What Most Students Don’t Know About Higher Education

What Most Students Don’t Know About Higher Education

Every new academic year also marks the end of an academic journey for a large number of students. Here, I want to talk about those students who pass out of school but do not continue their higher education. Based on my interactions with such students, I have found that apart from socio-economic challenges, there are also certain misconceptions that discourage them from pursuing further studies. Many of them believe that higher education is a waste of time—that they can better utilize this time by getting employed and continuing their education in distance mode on the side.

However, I do my best to convince them to pursue education in the regular mode. Here are some of the arguments I use to make my case:

1. Leverage Positionality

Freire argues that it's not enough for children to memorize the capital of a country—they should also understand how living in the capital brings privilege. This holds true in many ways.
For instance, Delhi has some of the finest colleges in the country, and probably a larger number of higher education institutions than most other Indian cities. Public universities still offer affordable education. But with the rapid commercialization of higher education, this may be the last decade when access to affordable, quality education remains possible.
I often ask my students to leverage this positionality—they are located in Delhi and should strive to gain admission into these colleges.

2. College Helps Build Networks

Bourdieu would call this "social capital." And perhaps there is no better place to build social capital than in college. Three to five years of college life offers ample opportunities to build networks. A decade down the line, these classmates work in different sectors and often become valuable professional connections. In fact, for reputed universities, the alumni network is one of the biggest assets they offer. No distance learning program can replicate this. It may take decades to convert economic capital into social capital, but social capital can often be exchanged for economic capital. This is perhaps the biggest hidden advantage of higher education that very few students are aware of.

3. An Opportunity to Build Personality

When I was speaking to students in Grade 12, I noticed their notebooks were covered in a specific design—because the teachers had instructed them to use it. In school, everything is predetermined and controlled. Even the notebook cover is decided by the teacher. This leaves little room for students to make decisions or take responsibility. College, on the other hand, leaves most things up to the students—the course they choose, the clothes they wear, the classes they attend, the exams they take, and so on. Over the course of 3–5 years, college offers thousands of opportunities to make independent decisions and take responsibility—and in that process lies the secret to personality development. This personality often helps students qualify for interviews and find jobs. I’ve come across several civil services aspirants who believe that studying hard is enough to succeed, and they skip going to college for a Master's. But I’ve often seen that most successful civil service candidates have studied at good colleges. Studying at home might increase knowledge, but it cannot provide the countless opportunities college offers for making decisions and owning responsibilities. That’s where true personality development happens.

4. Increased Employment Opportunities

There’s a host of research that proves employment opportunities and wages are directly proportional to the level of education. Yes, there are unemployed youth even among graduates, but that doesn’t mean higher education negatively impacts employability. Over a working life of 20–30 years, individuals with higher education degrees tend to earn significantly more than those without them.

These are some of the arguments I use to convince my students to pursue higher education in the regular mode. The UGC doesn’t publish separate data on how many students are enrolled in regular versus distance mode. But based on my empirical experience, only around 5% of students opt for regular higher education. For many students who somehow complete their schooling, a regular college education can be truly transformative. All they need is to be well-informed.