Laura Newland’s generation has worked the hardest to gain admission to elite colleges and paid the most to attend. But when Newland left her Alabama hometown and arrived at Duke University, she found a liberal arts campus unlike anything depicted in those glossy guidebooks. The hypercompetitive battle for internships begins freshman year, and the economic pressures–student loans, the daunting cost of graduate degrees, high unemployment–are relentless. This perfect storm, brewing on campuses across the country, has fueled a Wall Street recruiting machine that is winning over the best and the brightest. In no time, Newland was seduced.
From Newland’s turbulent four years comes a provocative story of the higher education industry; the tension between ambition and indebtedness, privilege and purpose; and one student’s journey to make sense of it all.
Must-read for parents of high-achieving HS and college students Ms. Newland’s “Chasing Zeroes” provides a strikingly accurate and eye-opening account of the aspects of our higher education system that are pushing so many ambitious and promising young people into career paths that they themselves often feel forced to pursue. Whether due to very real debt concerns or increasingly common perceptions that higher education should be measured primarily by financial ROI, students today are facing increasingly intense pressure to follow careers based solely…
Must Read for Parents of College-Bound Students 0
Great exposé on the American college machine This is a fascinating and informative look at the real pressures that face American college students today. As a recent college graduate myself, I can attest to the types of experiences described in Laura Newland’s book. Chasing Zeroes brings to light the reality of the situation for many college students — torn between following passions and succumbing to the tempting Wall Street/corporate route that promises a comfortable and profitable living. Newland reveals her own story of her…