|
I find it rather interesting that in American society, we place such a strong emphasis in going to college. In America, two-thirds of all high school graduates go on to college, in some middle class suburbs, that number reaches 90 percent. It must be hard for those students at graduation day in high school, the ones that are not planning on going to college. At my high school, all but one of the graduates went on to some sort of post-secondary institution. It makes sense why so many students are going to college straight after high school, it makes you normal to go to college. You see the kids who don't go to college. Generally, they have no idea what the hell they want to do, and usually they're too poor to afford it, so they spend the rest of their lives working as a cashier for McDonald's or some shit.
I find it also rather interesting that students go into college with no clue what they want to do. About 80% of students change their major at least once. To me this is striking, because if one is going to invest somewhere between 15000$ - 50000$ a year, wouldn't you want to know why you're investing this money? That's basically what college should be to every student, an investment. You're investing somewhere around four years and 100000$ for a degree that can hopefully get you a job which will easily pay the college cost off. Honestly though, not many students think about it in these terms. People mindlessly go into college, without knowing why they are doing it. The University of Minnesota graduates barely half of it's students + Show Spoiler +, showing that people often go into college without thinking about it, and drop out because they either didn't think about how costly it would be, or because they realized how useless a college degree is to their lives.
College isn't for everyone. People seem to go into it because they listen to the misleading statistic that college graduates make more money. Which is true. But that doesn't mean that you HAVE to hold a college degree to make a lot of money. Think for a second. Who makes more money? A mechanic or a philosophy major (no offense to you philosophy majors out there). Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, dropped out of college after one semester and he's one of the richest men in the world.
I am in no ways saying that college is useless. Do you want to be a doctor, a lawyer, or a teacher? Great! You should go to college. There are many professions which require college degrees, and if you know you want to do one of those jobs, then college is an excellent choice for you. In the same respect, there are many occupations that do not require college degrees, where you can still make a considerable amount of money + Show Spoiler +. But there are so many people out there, especially high school seniors, who are forcing themselves to figure out what they want to do for the rest of their lives. And even though they do not know what they want to do, they choose to go to college anyway. Sure it may cost you 20000$ a year, but all your friends are doing it, and maybe four years of college will spark the epiphany of “what the hell am I doing with my life” that four years of high school did not.
It's almost like students are too scared to go off into the real world. Or feel that they are not ready yet. Which is true in many cases, I have the balls to say that a majority of student who just finished high school are not mature enough to handle the hardships of the adult world. Things such as looking for jobs, paying bills/taxes, cooking, etc. So they do what they do what is most secure for them, which is being a student. I guess in many ways college is good because it can also serve as preparation for the adult world. You get an education which can help with jobs, and you get to live on your own and learn how to take care of things without the aid of your parents.
So, you high school seniors who have no clue what you want to do, I'm going to tell you that instead of forcing yourself to figure out what you want to do (because honestly, you won't know whether or not you like something unless you actually experience it), you should consider whether or not college is right for you, rather than making it a default option. College takes four years, and you'll be forced to take a lot of BS classes (Bullshit, not Bachelor of Sciences). It can cost anywhere from Full Ride (0$) to 50000$ a year (if you are graced with the former, then you have a relatively easy choice). And your degree will not guarantee you a job.
I made this post originally as a question. “Is college necessary?” But it seems I answered my own question as I wrote this up. I am currently in college. I'm paying 15000$ per year, and it's all coming out of loans which I have no clue how I'm going to pay off. I originally came in as a music major. But I didn't realize at the time that you don't need a degree to be a competent musician. And you also don't need a degree to be able to teach private lessons (which is what I want to do), and get gigs in restaurants. But honestly, I don't even know if I want to do music for the rest of my life. So for now, my plan is to teach saxophone, clarinet, and piano lessons in my hometown to make some money (15$/half hour lesson), find gigs, drop out of college, and find a new hobby that can potentially become my profession. A big limiting belief that many kids in high school have is that the only place you can go to find out what you want to do with the rest of your life is in college. I might come back to do the whole college thing, again, it depends on what I want to do at some time... lol.
