EPTOn May 14 2013 06:37 Cyx. wrote:
Motivation is the only truly difficult thing about university... I've struggled with a lot of the same problems for the first couple years of my university experience too, but unfortunately I don't have anything earthshattering to say to you other than yeah, it's going to be shitty. The only thing that makes it doable is knowing that you're working towards something you want to do - no matter how many times you switch programs to something that sounds like it will be more up your alley, university is full of these kinds of courses, and it's going to be impossible for you to get through a year of school without thinking one or two of your courses is totally pointless and nothing but painful, the same way you are now. If you don't learn to survive these courses, you're not going to be able to finish university, and if you know that in four years you're going to be doing something you actually enjoy, it makes them much more bearable.
But whatever you do, don't fall into the trap of thinking you can avoid having to take these kinds of courses - learning to get through this kind of situation is one of the things you absolutely NEED to be able to do to survive any university degree, and you can't dodge it.
Motivation is the only truly difficult thing about university... I've struggled with a lot of the same problems for the first couple years of my university experience too, but unfortunately I don't have anything earthshattering to say to you other than yeah, it's going to be shitty. The only thing that makes it doable is knowing that you're working towards something you want to do - no matter how many times you switch programs to something that sounds like it will be more up your alley, university is full of these kinds of courses, and it's going to be impossible for you to get through a year of school without thinking one or two of your courses is totally pointless and nothing but painful, the same way you are now. If you don't learn to survive these courses, you're not going to be able to finish university, and if you know that in four years you're going to be doing something you actually enjoy, it makes them much more bearable.
But whatever you do, don't fall into the trap of thinking you can avoid having to take these kinds of courses - learning to get through this kind of situation is one of the things you absolutely NEED to be able to do to survive any university degree, and you can't dodge it.
This is right on. Part of the point of universities is to give you an education that is broad in scope. Otherwise, there wouldn't really be much point to undergraduate education. Most of the specific skills you will use in your work you will learn on the job. So even if things you are learning are seemingly not useful, it is the LEARNING PROCESS itself that is useful. This is why med schools dont take students who did bad in organic chemistry. Its not because doctors need to be good in organic chemistry (they really don't...). It is because doing well in organic chemistry is indicative that you can solve complex problems in a system that is initially unfamiliar.
I was a Biology major. I had to take calculus, organic and inorganic chemistry, and physics, none of which directly applies to what I do now (I'm going into biology research as a PhD student), but the learning process changed how my mind works. Every course is valuable, and it can valuable in ways you will never be able to predict. Your job as a student is to get what you can out of your courses, because college is really only going to be as valuable as you make it (beyond just the degree). And that is actually a huge opportunity...
