College
Another reason is that the job market is becoming much more competitive. Employers, generally, prefer those who have more education. However, education alone does not make a person more marketable. Rather, what seems to make one more marketable is the right combination of education and experience.
To learn more about your marketability for a job: Click Here.
Indeed, college is not for everyone. There are many technical fields that do not require a college education. There are also many technical/vocational/trade schools that offer the training necessary to a specific type of work without the need for additional general academic education.
So why go to college anyway?
Completion of high school, and graduation from a college or university's academic program, indicates more than just the completion of formal academic training. It sends a message to others about what kind of person you are. Completion of an academic program says that you are motivated, determined, disciplined, responsible, mature, and persevering. This is why employers prefer candidates that have an education, for a position, over those who do not.
So I must attend a 4-year college or forget it?
No. Here in California we have a community college system that's designed for students who are not ready, academically, for a 4-year college or university or, perhaps, cannot afford it. In fact, most people do not know that most 4-year schools would prefer a transfer student over an incoming freshman and, at this posting are deferring qualifying incoming freshmen by encouraging them to attend a community college, completer their general education requirements, then transfer to the 4-year college or university. The truth of the matter is your general education has to be done first in order to meet and complete many upper division requirements, it is cheaper to do at the community college level, and the 4-year schools are in the business of awarding at least a Bachelor's Degree. As a result, the 4-year schools look more favorably on transfer students--they have more college experience under their belt, are generally more serious and mature as college students, and are much closer to receiving their respective Bachelor's Degree. For more information on this issue: Click Here.
Summary
A college education is not the solution to professional, vocational, financial, and personal success. It is, however, an efficable tool that can assist you in achieveing success. A college education serves as a viable stepping stone to achieving one's goals in life.