Stuart McDonald - Journal 6

1.    I know that most people in college right now will probably think that college is worth it.  I also know that asking people in specific professions will result in different opinions.

2.    I am starting to think that college is worth it only to get a degree and meet that hiring requirement.  I do not think it is worth it with regards to talent in my field.

3.    I would like to know what other majors think about the usefulness of college outside of my field, such as business or art.

4.    This topic is extremely similar to my inquiry topic so I can pull from my experience with that.  My experience with this topic would stem from being enrolled in my second semester at college and having to a substantial amount already.

5.    I believe that college is not necessary to develop skills in many fields; however, it is a must for most employers.  I assume that a lot of people are going to say it’s worth it and the opposite view will be hard to find.

6.    The different majors and college experience levels are easily defined subcultures.  There are undergraduates, graduates, and professionals coming from many different majors.

7.    These people will identify with the terms: student, undergraduate, professional, graduate, young, middle-aged, debt-holding, NRV resident, educated, uneducated, experienced, and inexperienced

8.    I belong to the student, undergraduate, young, debt-holding, NRV resident, educated and inexperienced identities.

9.    This group will probably be a dominant culture due to the fact that most successful careers these days start with a college degree.  It will be marginalized because it will be limited to the NRV area.  I am part of the dominant culture of college students but also part of the inexperienced category, which is most likely a marginalized group due to the vast number of older people in the workforce.  It may seem that my being in college will tempt me to agree with it and the expected positive opinions of other students, but I am usually open to many viewpoints and I’m starting personally not agree with the process.  I will try to ask neutral questions to people, possibly prompting them to rate their experiences on a scale instead of asking for yes/no responses.

10.I will need to keep in mind the people’s various backgrounds and professions.  I can get a better response discussing the usefulness of college from someone long into their career than I can from someone currently in college.  The people still in college will give a viewpoint to compare with the professionals in the writing.