Inspired by recent entries by Blanket_Attack and AnchorsAwayx, and a comment by my_versace, I've decided to do a series aimed for high school students (and maybe undergraduates) looking for that next step. I'm a fairly successful overachieving college student, so maybe some retrospective advice would be helpful. This series may or may not actually be finished, but in addition to this entry, I hope to cover:- Choosing a major- Where to apply- How to get in- How to pay for it- Random tidbits about scheduling, housing, and college life as a wholeOnward! So, you're in high school. You're nearing the end (even if you're just a freshman, trust me, it goes by faster than you think). So far, just about everything has been predetermined for you. You get up, go to school, go home, eat a snack, watch some TV, grab dinner, waste time on the internet, grab second dinner, do some homework, then get to bed. Repeat 365.25 times per year. Yeah, you get some measure of freedom ("Would you like Paper or Plastic?"), but you have probably never had to make any serious life-altering decisions. It's stressful I know.
That's why the VERY first thing you need to do is take a deep breath. Try to chill. It
will all work out, so there's no point in killing yourself with anxiety if you can help it.
Next, think about it. What do you
really want to do? Do you like school? Would you rather work for a few years, then try school? Do you prefer traveling? Really, if you have concrete life and career goals, that's great for you. But make sure that your whole plan is going to be fun. Plans often get disrupted, and if you've invested so much into, say, being a
doctor/lawyer/entertainer, and then it doesn't work out, PLUS you just made yourself miserable for X years? The crash is just going to be that much worse.
For me, the choice was pretty clear. I love learning, so the natural choice was to go to college. But the most important point in this whole post is:
College is NOT for everyone.
It's okay if you don't want to go to college. Don't let your parents, counselors, friends, SO, or anyone else tell you what to do with
your life. Yeah, it'll be difficult to cross them. But will it really be more difficult than being absolutely miserable for 4 years and wasting tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars?
I'll give you the example of my parents. My mother got a college degree, and promptly wasted it. She's now unemployed and lying to stay on welfare. My father never went to college, but he is now highly successful. Yes, he had to claw his way up, but he did make it. Personally, I made the decision to go to college because it's right for ME. You do what's right for you, not for anyone else.
Comments (17)
I opted out of college after a semester, piddled around and went to a vocational school.. I might end up in college. I would say going to college is for everyone, just it isn't your only choice. And it is okay not to go to college right away. I wish I had taken a couple yrs out of high school to fool around, instead of going right away. I probably would've handled it better.
@nomdeinternet - You make a good point about waiting a couple of years. Many students who enter college simply aren't ready. They still have a party-every-night mentality, and if you're serious about your studies, that just isn't going to work out too well.
I'm so excited to read this series. I am almost a senior in college, so it's not like I need the help now. But I would have done ANYTHING to get advice like this when I was at that stage of my life. I was a grade-A overachiever who had no idea what she was doing for the first time in her life. I was so stressed out all the time. My brother is a senior in high school now, so I can at least help him relax and get through it all. But I was the first person to go to college in my family. Nobody knew how to help me.
I wish I could have had this kind of help then! :)
You should also include something about Post-Secondary Enrollment options since some of your readers might still have time to pursue that avenue. I'm not sure if this is the universal term for it, but you know, when you take college courses in high school that go towards your degree? I didn't do this kind of thing because I didn't think it would help me (I thought I was going to a different school than I ended up at). But it really would have saved me some money in the long run, and nearly a year of school.
You know, something like this would've been a huge help for me. I went to college for two semesters and bailed. Only 'cause I didn't know what the hell I was doing. I didn't have anyone to point me in the right direction, thanks to the great public education system in my area. Hopefully you help someone out there who is where I was 5 years ago.
wouldn't you say that college and the overbearing importance of it is definitely stressed by a cultural stigma no less? as though a 3x4 slip of paper defines a person's socio-economic status... i find that overrated and adds to the stress level of people... college ITSELF isn't bad when it calls for it... but like u said... it's not for everyone though... and I happen to agree...
I feel like my college degree was almost a complete waste of time. I majored in what I liked (bad idea) and couldn't find a job. I went and enlisted in the Navy a year after graduation and I'm going to be in my A school for the next 13 months. If I had enlisted out of high school I would be an E-6 well on my way to E-7 (at least in my rate, which promotes quickly) and I'd be up for a limited duty officer commission in 3 years. Then I'd be set for life with a sweet retirement package and amazing job security, but when I was 18, I thought not going to college would have made me a failure, so I wasted four years of my life. It really isn't for everyone, nor is it as important as everyone makes it sound.
don't forget to tell them about avoiding bad people as roommates, and not getting too involved with Greek life.
beer pong can be a killer.
you don't have to go to college if you're not prepare for it. you need to be in the right state of mind and financially secured to pay all those fees.
I totally understand what you're saying. The only thing I feel I should bring up is this;
Don't you think in today's age, having a degree is important? I can say from experience that it is NOT easy to find a good paying job without at least an associates. You may want to think a little bit longer (or harder) on not going to school after high school. All through out high school, I was told "Get your diploma" well, I got it. Here I am working for KFC.
Now that I'm thirty, I'm just now seriously thinking of going back to school. Hopefully I qualify for this state grant (I'll know in April).
I just don't want to see an intelligent girl like yourself waste your potential. That's all your loved ones are trying to do. I understand about not letting anyone tell you how to live your life, but maybe you should take what their saying into consideration. People who have lived life a little longer might actually know what they're talking about.
(Some friendly advice)
I'll be waiting for more of these. Being a Sophomore in High School has got me reading every article similar to this
This will be interesting.
I look forward to it.
I know some people who have gotten into successful careers (and happy lives, in general) that didn't go to college. I think you have to have a passion for learning to get through college. My friend went to college and ended up going to a couple different ones until she realized she really wanted to go to culinary school. I think we put a lot of pressure on COLLEGE. GO TO COLLEGE. THIS COLLEGE. When... thats not always the right answer... We had to do almost two months of college prep stuff (meetings, tests, speeches, etc) in high school if we wanted to graduate high school. That included filling out about ten pages of what courses we planned on taking in college and what we wanted to major in. It was insane.
your definately right, college isnt for everyone. Hopefully it is for me =)
I'm a case where college was a complete waste of valuable time for which I regret and resent ever having attended.
I think what you are doing is great. I think the one thing that I was most grateful to learn when I was in college was that upperclassmen will generally be very helpful in helping you get the hang of things if you just ask.
Post laaaaaaaaaaaaaag.
i'm looking forward to start studying web design and computer animation
i've pretty much been on my own since i was a sophmore and i'm not much for partying
so i'll probably study most my time