Music: Written In The Stars - Tinie Tempah ft. Eric Turner
I got the privilege of sitting in a town hall meeting designed for students of the journalism school this afternoon because I so happened to have a break from classes during that hour and I was covering this meeting for my school newspaper.
I've never really given much information on here about the recent series of events that has been happening to the journalism school here at CU. Well, as of last Thursday, the boards have decided the discontinuance of the journalism school for future journalism students and a revised curriculum have been proposed under a new program for the future.
I guess I should make some clarifications before any misunderstandings happen. Most of us have known about the drastic changes happening within the school itself since the fall of 2010. It was about the second week of me being in school that an email was sent of suggesting a possible closure of the school. Naturally, like every other concerned high-tuition paying student, I freaked out because none of us knew what it really meant.
It has been about 7 months since news about the future of the J-school here at CU was released. In between then, there have been numerous speculations, meetings and discussion by faculty. As of now, the verdict has been made known and as a student, I can only hope for that the change is for the better. This new change here at CU requires any student interested in pursuing a major in journalism to also must have a second major in another field.
Fortunately though because I was accepted into the school before it's official closure, I am not affected by this new program. I do want to point out that I think it is a great program because students will just get so much more out of their degree with a dual-major. I would have personally pursued a double-degree had I more time and money, obviously. Currently though, I am working towards getting a certificate in international media and having a science minor, which I hope would suffice and place me competitively on the job market.
I guess the point of this long entry sparked from one thought I had during the town hall meeting today. Some of the graduate students who attended the meeting were discussing the recent accreditation process that took place at my school as well and there were 2 sides to the argument, of course.
It matters that we are accredited versus it doesn't matter whether we are or not.
Some people argued that nobody really looks at where you graduated from or how high your GPA was when reviewing for a job. All they looked for was experience.
That got me thinking. Why am I here then? Why am I spending all this money in this institution for a single piece of paper and a toss of a cap that might not even matter? Why am I working myself to the bones right now in college, to be constantly competitive and be on top of my game all the time if no one is ever going to recognize that eventually?
What is the value in higher education today?
Pushing the underage binge drinking and pot smoking aside, what is my college experience supposed to be like? Is college just another excuse to act as immaturely as possible? The 20 shots of vodka in one night, the walk of shame in the mornings, the screaming at the top of your lungs driving past the police station. It's funny how we are so close to stepping into the realms of adulthood yet we're still with such juvenile behavior.
If no one is going to recognize that A I have in Christian Traditions or that great speech I gave during my class presentation, then why am I doing it?! What is college if not just another system created by capitalist monsters to milk the money out of our lives.
Maybe I am looking for some reassurance, telling me that my hard work will pay off and that my days in college were not just a drunken blur. That's ultimately not the kind of experience I want. I want it to amount so much more than that and I wish there wasn't any skepticism towards it like there is right now.
Maybe there is some truth and importance to having relevant experience while looking for a job but I believe that piece of paper you have in your hands that's probably worth thousands of dollars proves something: that you are experienced. That you know what it's like to chase deadlines, to work in teams, to be competitive and to think outside the box.
You survived college.
