“The people we want to become”: Jorge Salles Diaz on elite universities

Many of the students at top-ranked universities have worked enormously hard to get there. They know that a degree from such an institution will pay off in “the market.” Such an emphasis, however, has its own costs and consequences. Vanderbilt University student Jorge Salles Diaz takes a step back and poses some larger questions in this November 2017 essay in the student newspaper Vanderbilt Hustler.

Read it here: Salles Diaz, “Let’s be honest about why we’re here”

 

1. Salles Diaz, a student at a top-ranked university, notes that he and his classmates have “come here with the idea that we want to be the best.” Now that he’s there, however, he takes issue with the idea of “the best.” What is the problem that Salles Diaz describes? Summarize his argument. Is it persuasive? Why or why not?
2. Salles Diaz’s essay is written principally in the first-person plural; that is, he talks mainly about “we” and “us.” Why might he have chosen that rhetorical strategy? Reread the essay, mentally changing all the instances of “we” and “us” to “you” or to “they/them.” In what ways does the essay feel different with the changed pronouns? Has Salles Diaz chosen the most effective strategy with the use of first-person plural? Why or why not?
3. What is the They Say in Salles Diaz’s essay? Where do you find it? Read (or re-read) Chapter 1 of your text. Then, explain what Salles Diaz does in order to let readers know what “larger conversation” he is responding to.
4. In his closing paragraph, Salles Diaz makes suggestions to his fellow Vanderbilt students, but in fact, they could apply to any student, anywhere. How much talking do you do about “issues outside the frame of the market”? How much do you reflect on “why [you] want what [you] want”? How important do you think Salles Diaz’s questions are? Why? Reflect and write an essay addressing those questions, using Salles Diaz as your They Say.

Comments

[Ying Hong]

I agree with Jorge Diaz that students should clearly understand what they want to obtain from college instead of caring too much about numbers. In today’s society, a majority of students try their best to get good grades in SAT test in order to get into top brand universities. From their perspective, as long as they get into the best universities, they will undoubtedly have a bright future such as getting a good job and making much money. People tend to judge many things other people by numbers such as ranking and grades. However, there are still many graduates from top universities remain unemployed. There are also some people who become successful in their career even without a college degree. Top universities cannot always guarantee a bright future for students. It is students’ hard work which will lead to success in their future career. It is essential for students to study hard and to make full use of school resources. Some students who study in top universities assume that they do not need to worry about their employment in the future, so they get lazy in learning. In contrast, some students in normal universities might work harder and pursue their ambition step by step. It is definitely hard to tell who will have a more successful career in the future. Numbers and grades do not mean everything. It is recommended that students understand what outcome they want after graduation. Students are suggested to talk to their professors often to seek professional advice. Also, students are recommended to attend internship and major-related practice, through which they are able to obtain a better understanding of what they like and what they want. Therefore, it is recommended that students attach more importance to their ambition than the numbers and rankings. Students should work hard no matter what college or university they are studying in.

[Stanley Rosander]

There is a saying that says, "Its better to be a rats head than a lions tail." Applied to the college debate, I believe that sometimes it is better for students to study at a smaller university where they excel and become one of the top of their classes. They will have more confidence with their skill set and many times be better prepared to work in the field. That is not to say that top tier universities are a bust, but sometimes students go there only to find themselves dropping out only a few semesters later.

[Ryan Miggin]

I really appreciate the things Diaz is saying in his article. He is very right that our educational world has become far too focused on our grade point average and various test scores, that we have completely lost the drive to become educated. I have seen in my own life the way this has affected how my friends and myself look at school. It is always very dangerous when the means to reach your end become the end themselves. This distorts our view, changes our goals, and creates bitter competition that is in no way progressive.

[Clay]

There is definitely a growing binary way of looking at life, we have our work and education on one side, and then anything leisure related on the other. I agree this could be diminished by remembering the reason for college and education in general, and promoting living life to its fullest extent.

[Mary Cate]

I agree with Diaz very strongly. I am not even in college yet, but high school is already taking "numbers" to far. Students have to look perfect just to get into the college of their dreams. I want to go to Clemson, which is not a top ranked school, but I still struggled with getting accepted even though I have a 5.022 GPA, 2nd in the class, and 1210 SAT. But to Clemson I guess they still want more, higher, better. Students are more worried about the numbers, grades, scores, than they are about actually digging in and learning the information. For a school to only pick rich families and only high SAT or ACT scores, just so they get ranked, is very wrong and shallow. That is not how the school system should work, they are missing ou ton many people with huge potentials and opportunities.

[Jodie M.]

I don't necessarily agree with Diaz on his views of colleges taking test scores too seriously. Test scores are meant to indicate how well an individual preforms academically, and if a person’s test scores do not reflect having a high enough academic ability then they probably shouldn't be taking advanced classes that these exclusive schools offer. Competition is just a principle of nature that has and will always exist. Theoretically, not having winners and losers would definitely be preferable in situations like this, but it's not something that can be feasible.

[Breanne]

College is tough for some and not so much for others, but the teachers make you learn so much in such little time they crunch these "numbers" in your head thinking you may not be good enough but do they understand that I could have just studied for 4 different exams in the past week, while working full time/part time and taking 17 credit hours. These numbers/grades can hurt at times because you tried your hardest and that one number means you either pass or fail. But you just have to get back up and keep trying.

[Irie Snider]

I agree, college is meant for taking the next step and learning more about what you want to accomplish in life. I agree with Diaz on his views of colleges taking numbers/test scores too seriously. Students work very hard to get to where they want to attend college and how they are going to be viewed as a scholar. It is a necessity that high school graduates already have a plan on where they want to go to college, if they want to attend college. But there are also people who don't attend college and still become successful without a college degree. But overall, I agree with Diaz's views because he emphasizes that even though some colleges take test scores too seriously, it is still important to work hard.

[Ashley Guillen]

I agree with Jorge Diaz, if we want to be the best we must work for it! If we want to be at the top we must work for it. We who work hard strive to achieve greatness! Even though people might just say it’s competition, students should clearly understand what they want to obtain from college instead of worrying about the numbers. Our education world has become far to focused on our grade point average and various test scores, that we have completely lost the drive to become eduacated. There are a lot of people that don’t continue there school educations because their to focused of on grades and not being smart enough for school. In today’s society, a majority of the students try to score high SAT scores in order to get into top brand Univeristies. From their perspective, as long as they get into top universities, they will have a succefull future and a good job making a lot of money. People tend to judge people by numbers such as grades and rankings. However, there are still many graduates from top universities who still remain unemployed. There are also a lot of people who become successful in their career even without a college degree. Some students who study in top unveristues assume that they do not need to worry about their employement in the future, so they get lazy in learning. On the contrary, we have students in normal universities who might work harder and pursue their ambition step by step. Grades and Rankings should not distort people’s views in attending college. It also should not change our goals, and create bitter competition that is no way progressive.