 
|
Well, depends on what you want to do. If i had wanted to be a businessman all my life, id probably wouldnt go, yeah.
|
Honestly I would do the whole college thing if I could see myself doing a normal job like being a doctor, or lawyer, or office worker, etc. But I can't. Maybe I'm just weird.
|
some stuff dont require college, well, basically what cloud said.
|
im not doing it for the job, im doing it to have a sense of self fulfillment; saying "i did it man."
|
im an academic
its hard to become a physicist without going to college
that is all
|
Isn't college meant to be the place where you find what you want to do with the rest of your lives? I don't think it is a bad thing that many people go to college without a good idea of what they want to do. I have no idea what I want to do once I graduate(after grad school ofc), but there's no way I want to go without a college education whether or not I'm going to need it. Btw I am also a music major and your age too.
The only way I could justify dropping out of college would be if I couldn't pay for it, which seems to be your problem anyway.
|
College is pretty heavily subsidized, ergo, far more people go to college than should.
|
infinity21
Canada6683 Posts
I agree that it's not for everyone but there's nothing wrong with changing majors imo. In my case, I knew I wanted to go into a field in mathematics, so I went into a math & business admin program. Now I changed my focus to just math and will major in mathematical finance. I found out more about my BBA program and made a decision based on my experiences at the universities I attended. This doesn't cost me any more money and I will graduate at the same time.
Sure, I knew I was a mathie since I was in elementary but I didn't know what field of mathematics I will be specializing in back then. Most people won't know until they've taken the courses in university.
|
On February 18 2009 12:38 infinity21 wrote:
I agree that it's not for everyone but there's nothing wrong with changing majors imo. In my case, I knew I wanted to go into a field in mathematics, so I went into a math & business admin program. Now I changed my focus to just math and will major in mathematical finance. I found out more about my BBA program and made a decision based on my experiences at the universities I attended. This doesn't cost me any more money and I will graduate at the same time.
Sure, I knew I was a mathie since I was in elementary but I didn't know what field of mathematics I will be specializing in back then. Most people won't know until they've taken the courses in university.
Yea in your case you didn't lose anything other than maybe 8 dwindling credits that don't go to your degree requirements. It's the people who plan on going on four year tracks that turn into six year tracks that I'm really against. And it's also the people who just use college as an excuse to party and mooch money off their parents for another four years that I'm against (e.g. my older brother)
|
It seems to me that you're trying hard to rationalize your decision to drop out of college, which is fine.
As a musician myself, I have to say that I benefited from taking music classes in school. The theory classes gave me a perspective that I wouldn't have been able to reach on my own.
That said, a competent private tutor could have taught you that better for a cheaper price, so I guess college isn't completely necessary for that.
There is something that nothing can replicate though, and it's the peer group. Nowhere else will you be around a mass of similarly aged people trying to learn and educate themselves. That might be worth something to you.
|
For me it was a must, hell for me grad school is a must in my field (anthropology). I knew I was going into Anthropology from day 1, never changed majors and now im in graduate school.
|
It's necessary for certain goals.
Unnecessary for others.
The public education system (High School) does put WAY too much emphasis on the 4 year university; vocational training is essentially shoved out of the discussion.
|
On February 18 2009 12:25 SpiritoftheTunA wrote:
im an academic
its hard to become a physicist without going to college
that is all
Well obviously you know what you want to do with your life and see that college is the best way (and maybe even only way) to get what you want.
