Liberal education vs. professionalism

In our last discussion section this past Friday, Professor Downey brought up the advantages of a liberal arts education and the relative disadvantages of being "pigeon-holed" into an education focused on a single profession. Being the ever-cynical person that I am, I - possibly mistakenly - took Prof. Downey's comment as an elitist jab at trade schools and community colleges, such as MATC. Initially, he seemed to me to be tooting the horn of the wonderful university of which we are all already a part by saying how we spend our time at UW dipping our feet in several different disciplines, and finding out what we're good at by failing over and over again. While this is certainly true, I also viewed it as the perfect moment for me to step in and argue with Prof. Downey using the perspective of current socioeconomic issues in the United States. Bear with me here, people. I promise I have a point.

My issue with this exaltation of a liberal arts education at a four-year university stemmed from my experience with poverty. While my family has thankfully never been below the poverty line as it is defined by the U.S. government, I have witnessed poverty almost daily since I was little. A fairly high percentage of students in Milwaukee Public Schools (where I spent the entirety of my school career) are considered to be "low income". Some of these students are fortunate enough to come from highly supportive families who would do anything to ensure a quality postsecondary education for their child. However, many of these poorer students go through all levels of their schooling with the hope of graduating from high school and getting a job. They want to, sometimes need to, get a practical education so they can enter the labor force right away and being making money to support themselves and their families. This practical education often comes in the form of attending a junior college or a trade school where they can train for a specific profession, whether it be medical assistant, mechanic, or electrician.

These young people do not have the luxury of being able to enroll in a traditional university and spend four or more years floating around, deciding what they want to do with their lives. If they're lucky, they'll make enough money out of highschool, save it, and then pursue some higher learning in a field they're interested in. I don't mean to put all junior college attendees into one group, nor do I mean to belittle or take for granted the value of a comprehensive liberal arts education. As Prof. Downey and one of my classmates said, the purpose of the type of education we're getting is to make us happier people. It's just that for some people, happiness may need to come in the form of a steady job and a regular paycheck. Fortunately, the curriculum in journalism classes such as J201 seems to provide a nice medium in this spectrum of professionalism to liberal education. Being a student in the J School will certainly provide you with the training and knowledge you need to obtain an entry-level position in the field. But it will also give you insight into how journalism and mass communication relates to, borrows from, and shares ideas with a variety of other disciplines, including history, sociology, economics, political science, etc. So although I may not personally want to become a journalist, I appreciate its value, as well as the value it can lend to people from all walks of life, rich and poor alike.