sensitive to cultural differences as well as be able to respect the beliefs of all types of individuals. After you’ve completed a college degree, you’ll have a broader set of career options that often leads to an increase in personal choice as well as freedom. According to various studies, you may even be healthier if you are a college graduate as well.
Is Higher Education Voluntary
Higher education in the Western world is generally voluntary. Because of this reason, high school is not always considered to be higher education as high school attendance is mandatory for all students that are younger than the age of 16 in most jurisdictions within the United States.
More About Higher Education
Students within the U.S. that seek out a higher education generally study subjects that interest them on a personal level. Students may be studying various general college-level subjects or a trade school curriculum. A student who is showing interest in becoming a doctor may enroll in a pre-med program at a 4-year institution, for example. In contrast, a student who would like to work as an airplane mechanic may train at a 2-year institution where they are able to focus more specifically on learning the skills of the trade.
Higher Education Often Leads to a Degree or Certificate of Proficiency
Certain definitions of higher education include a component that their study must be for the purpose of obtaining a college degree, certificate, or another type of recognition of achievement. Others, however, define higher education as both voluntary as well as in pursuit of at least an associate’s degree. These definitions generally exclude programs that lead to an undergraduate certificate.
Other Types of Education
There are various types of education. Most individuals have completed their preschool-level education as well as their elementary school education.
Take a look below at all the types of education available:
- Preschool
- Elementary School
- Secondary Education
- Post-Secondary Education
- Formal Education
- Informal Education
- Non-Formal Education
- Special Education
In a Nutshell
Higher education has been set out to equip various individuals to ensure that they make the best of their talents as well as of the opportunities that have been offered by society for self-fulfillment. Therefore, it is a key allocator to various life changes, and an important vehicle for achieving equity in the distribution of opportunity and achievements amongst all individuals and citizens.
