What exactly is the value of getting a college degree? Is it attaining a credential that will allow you to secure employment after you've passed the right courses and ticked the right boxes? Or could the value instead be seen as the culmination of the experiences a student has while attending college — the people they meet and the connections they make, and the layers of the world that open up to them that they had never noticed before, all of which can lay the groundwork for an enriching life and career that is aligned with their passions?
The authors of "Hacking College: Why the Major Doesn't Matter—and What Really Does" make the case that the traditional, hyper-fixated focus on choosing the "right" major can be a trap that often results in what they term "empty college degrees."
This premise isn't exactly new, but it may be more relevant than ever as rapidly advancing technological changes shift the world beneath our feet — and the job market — as perhaps never before. We're joined by the book's co-authors to explore this idea.
Ned Scott Laff and Scott Carlson are giving a talk on the Florida Gulf Coast University campus on Tuesday, Nov. 3 at 5pm in the Cohen Student Union. It's open to the public. Click here to learn more.
Their talk is presented by the university's PAGES Program.
Guests:
Ned Scott Laff spent 35 years working in academic affairs at a range of public and private institutions toward curriculum development and student success, and he is co-author of Hacking College.
Scott Carlson is a senior writer for the Chronicle of Higher Education, and co-author of Hacking College.
Dr. Glenn Whitehouse is Director of Core Skills at FGCU and heads up the PAGES Program.
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