I think StarN is referring to everyone who goes to college purely because of social pressure telling them that it's the only way for them to become a success. While a college degree does help immensely, blowing tens of thousands of dollars on classes without even knowing what you want to do with your life seems like a waste, which is what a lot of people end up doing.
|
ooh, to think i could be a dental hygenist and making $55k a year
god damn these graduate degrees holding me down
|
I still encourage those to go to a community college for the first 2 years if they are undecided on their major. You save a lot of money since the first 2 years is mainly general education courses. I have a friend who goes to San Jose State University and he said his classes are about $500 each while I pay only $13 (excluding material fees) at De Anza Community College (top rated CC in the U.S. with high transfer rates  ).
|
infinity21
Canada6683 Posts
On February 18 2009 12:43 StarN wrote:Show nested quote +On February 18 2009 12:38 infinity21 wrote:
I agree that it's not for everyone but there's nothing wrong with changing majors imo. In my case, I knew I wanted to go into a field in mathematics, so I went into a math & business admin program. Now I changed my focus to just math and will major in mathematical finance. I found out more about my BBA program and made a decision based on my experiences at the universities I attended. This doesn't cost me any more money and I will graduate at the same time.
Sure, I knew I was a mathie since I was in elementary but I didn't know what field of mathematics I will be specializing in back then. Most people won't know until they've taken the courses in university. Yea in your case you didn't lose anything other than maybe 8 dwindling credits that don't go to your degree requirements. It's the people who plan on going on four year tracks that turn into six year tracks that I'm really against. And it's also the people who just use college as an excuse to party and mooch money off their parents for another four years that I'm against (e.g. my older brother)
Oh, THAT kind of changing. Yeah, it can be a waste for people who jump from one field to another. It's a shame people don't really know what they like to do even after they graduate from high school. I don't see any reason why they shouldn't figure out the general field they want to be in or at least narrow it down to 2-3 choices by the time they start applying to universities. They should be able to make a smart choice based on that but I suppose most people don't think that deep into it. It's their life to waste though... oh well =/
I don't know any people who mooch money off their parents just to party and not go into the workforce personally but that is a terrible way to live. I'm in a co-op program right now so by the time I graduate, I would have paid back all the money that my parents paid for my education as well as any loans I have outstanding and still be up $20k or so. Plus, I get 2 years of work experience (related or not) who helps with networking as well
I suppose I'm rather fortunate that universities don't cost an arm and a leg to attend up here (yay Canada~).
|
|
|
On a slight sidenote, I always laugh when people say college is great because they need to "find themselves." The only thing I found is that if you picked engineering, college is hard.
|
While I'm inclined to agree with your assessment that college isn't necessary--obviously it's not--I pretty adamantly disagree with the way you phrase it as a basic cost-benefit analysis where it's all about how much it costs vs. how much you make to repay said costs.
That's basically what college should be to every student, an investment. You're investing somewhere around four years and 100000$ for a degree that can hopefully get you a job which will easily pay the college cost off. Honestly though, not many students think about it in these terms.
I realize I'm an idealist and not always the most practical or realistic, but education should be an end unto itself. I think that way too many people view college only as the path to a job. Therein lies my problem though: college is about so much more than that. Higher learning isn't valued for itself, but rather for what it will lead to. College is really the only time in your life that you'll be surrounded by your peer group with free time, without parents, without curfews, with few real, difficult responsibilities. It's a time to learn who you are, and, if you don't know, to try and figure out where your place in the world is--what you want to do. It's a unique and generally great experience that not enough people really take advantage of. (caveat: I do agree that people who mooch and people whose only goals are to party and nail sorority girls typically shouldn't go to college)
I'm not saying it's for everyone, and I suppose I do agree with your general thesis that college isn't necessary, but I also think you sell it a bit short. Now, there are plenty of people that don't have the desire and/or aptitude for college and who lead perfectly good, happy lives without it. Hell, only one other person in my family has graduated with any kind of degree. It's not necessary, but it's a wonderful experience and, if done right, can be absolutely worth it, even if you don't wind up in a field that necessarily pays more than you'd make otherwise.
One other point I'd like to make is that I don't know how everyone is really expected to know what they want to do right after high school. I'm 24 now, and looking at 18 year old students is such a surreal experience. I wouldn't but hardly trust one of them to make a major life decision, let alone choose a career path with any kind of certainty. Of course, just as I might counsel a fairly young person against early marriage because it's likely to fail, there are many exceptions to every rule, and I'm sure there are lots of people that are just such exceptions.
|
|
|
|
|
|
EPT
