By Brianna Allard

Why do we go to college? We all came in with different expectations, and we all answer that question differently. Many people point to the independence they experience or the knowledge they gain as the most important part of college, but is this really the case?

A recent New York Times post by contributor Anna North claims that college is not about either of these things and instead argues that college is not about the classes you take to earn a degree as much as it is about making both social and professional connections. Although I have only been here at Fordham for a little while, I would have to agree with this claim.

The social aspect of college is an important part of the whole experience. I remember last summer when I was getting ready to come to Fordham. People were constantly telling me that the friends I made here would be my friends forever. Even in the limited time I have been at college, I have had some great experiences with the friends I made at Fordham. Many of the adults in my life are still friends with the people they met in college and some are even married to someone they dated in college. Making social connections is definitely an integral part of the college experience because I have seen it manifested in my own life.

One example explained by North tells the story of a young man who attends college classes without officially enrolling in the class or even paying tuition. He says that his favorite part of the experience is not the free classes or the knowledge he gains from them. Instead, he claims that surrounding himself with other young people is what has had the greatest impact. He enjoys this company more than the free classes. Considering the value of college classes in today’s world, that is saying a lot.

Making friends that will last a lifetime is a definite highlight of our four years here.

However, we can all attest to the fact that socializing and making friends is not the only responsibility we have in college. There is definitely a serious side to our college experience. Upon graduation, we all hope to be employed and on our way to the real world. Here, the other type of networking that occurs in college becomes important: professional networking.

One of the main points that any school tour mentions while prospective students are looking at colleges is the opportunities for internships. After all, these internships sometimes open doors for job opportunities later on down the road. Even if they do not result in a job offer, people who have internships can still make useful connections, at the very least.

Just the name of a college itself can take you places. For example, it seemed that after I decided to go to Fordham, current students and alumni with whom I was somehow connect began popping up, including people who worked with my parents and more distant family members.

What this does is open up professional connections with just the mention of a particular school. I know graduates of Fordham who are responsible for hiring interns, and prospective interns from Fordham take priority on their lists. Of course, I am assuming this phenomenon is not unique to just Fordham, as it probably happens at every college. The point is that the college name opens up professional opportunities, and especially internships, even without the degree.

Since almost everyone goes to college nowadays, having a degree does not necessarily put you ahead in the job market, which is already difficult to maneuver given the economy of today. Our best bet to landing a job we love after college is to make professional connections while we are still in college.

Of course, the degree we get after the completion of our core and major requirements is still a very important part of the overall college experience. We are paying to earn this degree, and without it, the connections that we make will not get us as far as we would like. However, there is a shift in emphasis occurring.

Instead of simply relying on the degree you get, you can now get ahead through the connections you make in college.

Brianna Allard, FCRH ’18, is a communication and media studies and history major from Somers, Connecticut.