Thread: Im not going to college

A college degree is a major advantage in terms of career and knowledge, and going to college is a whole lot of fun.

It's all personal choice, but not going to college seems like a poor life decision IMO. Unless you have the worlds greatest job lined up or you're set for life through inheritances, I'd say go.
It's a great experience and the degree helps a lot in the future.

Yeah it's a big deal. You learn a lot of new people who will end up in the same bussiness as you. But if you want to do something in life that doesnt require a degree, then college is kinda useless I guess..

You can be successful without college... It's your life and you should do what you want, whether it be typical or atypical... College has been made out to be a necessity and I don't think that college should be like that... (Typical and atypical came from the dictionary.com thesaurus section)

If college isn't for you, don't go. And don't let anyone tell you any different.

The majority of the proletariat didn't go to college. For them college is pretty pointless, what are your plans for the future? That would probably make it easier to tell you that college isn't for you of if you might need it.

College = have a great time + get a major job market advantage you will most likely use. College is very good. I say definitely do it.

I'd say go, because of the reasons given above. But, hey! Formal education isn't for everyone.

Originally Posted by NightLife

You can be successful without college... It's your life and you should do what you want, whether it be typical or atypical... College has been made out to be a necessity and I don't think that college should be like that... (Typical and atypical came from the dictionary.com thesaurus section)

I endorse this statement.

Originally Posted by NightLife

You can be successful without college...

"Can be" and "are likely to be" are two very different things.

People tend to forget that not going to college right out of highschool doesn't ruin your chances to do it later. Chances are, if you aren't sure about going then you probably shouldn't, at least not yet. College is expensive, and is a major commitment. Many people go right out of highschool and do poorly because they are too overwelmed with the new experience. You will be meeting many new people, probably more than you've met at one time all of your life; you will be away from your parents for the first time in your life, and you will be surrounded by parties. Its very easy to get caught up in having a good time and forget all about doing well in your classes, which is what you are actually paying thousands of dollars a year for.

I went to college right out of highschool and I wasn't ready. Although I new what I wanted to do, I wasn't in the right frame of mind to focus on school and instead was too worried about making friends. I ended up doing poorly in a lot of my classes and running out of money after only one semester.

Now that I'm older and ready and excited to focus on studying, it is a lot harder for me, because I still haven't paid off all of my loans from the first attempt. If I had waited until I was sure I could focus, I would have been a lot better off.

I see a lot of people saying college is a lot of fun, but there are a lot of other things that are a lot of fun too. I traveled the country, met lots of people and did lots of interesting things during the time that I would have been stuck in school had I stayed in college. I learned how to support myself and grew up enough to figure out how to manage my time so that I could do all the things that I enjoy and be able to survive on my own.

Also, keep in mind that if you enroll in school after the age of 25, you will no longer have to claim your parent's income when applying for financial aid; meaning more money for you.

i agree with xaqaria. if you're not ready to go and know you'll slack, then don't go. It's not worth going just to meet people and make friends.. you can definitely just get a job somewhere and do that. I think you should definitely plan on going to college, unless you're some sort of prodigy in something or have family who owns a company and will probably just end up giving you a big slab of it. Just go when the time is right so that when you are there you are 100% dedicated to it and can get an A in every class.

My brother made the mistake of going to college when he wasnt ready. He got drunk too much, and ended up dropping out, and eventually went in to the army. He is doing very well for himself now. Both sides are right in this argument, having a college degree is all but imperative in our modern society, but if you are not ready, dont waste all the money. Work a little while, learn to support your self, and eventually you should be able to see for yourself. I myself have been in college for 2 years already and was ready for it right out of hs, but not everyone is.

Originally Posted by Dreamhope11

Hey im leaving high school in 2 weeks and not going to college, is college a big deal or not?

Do you know what you want to do after you're done high school?

wait, that is a good point. also, are you leaving hs like dropping out or graduating?

Originally Posted by Universal Mind

"Can be" and "are likely to be" are two very different things.

Question: Are those men happy with their lives?

You have to define for yourself what "success" means, and what you need in order to achieve it. Far too often we equate success with money and prestige, and not with contentment.

Originally Posted by MrDoom

Question: Are those men happy with their lives?

You have to define for yourself what "success" means, and what you need in order to achieve it. Far too often we equate success with money and prestige, and not with contentment.

Even if you are defining success as 'how much money you make', sanitation workers typically make upwards of $20/hr which is as much or more than what a lot of jobs that require a degree will get you. Once you factor in the $120,000 or so that you'll save by not getting a 4 year degree, and the money you'd make by working 40 hours/wk instead of going to class, the garbage man actually comes out on top when compared to a lot of college graduates.

Edit: Sanitation workers are also city/state employees meaning they have guaranteed benefits such as insurance and a pension plan as well as paid federal holidays.

Beyond that, where would UM or any of us be without people willing to take jobs like that?

Originally Posted by MrDoom

Question: Are those men happy with their lives?

You have to define for yourself what "success" means, and what you need in order to achieve it. Far too often we equate success with money and prestige, and not with contentment.

If those garbage men are happy, then that's great. I hope they are. However, you should admit that most people would not be happy with doing that for a living. Somebody has to do that work, but most people don't want to. To give the OP a broad picture to consider, I thought I should help him consider that there are jobs out there that he might despise. Garbage man might be one of those jobs. Then again, it might not be. One way or the other, he needs to think about what jobs exist and which ones he wants to avoid.

