What Should Every College Graduate Know?

While the Obama Administration tries to introduce the rating system for qualification over the university graduates, Japan’s education rebuilding council considers to replace hand-writing entrance exams with interviews to “appreciate high school students’ diversity.” The difference in how each country approaches to measuring the core value of the university suggests that Japan’s society is still unclear about the significance of the higher education, because passing through the world’s most difficult level entrance exams is supposed to guarantee the quality of students, which is nothing related to what they learn while in universities, and now even that qualification the council is going to turn off. A meaningful guide to re-define the value of higher education in Japan is provided by the problem that America’s colleges and universities confront: What should every college graduate know?

General knowledge acquired in core curriculum

One says what every college student have to acquire through higher education is general knowledge in a wide range of subjects; in other wards, there are certain books one should read and certain facts one should know to be considered a truly educated person. By reading classic texts and discussing them in the context of enduring issues in human society, such as individuality, capitalism, and governance, every student is compelled to engage with ideas that forms the mainstream of the society and more importantly gets ready for being a part of it. These knowledges might not be directly utilised in alumni’s profession and benefit practically his/her life in any circumstances; however, it would be difficult for graduates to adopt themselves into the society without knowing the basis of what they are going to belong.

More specialised knowledge that students are free to choose

On the other hand, many academics prefer to teach more specialised courses and allow students more freedom to set their own curriculums. The prevailing academic culture puts more emphasis on developing a students’s ability in a certain academic field to confront questions and find answers to them: how to think, how to express, how to handle data, and how to conduct a experiment. These technical skills and specialised knowledge enable graduates to make money immediately and instantly. Moreover, the freedom to choose one’s academic path will keep a student’s motivation in learning and pursuing his/her own specialty along with the interest. 

Speciality is not enough 

Today’s academic administration, whether in the U.S. or somewhere else, is in a great anxiety among key constituencies—parents, alumni and employers, and pushed along with their requests towards more pragmatic and instant education focusing on specialty and qualification. Students deserve to make up their own curriculum, taking risk in selecting how they build intellectual foundation, which may not be the one society (or employers) expect them, as some graduate surveys in the U.S. find out a considerable portion of students leave the school without basic knowledge about society and raise concerns widely among education and economic authorities*. This is the pitfall that the current academic trend involves and therefore why colleges and universities are responsible for providing with common core subjects in which students are compelled to learn indispensable knowledge in the society.

*The Class of 2025, Jon Meacham, TIME issued October 7, 2013.