Postsecondary Paths and a Liberal Arts Education

Last night, several parents and students came together for my annual College Night program.  After leaving this event, I reflected on the diverse post-secondary paths taken by my students over the last three years.

Although nearly 100% of my school's graduates are bound for four-year colleges, I think it is important to recognize that there are several ways of getting there. Some students may begin at a community college. Contrary to previous public opinion, the community college option is actually an academically rigorous path where students can pursue various courses of study and cultivate their passions. Furthermore, this path is often a less expensive option than traditional residential four-year colleges. Sometimes, beginning this way can help financially prime a student for later academic pursuits.

A second, more popular post-secondary option for my students and other students around the world is a gap year. A gap year is a year between high school and college where the student typically defers enrollment to college to travel, intern, work, etc. My students who have pursued this option have done so through gap years in Israel such as Young Judaea and Israeli yeshiva study programs. This year, The Shoshana S. Cardin School will be hosting a MASA Gap Year in Israel Fair on November 3 from 5-7pm. This event will be open to the Baltimore community and will feature representatives from numerous gap year programs and Israel/Jewish studies college programs. For more information on gap years in Israel, visit http://www.masaisrael.org/.

No matter how the student gets there, post-secondary education is becoming a hot topic in our society. Every child is unique and there is no single path or magic equation toward future success. For some students traveling in Israel for a year will help them mature and prepare them for rigorous academic studies in college, while other students may just dive right into a campus experience. No matter their path, I am confident that my students will succeed and thrive.

This final thought reminds me of a quotation I heard last week at a lecture at Goucher College about the state of liberal arts in American higher education.  The guest speakers represented a range of academic disciplines and careers.  One particular comment that resonated with me was the description of a liberal arts education as "intellectual and emotional training for the real world." As both an educator and a product of a liberal arts education, I think that description is very accurate.  In college and in my college counseling practice, when asked "what do you do with a major in sociology (or any other liberal arts major)?!" I always answer: "Whatever you want!"  And that's true.  I firmly believe that students from liberal arts colleges and college preparatory high schools that emphasize cross-disciplinary study can indeed do whatever they want as they progress through higher education and the "real world."