Opinions and Editorials Section
By Rory McNelly, Education and Enrichment Coordinator
College needs to be giving us some information on how to be real people in the world. Last Tuesday was Tax Day, which sparked my own reflection on how college fails to give us information on how to be real people in the world.
This discernment was sparked by a little event on my Apple calendar. I thought, “Wow I actually have no idea how to do my taxes.” Then I realized, I don’t know how to do my taxes, balance a check book, apply for a loan and I’m not even sure how mortgages work.
Education and Enrichment coordinator Rory McNelley argues that in college students need to be taught necessary life skills like applying for a mortgage and doing their taxes.
We spend most of our early adult years in the realm of college, so why aren’t there more practical things in our curriculum? We leave college and have to venture into the real world and find somewhere to live, sign a contract at a job, figure out insurance and so much more.
People older than us are always looking down on our generation. We are constantly looking at our phones and not the world around us. They are right about something, we are not well versed in how to be adults.
Recently I was completing a homework assignment at the large table in the middle of the Center for Faith and Justice (CFJ), and people were sending letters to prospective students who were interested in being involved in faith and service programs in college. Great idea! My mood changed drastically, though, when I was asked by the person sitting next to me how to address a letter?
Now it has gone too far. I sympathize with those who do not understand insurance premiums and mortgages, but not knowing how to address a letter. Our teachers, parents and role models have failed us. I felt embarrassed for this person, but I also felt bad. I am so glad they now know this critical information or when they were ready to send out wedding invitations, it would have been an uncomfortable conversation with their fiancé.
This person is a biomedical sciences major. They will head to medical school and make a great doctor. I am sure they know all about different types of cells and everything about the body, but addressing a letter was not in the curriculum. Instead of GOA classes teaching us how to study like we previously learned in high school, we should have classes on real world knowledge.
Walking the stage at graduation, everyone should know how to sign a lease for a house, how to write a check, how to challenge a speeding ticket in court and what a 401(k) is. This is critical knowledge – we need to be adults in the real world – and Xavier is the perfect place to learn it. I would rather take a class on what to look for in a job contract than ask the person interviewing me if I need both medical and dental insurance. I would much rather take a class on how to file taxes than to be audited by the IRS.
Graduating from college is a major achievement and having a degree opens a lot of doors of opportunity. That diploma should come with the knowledge we need to survive in the world when we need a loan or need to send a letter in the mail. College should not only prepare us for our career but should prepare us for life outside of work.
