Why Is Post Secondary Education Important

In today’s society, young people are consistently told that the key to a successful future is receiving post-secondary education. Many teenagers find themselves wondering, “what is the importance of school?” With the recent success of entrepreneurs and businessmen who lack university/college diplomas, many students begin wondering what is the real importance of post-secondary education. To the dismay of many young people, school is one of the most important parts on the road to success for individuals. By attending post-secondary schools, individuals have a higher chance of finding a job; higher paying salary, and more prepared and ready to make sensible choices. Forbes magazine posted the ten highest and lowest income jobs for 2012, the
highest being anesthesiologists at $232,830, and the lowest being fast food cooks at $18,720. It can not be a coincidence that all of the ten highest-paying jobs require at least seven years of post-secondary education while the ten worst paying jobs have no post-secondary education required. It is no coincidence at all, as the higher paying jobs require individuals to possess a lot more knowledge in their field. For example, anesthesiologists are required to monitor individuals before, during, and after surgical procedures by monitoring patients’ vital organs to ensure that no complications arise. This requires over sixteen years of post-secondary education to have attained this knowledge. In comparison, a typical fry-cook will not be required to possess sixteen years of knowledge in order to know the toppings on a burger or the cook time of french fries. Also, not only does education aid in jobs within a particular field, education in general will earn people more money. Individuals who possess a master’s degree will earn 1.3 million dollars over their lifetime earnings than if they had only acquired a high school diploma. "At most ages, more education equates with higher earnings, and the payoff is most notable at the highest educational levels," said Jennifer Cheeseman Day, author of The Big Payoff: Educational Attainment and Synthetic Estimates of Work-Life Earnings. Possessing a post-secondary degree will not only earn individuals more money, education will also increases the chances of finding a job. In 2011 researchers for the U.S. department of labor compared the unemployment rate versus the amount of education that individuals have received. The trend was blatantly obvious; the more education individuals have, the less likely that they are to become unemployed. This is shown with the 9.4% unemployment rate for high school graduates in comparison of the 2.5% rate for those with doctoral degrees. Also, not only does more education decrease individuals’ unemployment rate it will also increase the re-employment rate. A study by the University of British Columbia states that “the chances of “re-employment” (finding work after a period of unemployment) rise by 27 percentage points if you 've finished high school.” As well as increase by two to three percentage points for every additional year of education after high school. Employers for corporate companies, or even the local fast-food restaurant will typically prefer having a university/college graduate to a high school graduate. The main reason for this being that most employers believe that the more educated individual will not require as much training or practice to be ready for the job. Also, employers also believe that since graduates could work hard, and persevere through university, then that individual could work just as hard on the job. While multiple individuals may be equally qualified for a given job, the individuals with the greater education will look instantly more qualified to employers. Furthermore, a post-secondary degree provides more career options and opportunities. With a degree an individual has the choice on what job that individual could do. However, without a post-secondary degree, individuals only have a few choices for their career path. Not only does university increase the financial earnings, and job security of individuals, university aids in maturing young people and preparing young people for real world adult responsibilities.
Generally, eighteen year olds are not fully ready to be immediately making mature life decisions. However, studies have shown that those who have attended some form of post-secondary education are more civil-minded, confident, and higher self-esteem. The reason being that college or university graduates have had at least two years of independence, where students have to responsible for their grades as well as attending classes. High school graduates do not have access to this type of environment, where young people learn from experience how to manage their time effectively, where they can afford to make some mistakes. High school graduates have to learn from their mistakes in the real world, where mistakes can be more costly. Post-secondary graduates fin that they can already carry out difficult tasks and be responsible, boosting their confidence as well as their self worth. While high school graduates can earn more money from the get-go by working right away, those who graduate from university will be more prepared to take on the world and begin a successful
life. School has one of the most important roles on the road to success for individuals. By completing post-secondary education people are able to earn a higher salary, have more accessibility to different jobs, as well as being more mature people in general. These aspects of an individual’s life are what many deem to be “successful”.

Works Cited

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