Originally Posted by Xaqaria

Even if you are defining success as 'how much money you make', sanitation workers typically make upwards of $20/hr which is as much or more than what a lot of jobs that require a degree will get you. Once you factor in the $120,000 or so that you'll save by not getting a 4 year degree, and the money you'd make by working 40 hours/wk instead of going to class, the garbage man actually comes out on top when compared to a lot of college graduates.

Edit: Sanitation workers are also city/state employees meaning they have guaranteed benefits such as insurance and a pension plan as well as paid federal holidays.

What would you say are the downsides? I think that dealing with the smell of disgusting garbage all the time and getting nasty garbage juice on your clothes all day might suck, and a lot of people would have a hard time running into old high school friends and acquaintances at the mall and saying, "Huh, what do I do now? I'm a gar... uh... sanitation associate." Then again, some people don't mind the smell and other nastiness and are perfectly okay with telling people they are garbage men. Different strokes for different folks.

Originally Posted by 27

Beyond that, where would UM or any of us be without people willing to take jobs like that?

We would all have to be part time garbage men ourselves. I am extremely glad we have garbage men, but I am also glad I am not one of them. That is just a personal opinion.

I want to add that there are construction jobs out there that pay very well. In fact, they pay so well that some people I know personally work those jobs and have no idea what else to do since they do not have college degrees. They tell me every time I see them how much they despise their jobs but how they have no idea what else to do to maintain their standard of living. That has been going on for ages now. If the OP wants to be a garbage man or a construction worker, then he should do it. However, he also needs to consider the possibility that he might feel trapped in what he ends up considering to be a miserable life if he takes one of those jobs.

Its exactly the bleak picture that you seem to be painting, UM, that forces people into miserable lives. They are told that if they don't get into college right out of highschool then they will be stuck in dead end jobs that they hate for the rest of their lives just trying to eek out an existence. What they don't realize is that they will be just as equipped (or even more so) to further their education in 1, 5 or even 35 years if they so choose. My aunt actually recently graduated and she's about 50 years old.

If, however, one were to rashly go to college without being ready for it and without a clear understanding of what they wanted to do and what it was going to take, they could easily do poorly; or fail outright. Then they really would be stuck with the consequences of their mistake which could include a life time of debt and a poor reference if and when they decide to try again.

Originally Posted by Xaqaria

Its exactly the bleak picture that you seem to be painting, UM, that forces people into miserable lives. They are told that if they don't get into college right out of highschool then they will be stuck in dead end jobs that they hate for the rest of their lives just trying to eek out an existence. What they don't realize is that they will be just as equipped (or even more so) to further their education in 1, 5 or even 35 years if they so choose. My aunt actually recently graduated and she's about 50 years old.

It is not just that easy to start college when you have to work full time, you don't have a great deal of money, and your credit is bad. Having kids makes that picture even much more difficult.

Originally Posted by Xaqaria

If, however, one were to rashly go to college without being ready for it and without a clear understanding of what they wanted to do and what it was going to take, they could easily do poorly; or fail outright. Then they really would be stuck with the consequences of their mistake which could include a life time of debt and a poor reference if and when they decide to try again.

They can get into a community college right away and smooth everything out. I've seen it happen many times. Waiting forever to go back to college is a problem one way or the other.

Why do you assume that everyone who waits to go to college is going to have less available funds, bad credit and children by the time they decide to go?

I don't know about you, but most people I know who go to college pay for it mostly with loans and financial aid; both of which are easier to get once you no longer fall under your parent's list of dependants.

As far as I can see, the only reason to rush off to college before you are ready is if you have controlling parents who threaten to not help you pay if you don't go right out of highschool. Otherwise I see no logical reason why one should jump into a major commitment that they are not ready for.

I havn't read much of the posts in here, but I used to say I didn't need college to myself, but in the past less and less jobs really needed college, so that says for me that the future is going to be more in more restricted to non college graduates (inless you join the army they always need people), I mean I'm just going to go to some community college, and take general subjects, even that is all I need for a large amount of jobs, at least according to my mom.

Originally Posted by Xaqaria

Why do you assume that everyone who waits to go to college is going to have less available funds, bad credit and children by the time they decide to go?

I don't. I think every person needs to consider that possibility. They might possibly end up there, so I don't agree with the advice of, "Oh, you can go later for sure. There will be no problem with that at all." There might end up being serious problems with it.

Originally Posted by Xaqaria

I don't know about you, but most people I know who go to college pay for it mostly with loans and financial aid; both of which are easier to get once you no longer fall under your parent's list of dependants.

Yeah, but it can be much harder if you decide to go to college when you are 35 than it is when you are 19.

Originally Posted by Xaqaria

As far as I can see, the only reason to rush off to college before you are ready is if you have controlling parents who threaten to not help you pay if you don't go right out of highschool. Otherwise I see no logical reason why one should jump into a major commitment that they are not ready for.

Because they might not ever go if they don't go then. You don't have to make a life long commitment just by going to college. You don't even have to get serious about a major for the first few years. You can party and study as if you are in high school. If your parents are still taking care of you, college is a pretty easy experience. Once you have a degree, you have completed all of the core requirements and can go back to college with a new major and take just a handful of classes. A college degree is a great stepping stone, and it is much easier to get it when you are really young.