Another Perspective

In the last year, I’ve been hearing a lot of criticisms of higher education in general, and Linfield in specific. Perhaps these critiques are age-old arguments being rehashed and I’m only starting to pay attention now, but either way they’ve really struck a chord with me. As a student who is unusually involved in issues of accreditation, assessment, learning outcomes, faculty politics, and college governance, I am often one of the first people to offer criticisms of our modern higher education system and to question what students are really getting out of college. I know that I am smarter and more analytic than I was four years ago, but I often wonder how much of that can be attributed to college and how much is simply because I am better traveled, better read, and more mature.


Nonetheless, I take issue with those people, particularly graduates, who single out Linfield as the target of their ire. There are systematic flaws in the system of higher education, but in most respects Linfield isn’t contributing to those problems. I look back at the last four years and there are a lot of things I would change, but I never regret coming to Linfield. So, to those who want a refund from Linfield, I have a few things to say:


If you’re having trouble getting a job, take a deep breath and evaluate your situation rather than pointing the finger. You’ve probably noticed that we’re in the middle of a giant recession. Unemployment rates in Portland, Salem, and Eugene metro areas float between 10% and 11% and those aren’t all Linfield students. That 10% is made up of college grads, high school drop-outs, people in the middle of their careers and all across the workforce spectrum. Even if it doesn’t seem that way right now, your degree will make you more employable when things start to improve – and until then, it might be worthwhile to look to areas with better employment rates, like Honolulu (5.2% unemployment), Washington DC (5.9%), or even just Corvallis (6.6%).


If you’re regretting choosing private school over public, think about what you actually paid for. Yes, Linfield’s yearly tuition is more than the Oregon University System, but only 59% of students at Oregon state schools graduate in six years, while Linfield graduates 65% in four years (69% in six). How much is two years of your life worth to you? But even more important than the numbers game is the education itself. At Linfield, we have unmatched opportunities to study abroad, gain valuable leadership experience, and work one-on-one with our professors through classes and collaborative research.


Finally, if you’re having doubts about your social sciences or humanities degree, step back and realize the strength of flexibility. Linfield doesn’t teach most of us specific skills (aside from the athletic training, education, and nursing majors), but it’s not trying to. Linfield is committed to the liberal arts, which means that we graduate with a firm grounding in writing, communication, critical thinking, and analytical reasoning – flexible skills that will serve us well in a tumultuous market where we may change jobs several times over the course of our careers.


My point here isn’t to alienate graduates who are having trouble finding a job or further aggravate those with heavy loan burdens. It’s simply to show the other side – there are plenty of students who are thrilled with their Linfield education and who feel well-prepared for the future.