Unshelved by Bill Barnes and Gene Ambaum
comic strip overdue media

Saturday, December 01, 2012

I loved college so much I stayed way to too long, and wasn't particularly more employable

So I can't argue this might be a better option for many people:

Saying No to College
Benjamin Goering does not look like Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, talk like him or inspire the same controversy. But he does apparently think like him.

Two years ago, Mr. Goering was a sophomore at the University of Kansas, studying computer science and philosophy and feeling frustrated in crowded lecture halls where the professors did not even know his name.
But....

Unlike the quote in the article, I really do not think college is there to make managers. College is to educate, to broaden horizons, to learn to think. Almost all of the successful people in the article didn't skip college--they dropped out after a couple of years. Also, they almost all have a entrepreneurial drive that not everyone has. There is a big difference between being a CEO of a company at 23 and flipping burgers. That has a lot to do with opportunities, education, and inner drive. And I might add, there's no shame to the latter if its what you enjoy and want to do.

What we've got to to realise is that college is not for everyone. Some will hide from the world in the cocoon of acadaemia, like I did, amassing debt. Some will never be able to handle the rigours of even short-term degees. Some would be best in technical schools than a four-year university. Some would do better to work for non-profits halfway across the world. The thing is, there is no 'one-way ticket' to success in life. And success doesn't just equal making money. Success is about fulfillment of personal dreams and goals, which are subject to change as you go throughout life. For some people, college is the answer. For others, it isn't. Simple as that. I have a career that has a master's as its entry-level degree, presumes a wide knowledge and often a secondary specialty, but isn't paid as well as those with lesser education. But you know what? I love being a librarian. And a long time ago, I made the decision to pursue what I loved over money. It's meant hard times in the past, and may mean hard times in the future, but still....it's fulfilling and I also have the fact that I'm helping people and work in a good environment. So even though I've had my doubts along the way, I realise that somewhere along the way I became successful, and having that education (and the pieces of paper that went with it) drove my success. Which is pretty decent for someone who felt like a failure for never managing to get a phD. :)

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