The debate of whether or not to hammer out a bachelor’s degree in three or four years is alive and well. Some students choose to get in and out of university faster than one might spend in an adult novelty store, while others do not. However, there are pros and cons of taking your time in the novelty store.

CONS:

Stretching out your studies means stretching out your budget. The longer you decide to take to finish your degree, the more it is going to cost you. I’m not talking about tuition dollars, but referring to the concept of opportunity cost. Simply put, opportunity cost is the cost of one thing, foregoing an alternative.

In this analysis, we’re talking about the opportunity cost of those two extra years in university — one thing — when you could have otherwise been out in the workforce making the big bucks — the alternative.

For example, if a good entry-level job out of university pays $40,000 yearly, then by taking two extra years of university education, you’re looking at an opportunity cost of $80,000. Add to this the extra student fees you’ll pay for two more years and you’ve got a hefty bill to foot.

Finances aside, there are many other reasons it sucks to be a student. Our diets, for the most part, consist of 73 per cent ramen noodles. We usually live paycheque to paycheque and take whatever crappy part-time and summer jobs we can get. So staying in school longer means putting up with these things for a longer period of time.

Enough with the negativity though — let’s look at some of the positives of taking longer to finish a bachelor’s degree.

PROS:

I’ll start this category with money, once again. I did say that staying in university longer will cost you more — and that’s no lie. However, looking at those sweet, sweet greenbacks from another angle breathes new light into this side of the argument.

If you are taking fewer classes per term, you do have more time to potentially toil away at that crappy — or maybe not-so-crappy at all — job of yours. You might even be able to make enough to somewhat compensate the opportunity cost of staying in university longer, helping you to avoid racking up student loans. Loans accumulate interest and interest on debt is bad.

By staying in university longer, you also have more opportunities to network. Universities are hotbeds for opportunities like this. Career expos and guidance, volunteering, internships and inspirational academics are only but a few of the amazing opportunities, not to mention the people that hang out in and around universities. The longer you’re here, the more time you’ll have to connect and build relationships through these events and with these people.

Lastly, you’ll have more time to think about who you are. University is a time of discovery for most people and discovering what your strengths, weaknesses and interests are is crucial to your future success.

It’s here that I’ll admit that I’m one of those people taking a six-year bachelor’s degree, and I have no regrets.

If you’re not dead-set on a particular career, industry or field, then taking the extra time to figure that out before hastily jumping into the workforce, signing a mortgage and making babies is certainly worth it.

CONCLUSION:

These are only a few of the pros and cons to consider. Whatever you decide, it’s really a matter of what is most important to you and what you want out of life. However, my argument leans toward the “stay longer” option.

Having more contacts, knowing what’s important to you and having stronger skills for the workforce never hurt anyone. In dollar terms, the opportunity cost of these benefits may be high, but I’d say it’s definitely worth it. You’ll just perform that much better in everything you do later in life.

Never feel embarrassed to be one of those students who hangs out in the adult novelty shop for a while.

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Bodan Worobetz

Graphic: Lesia Karalash / Graphics Editor