The Hidden Value of Incomplete Degrees
Why Completion Rates Don't Tell the Whole Story
We often judge community colleges – and, by extension, many educational paths – by their completion rates. The assumption is that an unfinished degree represents wasted time and resources. But this perspective overlooks a crucial point: learning itself has value, regardless of whether it culminates in a diploma. We've become overly reliant on degrees as the only valid signal of competence, ignoring the substantial benefits gained even by those who don't graduate.
An individual's education can boost their economic prospects in several ways:
Increased Knowledge: Acquiring new information and skills directly enhances a person's capabilities.
Improved Reasoning: Education cultivates critical thinking and problem-solving abilities.
Signaling: A degree (or even partial coursework) acts as a "signal" to employers, indicating a certain level of commitment, ability, and knowledge.
Networking: School provides opportunities to build connections with peers and mentors, creating a valuable professional network.
While increased knowledge and improved reasoning likely benefit both the individual and society roughly equally (and in some cases, society may benefit more), the benefits of signaling and networking are skewed. The value an individual gains from these aspects significantly outweighs the value society receives.
Consider signaling. While a degree can help employers identify potentially qualified candidates, an over-reliance on this signal can be detrimental. If society prioritizes the credential over actual competence, it risks overlooking talented individuals who, for various reasons, haven't followed the traditional educational path. This can lead to less efficient and less equitable outcomes. The existence of the signal, when overemphasized, can actually diminish the overall quality of decision-making.
Networking presents a similar, though less extreme, imbalance. While a strong professional network certainly benefits the individual, the societal benefit is a smaller fraction of that individual gain.
The core issue is that we're using the wrong metric to evaluate the success of educational institutions, particularly community colleges. Focusing solely on completion rates, which primarily reflect the effectiveness of signaling, ignores the substantial value of the knowledge and skills acquired by all students, regardless of graduation status. Individuals gain demonstrable lifetime benefits from incomplete degrees, and society likely shares in all of those benefits. While completers see greater gains, a substantial portion of those gains are not transferred to society at large.
Therefore, the common critique of community colleges based on low completion rates misses the point. It reflects a societal blind spot – an inability to recognize and value learning that doesn't fit neatly into traditional degree pathways.
We need a broader perspective. Instead of fixating on diplomas, we should strive to assess individuals based on their demonstrated abilities, knowledge, and potential, regardless of their formal educational credentials. This applies not just to hiring decisions but to all aspects of life where we evaluate others. A more holistic approach will lead to a more skilled, adaptable, and equitable society.
Moreover, this shift in perspective will naturally encourage individuals to embrace lifelong learning in all its forms, and, in turn, incentivize service providers to create and offer educational opportunities that cater to this broader, more holistic pursuit of knowledge.
