SUBJECT:
POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION DISCLAIMER
PURPOSE:
This briefing note is a recommendation for changes in policy pertaining
to matriculation to post-secondary studies.
ISSUE:
There is not enough regulation for the ensuring that those admitted into
post-secondary studies are aware that employment is not a guarantee.
Background:
Universities and colleges are a place where
students go to ascertain the skills they need to be able to have a fulfilling
profession. The skills developed in
these institutions are crucial to industry.
It is the socialization of these skills to students that permit
professions to advance and in turn affect the community which then improves the
standard of living. These institutions primarily
teach students by having lectures however there are some programs that can be
done online. Some programs include a
practicum where students get to apply the skills they have learned from theory
components taught in class. Educational
institutions create learning activities with objectives wherein students are expected
to have mastered these skills by the end of the semester. Learning activities are an important tool by
which instructors use, to standardize the education they provide. These learning activities allow instructors
to have a guide by which to ensure each student in the program learns the same
thing as his or her peers. The
importance of learning activities cannot be emphasized more because it is these
activities that support Blooms Taxonomy of learning. This taxonomy includes knowledge, application
of knowledge, comprehension, analysis, evaluation, and synthesis. This is the process by which instructors rely
on to convey messages to students. And
it is this method that allows students to take what has been conveyed in class
into industry, thereby delivering service to their clientele. With that explained it becomes important to
note that getting a certificate, diploma, degree or even a masters or PHD doesn’t
guarantee a student that he or she will ascertain employment. Yes, students attain the skills but
employment is not a guarantee. In these
cases, students have several options which educational institutions should then
promote. To reiterate, some students
expect that by completing a program in these institutions that they are guaranteed
a job. This is not the case, and these institutions
need to further clarify the fact that a job is not a guarantee, failing to do
so deceives students. Students must be conscious,
consented and informed before they take on the debt that is required to matriculate
especially since some students are under the age of 25. Students that are below this age, are very
impressionable and they still are developing their notions about the
world. They haven’t yet fully developed. Moreover, they are expected to learn to be
social with their peers, be intimate with their partners and enter the
workforce. These students are then pressured
into entering intimidating agreements such as student loan contracts to which
they don’t fully understand the terms and conditions in the belief that they
will be employed. By not ensuring that
students are fully aware, and by making it an unstated truth rather than
something tangible as a written disclaimer, some are mislead. This is then the fault of educational
institutions and It should then be addressed.
Considerations:
There have been numerous cases around the
world were students sued their educational institution because they were unable
to ascertain employment. This is a major
issue as these students spend a tremendous time and effort to master the tasks
that are taught in school. Schools
should be considerate of their pupils.
By ensuring all the data about employment is laid out in such things as employment
conventions and having additional disclaimers and business training, schools
can then ensure their students success in the field. It is a competitive market out there and colleges
and universities should be ensuring that their alumni have a fair chance at
ascertaining a part of the market. There are numerous cases were students were students
are being misinformed for example in the UK several universities were told not
to mislead or exaggerate in language used in adverts for students, with claims
such as being in the, “top 1%,” facing increased scrutiny. Also, vague terms such as, “world class,” may
also be challenged in the UK which have resulted in take downs because they
were unable to be objectively verified. Marketing
plays a major role in peoples decision making as they prepare for matriculation
therefore, these statements must always be validated. In the USA, Walden University was sued
because a student claimed, “I wasted six years of my life.” Jenifer Wright
claims that she enrolled in a distance learning program at the university and
six years after still doesn’t have her degree but is in debt $224,000. Anna Alaburda, graduated at the top tier of
her class spent $150,000 to graduate at Thomas Jefferson School of Law in 2008
and was unable to find a job resulted in her suing the university. In Yale university, a student sued over, ‘inferior’
online classes during the COVID pandemic.
This is a case where students were once again not given full
disclosure. Thereby it resulted in
litigation. It is important that
students have all the information available so they can make decisions that
will impact their livelihoods. College
enrollment in the US has decreased for the eighth consecutive year according to
the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. Further according to Georgetown University
Center, they predicted that by 2020, 63% of all jobs would need some education
beyond high school education. According
to the latest data however, 70% of workers were in such jobs as of 2018. In 2010 it was 59%. This could benefit hopeful graduates. But what is alarming is that 41% of recent
college grads work in jobs not requiring a degree while 33.8% of all college
grads are underemployed. In December
2019 the unemployment rate for people aged 22 to 27 with a bachelor’s degree
was higher at 3.9% exceeding the unemployment rate for all workers aged 16 to
65 at 3.6% according to data obtained from the Federal Reserve Bank. What is evident here is that these grads have
limited opportunity as they have not found jobs related to their educational
accomplishments. The main stakeholders
for this matter are the universities, students and their guardians.
Options:
Option 1:
Disclaimer signed by students and guardians as applicable.
This is a very feasible option and it will
certainly relinquish the university from possible liability if the student doesn’t
get a job. By having a disclaimer form
signed by these parties, it serves as assurance that those who matriculate were
informed with full disclosure. These
people then cannot blame the university if they graduate and are unemployed
thereafter. This option doesn’t really
do anything for equity as students wont be guaranteed a job however, this
option does treat students with equality as the university provided full
disclosure at the commencement of matriculation.
Option 2:
Change age of majority to 25.
A possible solution we suggest is that
perhaps we as a society look at what is currently referred to as the, “legal
age.” Since science says that the brain
doesn’t fully develop until that age, it is only right that we perhaps consider
to question the legal age. Perhaps it is
necessary to keep certain parts of the legal age of 19 such as alcohol,
cigarettes and driving. But we do
question these young people’s ability to make sound legal judgements especially
when making legal decisions. Are young
people functioning at a capacity wherein they fully understand the
ramifications of their decisions? This
is a very feasible option and it would be very easy tom implement. The extra time will give young adults time to
mature. This option is considerate of
the equity in which people ascertain because each individual will be at a full
capacity when they are permitted to make legal decisions.
Option 3:
Promote self-employment or business ownership.
By educating students about the basics of
business, universities serve to empower their alumni. This would certainly benefit students as they
enter the market. By selecting this
option, universities could be assured that they did all they can to ensure their
alumni succeed. Therefore, this gives
students equity but it also gives them the autonomy and the technical knowledge
to make it on their own. By having
business knowledge, these students wont be dependent on job prospects. They could then make their own business and
contribute to society on their own accord.
Offering basic business education certainly gives students equality. This option is also sustainable because
through basic business education students can create competition in the market
thus, innovation.
Option 4:
Status quo: Not working which is
why we have options.
This is the most feasible option however,
as a result of the landscape wherein people are suing their university, it is
clear that this matter needs to be addressed.
Universities are not doing enough to ensure their students are
successful in the field. They must give
them the knowledge they need to make conscious, informed and consented decisions. This is the least sustainable as it keeps
students dependent on the job market rather then empowering them to be self-sufficient free of the bonds of the job market.
Recommendation:
Option two is recommended.
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