There is an unhealthy cultural expectation for young people to determine and solidify their identity early in life. Financial and familial pressures often demand that students know their major and career path before they even enter a university. In truth, our identities are too complex and variable to be figured out in such a time-frame, and college students should not feel forced to graduate in four years.
The purposes of education and universities are going in different directions. While college used to be viewed as a chance to explore oneself and develop into a more well-rounded person, the current model now focuses on statistical success. Schools are ranked and judged on their rates of recruitment, retention and progression to graduation rather than how they develop students into holistic individuals. However, this may not be the best approach to prepare students for life beyond college.
“We live in an interdisciplinary world,” Dr. Kim Haimes-Korn said, a professor in the department of digital writing and media arts. “Employers value candidates with holistic skill sets and flexibility. Today, careers are fluid and ever-evolving, with people filling different positions at the same time.”
Tension also arises between a student’s personal goals and the expectations of family and friends. It has become a cultural question to ask, “What will you major in?” More importantly, students should instead ask themselves what they thoroughly enjoy. If students are unsure as to what that answer may be, college ought to serve as the perfect place to find out. Yet college-aged adults today deal with more stress than any other generation, according to the American Psychological Association.
“You never graduate if you kill yourself with one semester to go because of the hideously intense stress, especially for students with jobs who are trying to finish as fast as possible so they can start digging themselves out of debt,” recent civil engineering graduate Rachel Elliot said.
The overwhelming stress of trying to graduate “on time” significantly increases the risk of mental illness. According to a study by the National Alliance on Mental Illness, over 80 percent of college students have felt overwhelmed by all their yearly workload, and 45 percent have felt that their situation was hopeless. Even more alarming is that according to the National Institute of Mental Health, more than nine percent of all college students have had suicidal thoughts, which is more than double the average.
Of course, every semester before graduation can exacerbate student debts. To combat this, schools such as Georgia College & State University have focused on providing students an education that values the intersections between various areas of study so as to allow students to form a fully realized identity within the intended four years. Were more colleges to adapt and improve this approach, colleges would return to a focus on students over statistics.
When universities focus on raising their statistics in regards to graduation, they lose sight of their greater purpose. Students should be allowed time to discover themselves and their passions at a reasonable pace, and schools should encourage those who enroll to take time to learn what they love before attempting to earn a degree.
