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The University of California at Los Angeles and the American Council on Education released results of their sixteenth annual survey of American freshmen college students. The findings reveal an attitude of increasing materialism. According to the survey, 65.2 percent of the freshmen students said that "being well-off financially" is a very important goal in life. This compares with 43.5 percent in the 1967 survey and 63.3 percent last year. A very important reason for going to college, according to 67 percent of today's freshmen, is "to be able to make more money." In 1971, 49.9 percent gave this as a reason for going to college, and the figure was 63.4 percent last year. Asked what life goal they consider very important, 62.9 percent of the freshmen in the current survey said "helping others in difficulty," down from 64.7 percent last year and 66 percent in 1975.
The director of the survey commented, "This pattern of declining altruism and idealism, together with increasing materialism, may mean that selfish interests are difficult to reconcile with concerns about the welfare of others."
The teaching of Jesus is just the reverse of this trend: "If one of you wants to be great, he must be the servant of the rest."
- Clausen
The University of California at Los Angeles and the American Council on Education released results of their sixteenth annual survey of American freshmen college students. The findings reveal an attitude of increasing materialism. According to the survey, 65.2 percent of the freshmen students said that "being well-off financially" is a very important goal in life. This compares with 43.5 percent in the 1967 survey and 63.3 percent last year. A very important reason for going to college, according to 67 percent of today's freshmen, is "to be able to make more money." In 1971, 49.9 percent gave this as a reason for going to college, and the figure was 63.4 percent last year. Asked what life goal they consider very important, 62.9 percent of the freshmen in the current survey said "helping others in difficulty," down from 64.7 percent last year and 66 percent in 1975.
The director of the survey commented, "This pattern of declining altruism and idealism, together with increasing materialism, may mean that selfish interests are difficult to reconcile with concerns about the welfare of others."
The teaching of Jesus is just the reverse of this trend: "If one of you wants to be great, he must be the servant of the rest."
- Clausen
