By Lia Richardson
Staff Writer
During senior send-off, I often hear giggles around me at the revelation of students attending Pasadena City College. It’s as if it’s something to be embarrassed about rather than a sensible option to save tuition costs while taking general education classes or getting an associate’s degree that trains me to enter the workforce.
Personally, I feel pressured to forego community college and go straight to a four-year university for the sake of being perceived in a positive light—it seems as though the college I attend in a couple of years will be an outward reflection of my character, work ethic and ambition. In reality, deciding which college to attend is a process far too multifaceted for anyone to view this way.
As most things are in life, success is not obtained through a single path—contrary to popular belief, entrance into an Ivy League university does not guarantee substantial success. A 2023 study by Opportunity Insights, a group of Harvard-based economists, found that attending an Ivy rather than a state flagship university only had “a small and statistically insignificant impact” on graduates’ future earnings—at age 33, their projected income was only boosted by an average of 3%.
The idea that not attending a prestigious university will hinder your ability to make a name or build a reputation for yourself is not completely true. Prestigious universities provide immense networking opportunities, but there are plenty of instances where community college can serve as a stepping stone to building a successful career.
For example, Eileen Collins, the first woman to command and pilot a U.S. space shuttle, graduated with an associate’s degree in mathematics from Corning Community College before attending Syracuse University for her bachelor’s degree and later on Stanford University for her master’s. Despite initially attending community college, Collins established herself as a historical figure—who’s to say that such an outcome isn’t possible today?
We should strive to recognize the multifaceted nature of college decisions. Some people may not be able to afford the tuition and cost-of-living expenses for top universities or do not see the school as worth the cost. According to the Education Data Initiative, the average cost of college tuition and fees at public four-year institutions has an average annual increase of 7.0%. This means that it is becoming increasingly difficult for lower or middle-class students to attend top institutions, even if they are accepted. Ultimately, they may end up at a cheaper, less well-known university, but they still have the assets of a student who ends up committing to a prestigious university.
At the end of the day, community college students who transfer to more well-known or prestigious institutions obtain the same degree and, ultimately, very similar if not the same job opportunities as those who attended the institution for all four years. Let’s broaden our view on what the path to success looks like after high school, whether it’s going to a 4-year public state university, a prestigious private university, or a community college.