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11/21/2024 05:59:07 pm

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College Grads Are Struggling to Assimilate Into the Real World, Study Shows

College grads

(Photo : www.campuscalm.com)

A study launched by Richard Arum and Josipa Roska, both sociologists, has found that most college graduates find it difficult to find a full-time job as well as establish solid romantic relationships, and they blame college schools for it. 

The two sociologists initially wrote a book titled "Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses," which angered universitiesThis study concluded that schools in the U.S. focus more on social life than on academics. 

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The conclusion led the two to embark on a second study which focuses on the effects of school on young adults today.  

This time, they are back with their sequel "Aspiring Adults Adrift" to expose a detailed survey of the lives of the college grads they followed in their first book. 

The college grads who were part of the study reportedly had trouble finding a decent job, trouble in developing a romantic relationship, and trouble with financial responsibilities.

The data enables readers to understand the impact the college experience has during post-grad transitions into adulthood. 

Arum spoke with "On Campus" to discuss their findings regarding graduates not being able to find a high-paying, full-time job as well as their struggles with tackling other responsibilities that adulthood presents.

Arum presented as an example a graduate named Nathan who, despite graduating with a 3.9 GPA in business, was unable to find a full-time job and was earning only around US$20,000 per year.

Arum further noted that only 47 percent of the college grads have a full-time job and they were only making around US$30,000.

Arum claims that some of this can be attributed to 'drifting' or a period of feeling lost post-graduation, and pointed to it as a normal part of the adjustment process. However, he further added that many people have the notion that those with a higher educational background should not 'drift.'

The study further unveiled that the university the student attends does not always have a great impact on how well they do later in life. According to research, even those who came from great schools are not taking on adulthood responsibility very well.

Arum believes that it all boils down to the tasks college students tackle during their college years.

In their first book, the sociologists noted that university students are not usually given difficult tasks such as producing long research papers, meaning they have been making it in college the easy way. This then leads to the conclusion that due to a lax approach to education by many universities, the students then foster the impression that things are just as easy in the real world. 

The research pair believes that it is paramount for schools to renew their focus on academic thoroughness in order to help students understand that taking on adulthood is not as easy as it was in college. The study is said to compel readers to re-examine the aims, achievements, and approaches that higher education uses. 

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