If you think college life is all about sororities, frats, all-nighters and freedom to follow a path of exploration and discovery, you are not alone. But Javier A. Daniel, doing his MA in Brooklyn College paints a reality that is all his own. He is not alone, either. In brief, this is what he said:
He had spent a week at the St. John's campus but the cost wouldn't allow his to join. He had grants and scholarships. He still needed $8000 to join St. John's that semester. He had two choices.

[1] Take a huge loan, enjoy college life and pay back for many years. [2] Work and study full-time without "enjoying" college life. He chose Hunter college for his under-grad study.
His days went like this: Up 5 am to report to work. 9 am classes after a graveyard shift. Evening classes after just a few hours of sleep. In between, I guess he had to find time to shop, wash, cook, grab a bite and study.

Altogether, 45-hour work-weeks and full curriculums. He said, "...the City University of New York used to be free. Now blacks and Hispanics enroll en masse, and have to pay."

Javier says he wanted to go to Brooklyn Law School. His LSATs weren't very good, so he had to abandon that dream. After graduation, he took up a job as a paralegal and joined Broklyn College for his MA. He says he is focussing on immigration in New York, a subject close to his heart. "I was laid off in December," he wrote. "Still, I am going to finish this education."

Wonderful spirit, no doubt, but his story raises uncomfortable questions.

In terms of the hard work students like him are capable of, in spite of the fact that students like him pack in so much into a day and still manage reasonable grades, how is that their degrees are not put on par with those from New York University and Harvard? How many students from those "prestigious universities" handled the schedules that Javier had?

Is his knowledge of American History, his ability to apply it in his work any way less creditable than that of someone from a well-known college? Should his academic merit be decided by the name of the college/university from which his degree was obtained?

This is the opportunity that Javier and other students like him miss out in the education system.

Education, the kind that is recognised immediately, is not open to all.

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