The question of whether to attend college is a rather challenging one for any young adult grappling with it.
I can assert this from my own experience (I never truly enjoyed college) and also from the experiences of friends and other classmates.
So, first off, we need to understand that this is a personal question. We are not attempting to debate whether college is a scam or not; we are actually trying to determine if it’s the best choice for us.
Let’s begin by asking simple questions.
Why would I need to go to college?
To obtain a degree, so I can secure a job and make money. Duh!
For most people, this is the answer. It may vary in wording, but that’s essentially it!
I even recall asking that to my friends when I was in college. Ha!
I believe the answer to “Why do I need to go to college?” has a deeper and more complex explanation than that.
For example, from a psychological standpoint, we are influenced by “Social Proof,” meaning if we are graduating from high school, what are all of our “peers” doing?
Exactly, going to college! It’s not even questioned; it’s like the obvious “next step.”
That’s precisely where we start to err!
The next significant contributing factor is also psychological, now in the form of “parental pressure!”
This can manifest in many different ways. It could be having parents who constantly push and demand that you go to college so you can become “someone in life.”
It could be that they are urging you to pursue a specific career because that’s “where the money is.”
Even if you have parents who are leaving you to decide which degree you really want to pursue, it’s basically, again, the illusion of choice because you can choose “whatever you want,” but within the realms of COLLEGE.
Learn to think
The part that is missing throughout the school system, not just in college, is the skill of critical thinking.
The place where knowledge is supposed to be encouraged, and the world where the thoughts, theses, and ideas of the most brilliant thinkers of the past are taught, is the place where no one learns to think for themselves.
So now let’s use the basic premise of why most people go to college and do some critical thinking of our own!
Basic premise: College = Degree = Job = Money.
Thus: College = Money.
Oh boy, that kind of “monkey see, monkey do” kind of thinking is what got us here in the first place.
Let’s dissect the problem. If our main goal in going to college is making money, why are we not evaluating or comparing it with other ways of making money?
The comparison could include:
- Starting your own business
- Investing
- Getting into sales
- Getting a blue-collar job
I’m not saying all of the options are better than getting your college degree, but they are not even considered as alternative paths.
The funny thing? All of those alternatives end up paying a LOT more money than going to college and at the same time COST a LOT LESS than a college degree.
Meaning if what we are looking for is making lots and lots of money “$,” probably College is the worst ROI % we can have!
Then why do we think that is the way?
I have asked that question before, and also tried to observe my surroundings, so I trace back to some conversations my grandfather used to have with me when I was little.
He always used to say, “Want to be successful? You need to study, study, study. Go to school and get your degree!” In retrospect, he was very right about the “study” part.
My grandpa was raised without his father; he came from a very poor family. Most days, he didn’t have food to eat, and started working around 12 years old to help his mom, and hasn’t stopped working all the way to his 94!
But coming from nothing and getting whatever jobs he could at 14, 16, 20, he noticed that the people who were paid the best were the “Accountant,” the “Lawyer,” the “Architect.”
So naturally, he said, if I want a better job, with a better salary, and to provide for my family, I will need to study and get my degree! And he did.
Now you can see how these ideas of just “go to college, get a degree, and get a job” come from many years and generations ago.
Times change faster than our beliefs
Seeing the example of my grandpa, you can see how times were a lot different, and of course, he grew up within specific conditions where his set of beliefs, education, and upbringing led him to the best pathway he could.
But what about our current situation?
In the last 60 years, there has been a lot of changes and transformation in our society, through technology, the creation of the internet, and now even the development of AI.
That, in essence, has shifted the way the world works. There are remote jobs, e-commerce, dropshipping, online platforms to sell info-products, and investing has also become easier through online brokerage.
Meaning there are more and more ways to make money than there were 60 years ago, and probably with a lot more ROI vs. College.
Now remember, we are comparing money-wise not because it is all that matters; that derived from our first premise, which was “Why do we need to go to college?”
I’m not arguing college is trash for all.
I do firmly believe engineers, doctors, architects, chemists, and many other very important professions which are needed; college is a requirement.
Which if that’s your case, then it’s awesome. I’m mainly speaking to the vast majority who are not sure what they want to study, and to the ones whose sole priority is making money.
Not everything is for money
I saw classmates in accounting who what really made them passionate was arts, or friends in the finance career, whose life dream was to become a Chef, another one was studying medicine (one of the worst if what you are chasing is fast $) that really wanted to be a designer.
All under the same premise “My parents told me I needed to chase the money, not my passion” or something along those lines.
Remember, I’m not judging the parents because most come from a different generation. As technologies and the way of working move too fast, they just can’t keep up, so they just end up telling you what was true for them at that time.
I am a firm believer that studying something just for a big pay is one of the worst things you can do.
Why?
Well, the traditional system we are living in establishes the retirement age at 65 y/o on average. If you start working at say 22, that’s 43 years working on a job you hate, or at best, that you “endure.” That’s a long time, buddy.
Compare that to people who are eager for Mondays! Because they love what they do!
The other secret element often overlooked is that if you love what you do, you will devote a lot more hours doing it, weekends, holidays; you will probably be thinking about it or doing it in some sort because you love it!
That ends up with you outworking other peers in your industry who just do it “for the money.”
Who do you think will earn more?
The guy who loves finance, studying micro-economics, and on his Saturday evenings gets a rush from reading Ludwig von Mises Austrian economic theories, or the guy who is in finance because that’s “where the money is” but wanted to be a chef?
AND EVEN if the guy who wanted to be a chef ended up with more $, who would you think would be eager for Mondays for 43 years?
Granted, finding your passion and really loving what you do for a living is still something that most people don’t achieve. It may not be an easy task, but it’s surely worth striving towards.
One great book if you want to delve deeper into it is called “The Element” by Ken Robinson. It touches on this topic in depth and is surely a heck of a recommendation for anyone debating college or even those who are already in their working years but want to really find their passion/purpose.
College or Not
In the very end, that’s a personal choice, which in my opinion, most people are very young and lost in life to really choose what to do.
The other huge factor is that with the huge inflation happening in most parts of the world, if what you are aiming for is to make a good amount of money, college is not worth it.
In that case, you should spend that time and money learning to invest, micro-economics, sales, launching a business, etc.
Not from a classroom, from teachers who aren’t actually doing any of that. Learn it from experience, grab a book, take a seminar, then go try it, fail, iterate, get better at it.
I deeply believe the education system needs severe changes, but don’t wait for any government or institution to solve it; at the end, this is your life, the only one responsible for it is yourself.
Keep learning, Keep improving, Love what you do.
Much love,
Zifush