Research Intro

The recession that the world has experienced over the last few years has affected everyone, but one of the areas hit the hardest in the United States is the higher education system.  The economy’s fall has decreased the amount of money available to everyone, so institutions have a hard time finding funding for their educational programs.  Students have seen colleges struggle to manage their finances, and it has become difficult for students to pay for a quality education.  This is important because these students are the future business and government leaders, and without the proper education, no one will be able to fill leadership roles.  All of these problems are linked to the recent economic downfall.  The recession has negatively affected many aspects of the higher education system, including funding provided by the government, the price of tuition, the availability of scholarships and grants for prospective students, and the value of a college degree.

Research Log: Working With Sources

This image makes the argument that after college, graduates are left with the large burden of student debt left from the loans they used to pay for school.  It depicts a student with his textbooks and pencils scattered on the ground after a giant bag of money labeled "Student Debt" fell on him.  This shows how much of a problem student debt can be as it builds up throughout college.  This cartoon does not display a strong bias although it causes readers to assume that all students face this same issue.  This cartoon supports my thesis because it shows how hard it can be to deal with student debt, and in a recession, this task becomes even more difficult.  It is a very discouraging fact for many prospective students.  I would include this in my essay when I discuss students' struggles with paying for college education.  This cartoon would illustrate my points about how students debate the value of college in this recession because of all of the debt they will build up by using student loans.

Research Sources

"In a Recession, Is College Worth It? Fear of Debt Changes Plans" by Sandra Block (October 9,2011)

• This article provides both sides of the argument over how valuable a college degree is during a recession, along with alternatives that prospective students may use.
• “‘But unemployment among college graduates is still half that of high school graduates. A college education payoff is at least as high as it was before the recession. You're so much less likely to struggle if you have an education’" (Block).
• "But as the worst recession since World War II trudges into its 21st month, many graduates are discovering that the college payoff could be a long time coming — if it comes at all" (Block).
• This article from USA Today discusses the value of a college degree during a recession.  This topic is often debated because while college degrees often lead to better job opportunities, it is common for students to have thousands of dollars in student loans to pay off after graduating.  Many people also mention the fact that because unemployment rates rise during recessions, graduates may have no job to help them pay off these loans.  Others argue that unemployment rates rise for everyone, and a college degree provides better chances for employment:  “‘But unemployment among college graduates is still half that of high school graduates. A college education payoff is at least as high as it was before the recession. You're so much less likely to struggle if you have an education’" (Block).  College graduates also earn more money per year than others in most cases.  That can be important during a recession when it is tough to pay for living expenses.  The information from this article will benefit me by providing both advantages and disadvantages of going to college during a recession.  This information is important for discussing the economy’s effect on prospective college students.

"The Recession Hits College Campuses - US News and World Report" by Kim Clark (October 9, 2011)

• The article contains a graph displaying the percentages at which college endowments have increased and decreased in recent years.  The article discusses how the recession has affected how much money colleges and universities have available.
• “Yale, which saw its widely diversified portfolio increase by 1.5 percent in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2008, last month warned that its endowment had already fallen 25 percent since then” (Clark).
• "And in previous recessions, college enrollment has risen, since college graduates get bigger paychecks and more opportunities" (Clark).
• Kim Clark wrote this article for US News and World Report shortly after the economy took a turn for the worst.  The article provides proof of just how quickly the recession affected colleges and universities, and it gives an example of what some of the early effects on the higher education system were.  One important topic Kim Clark mentions is the size of university endowments after the recession began.  In the first few months following the beginning of the recession, most colleges already saw a decrease in their endowments, but the percentages were usually small.  When a survey was taken again a few months later, the colleges reported much larger losses:  “Yale, which saw its widely diversified portfolio increase by 1.5 percent in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2008, last month warned that its endowment had already fallen 25 percent since then” (Clark).  This information will be important for my research because it gives an understanding of the initial effects felt by colleges and universities due to the recession.  The article also mentions effects on students by discussing increases in tuition prices and the demand for a college education during recessions.  I can use this source towards the beginning of my research paper in order to introduce the economy’s effect on higher education.

"Labour Economics : The Long-term Labor Market Consequences of Graduating from College in a Bad Economy." by Lisa B. Kahn (September 30, 2011)

• This article contains many tables showing wage statistics from previous years, and it discusses the effects of graduating from college during a recession.
• “Given these wage findings, one might wonder if workers would be better off waiting to enter the labor market until the economy picks up. This would mean forgoing a year or two of earnings, which is possibly a smaller loss than the losses I find. It does not seem to be the case in the real world, but this can be reconciled with my findings” (Kahn).
• "The results in this paper strongly support the hypothesis that graduating from college in a bad economy has a long-run, negative impact on wages. I also find a negative effect on occupational attainment and slight increases in both educational attainment and tenure for those who graduate in worse national economies" (Kahn).
• This article is an in depth study of the effects of entering the job market after graduating from college during a recession.  Lisa B. Kahn is part of the Yale School of Management, and her study reveals that in addition to lowering initial salaries, graduating during a recession can negatively impact students’ earnings for many years.  By studying data from previous recessions, Lisa Kahn was able to support her claim that entering the job market during a recession can negatively affect someone’s career even after the recession has ended.  An interesting thought that Kahn brings up is whether or not it would be beneficial for someone to wait until the economy improves before searching for a job:  “Given these wage findings, one might wonder if workers would be better off waiting to enter the labor market until the economy picks up. This would mean forgoing a year or two of earnings, which is possibly a smaller loss than the losses I find. It does not seem to be the case in the real world, but this can be reconciled with my findings” (Kahn).  Although graduates would have to find a way to survive without a job until the economy improved, they would be able to avoid the long term negative effects of entering the job market during the recession.  Kahn’s study can improve my research paper by providing yet another side to the argument over the value of a college degree in a weak economy.  The statistics from this article will support the claim that the value of a college degree is greatly impacted by the economy.

Prezi Brainstorming Web

http://prezi.com/liugnt9sc5pf/brainstorming-web/