Shaffer, Arin: Credentialing

                  The institution of college and the idea of the degree have become the most important pathway to getting a worthwhile job, which in turns leads to a satisfactory lifestyle. The article, “Death by Degrees” shows that this is true. It also shows an example from the past that is doomed to repeat itself unless we find a way to stop it. Also, the Taiping Rebellion point in the article shows the consequences of the credential system. Today, the accreditation system is making college cost more and more.

                  Our world today is requiring higher and higher levels of education for jobs which didn’t require them before. A Bachelor’s degree is becoming a must for anyone hoping to find a good-paying and enjoyable job. We are being forced to achieve higher levels of accreditation in order to get a job we find most beneficial to us and our planned lifestyle. Soon, it will become like that of the Taiping Rebellion mentioned in, “Death by Degrees." Because our world is becoming more focused on the degree more people will get a degree of some kind whether it is Bachelor’s, Master’s, or a doctorate and there will be more competition for jobs.  However, this job competition will not be the best thing for us. There will be too many degrees and not enough job openings which could lead to people with a doctorate not having a job, which right now is unthinkable. It could also lead to making the degrees harder to obtain to limit their numbers.

                  The accreditation system also contributes to the rising costs of attending college.  As long as the world demands a degree of some kind as a means of picking job applicants the cost of college will rise as well. Colleges can increase the price of attending school simply because they know people can’t stop going to college.  The likelihood of getting a job decreases significantly, a fact that colleges know all too well. If people don’t come for the degree they will be passed over by those who do have one leaving those without in financial instability. Colleges will raise the price of college because they now know that it will be almost impossible to get a good, safe job without one.