38 Myths About U.S. System of Higher Education

In his 2008 book, No Sucker Left Behind: Avoiding The Great College Rip-Off, Marc Scheer exposed the following 38 myths about the 21st-century system of higher education in the United States:

Myth 1: "People have to go to college to get a `college education.'"

Myth 2: "Everyone should go to college."

Myth 3: "College degrees are required for success."

Myth 4: "Prestigious jobs that require graduate degrees always pay well."

Myth 5: "Graduate degrees always lead to an excellent payoff for students."

Myth 6: "Borrowers should pay back their student loans as quickly as possible."

Myth 7: "Students should study the subjects they enjoy most, regardless of the costs."

Myth 8: "Prestigious colleges provide a better education than other colleges."

Myth 9: "American citizens get good value from all of the government money spent on college."

Myth 10: "Prestigious colleges provide better payoffs than other colleges."

Myth 11: "Expensive colleges provide better payoffs than other colleges."

Myth 12: "It's easy for college grads to get some kind of job."

Myth 13: "It's easy for college grads to find college-level jobs."

Myth 14: "It's easy for college grads to find high-paying college-level jobs."

Myth 15: "College leads to an excellent payoff for all students."

Myth 16: "After college, college graduates tend to gain financial advantages over high school graduates very quickly."

Myth 17: "A college degree is worth about $1 million (or more over a lifetime)."

Myth 18: "Colleges give their students the support they need in order to graduate."

Myth 19: "The college grading system accurately measures and represents true student learning."

Myth 20: "Celebrity professors enhance student education."

Myth 21: "College instructors are open to all perspectives."

Myth 22: "College instructors communicate effectively."

Myth 23: "College instructors are good teachers."

Myth 24: "Professors improve their teaching skills by conducting research projtects."

Myth 25: "Professors' top priority is to teach students."

Myth 26: "Colleges encourage their professors to focus on teaching."

Myth 27: "College students receive instruction from professors who teach full-time."

Myth 28: "Colleges are committed to giving their students a good education."

Myth 29: "If it's a `college education,' it must be good."

Myth 30: "The food that colleges sell to students is healthy and safe."

Myth 31: "Colleges offer food that students enjoy eating."

Myth 32: "College food is inexpensive."

Myth 33: "On-campus housing is safer than off-campus housing."

Myth 34: "On-campus housing is more helpful than off-campus housing."

Myth 35: "On-campus housing is less expensive than off-campus housing."

Myth 36: "College students only pay costs for four years of college (or less)."

Myth 37: "Colleges have very little money and need every penny they can get."

Myth 38: "College graduates are financially `set for life.'"