A recent college graduate named Greg Lewin published this piece at the website of ACTA, the American Council of Trustees and Alumni.

Dear Future College Students

Congratulations! You’ve been accepted into college! If I may, I’d like to share some of my ideas on what it means to go to college, and how to select a college and college program that will prepare you for all of the important things you want to accomplish.

Looking back, it’s amazing to examine how much changes between the ages of 18 and 22. According to law, when we turn 18 a switch is flipped and we become adults. Suddenly we can vote, we can choose where we live, we can decide what classes we take in college.

Choosing which courses to take in college may not seem like a huge decision. Checking boxes to fulfill a patchwork of requirements seems almost too easy. But in essence, you are asking yourself, “What knowledge will equip me with the wisdom required to make life’s big decisions?”

At least, that’s what you should be asking yourself. That particular question was never posed by Freshman Greg. Instead, Freshman Greg set to tackling such imponderables as, “Will this class fit in my schedule?” “Will this professor be fun?” and “Does putting hot dogs in my oatmeal count as breakfast or dinner?”

At 18, I did not identify the gaps in my fundamental knowledge. I did not choose classes that would help fill these gaps and prepare me for the real world. Though legally I was an adult, truthfully I was a college kid who didn’t know any better. And no one told me otherwise.

In fact, colleges across the country have loosened curricular requirements to attract more students. It’s the same reason why so many schools are building state-of-the-art facilities (and passing the bill onto the students in the form of increased tuition prices). Today, according to the What Will They Learn?™ study, less than 40% of colleges require a college-level literature course. Just 18% require an American history or government course, and a paltry 3% require economics.