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Originally Posted by Zero  Are you kidding me? Go back to school where you will learn about the constitution, the government and American history.
Well, sitting at home and reading books is, quite frankly, easy. The college experience is much more than just reading books. The different projects, essays, assignments, tests and professor personalities will challenge you in different ways. The mistakes you make and the mistakes you see your peers make is a learning experience on its own. The social experience of college is invaluable, especially if you are going into "math/computers". Many businesses, such as Google, were founded based on college contacts.
From my perspective, you are trying to use "passion" to cover up your lack of self-discipline that your parents have obviously not instilled in you. By coming to this forum, you will get a line up of people that will spew out predictable responses when you mention "passion". Just look at this thread already!
When I was in college, I thought the grind of learning was slow. I thought I was smarter than my peers and my professors. My intelligence was god-like. Why was I taking these tests? Why was I doing these projects? At the end of the day, I was not smarter than my peers and not smarter than my professors. I had a lot to learn, and still do to this day. If you are in this boat, which I think you are, the college experience will help you see the light.
I am surprised that no one has mentioned the "success" story of a college drop out. Larry Ellison, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs. If these guys can do it, why can't you? The fact is that not every college drop out goes off and becomes a billionaire. If you look at these people's stories, college had a role in their success. The things that they had going on during college were consuming their time, and they had no time for college. It was passion first, then drop out. Not drop out, then find passion. And these stories are very rare.
The reality here is that you have burned a year doing nothing but extend the time it takes to get your degree. In my life, I have not met a college drop out who does not regret dropping out of college. I guarantee that you will also regret dropping out.
Life isn't easy. Learn from your mistake. Go back to school. |
While you mentioned the predictability of this forum, you also neglected to talk about the predictability of college learning. Dont get me wrong, Zero, I agree that he should go back to school, but you forgot to mention the most important part (the one I didnt do either) is finding the right school for you. I went to a school just far enough away (a one hour drive) close enough to still go home once and a while, but far enough to not have my parents around. However the school was your basic university and not the progressive education that people will try and sell you.
For one, most colleges, at least in their "Liberal Arts" Requirements, still use the note presentation/rote memorization routine for teaching, which is like the absolute worst and least effective way of teaching. However, I guess since these classes are required, theres no way to teach better since they have to cram as many people paying tuition into it as possible. Tenuring another professor isnt the right answer, because not only does it cost them more money, but the more Profs on tenure, the more people will realize that they are not getting an education from them, rather from grad assistants. The real professors are too busy doing research to keep their tenure and the grants they are pulling in for the School.
About 80% of my college education was given to me by TAs, GAs and APs...sad really when the people teaching me were only one year higher in schooling than me, not the "experts" you were supposed to learn from. Though some of them were awesome teachers, my point is the facade.
Lets also not neglect the fact that most Professors are also afraid to innovate their curriculum, for the same fear of losing their position. So instead, our English department was overrun with people bowing down to the Modern Language Association, and afraid to incorporate anything new or innovative to their teaching style. Thank god the workshop (group) style of teaching is at least accepted, or I would have dropped out long ago. Ask yourself how much of your college career was spent staring at the back of somones head. Lucky for me, the English Department was all about group learning. The other departments were not like that.
Speaking of Workshops though...I took quite a few workshops. Basic Web Design, Non-Linear Video Editing, Web Graphics, Broadcast Voice. All of which gave me real, practical applications for things going on in the world now. Stuff I am using 2, 3 4 years later. However, these were worth nothing to my GPA, nor but a couple of credits of random hours for my degree, and they were the most valuble courses I took. I have also taken some workshops outside of college, and they were definitely worth it.
College is not the be-all, end-all of learning or existence, in fact, I would suggest going to college not for classes, but for the social aspect like you said. I learned more from having roomates than I did in all but maybe 8 classes.
Not everyone is right for college, and you are right, not everyone that drops out becomes a millionaire. By that same token, not everyone that gets through college becomes a millionaire, let alone finds a good paying job, so dont neglect that little nugget by bashing the idea of dropouts becoming millionaires. Also, how many millionaires I wonder went to college because thats what they thoguht was supposed to happen, and thats why they left cause it wasnt doing what they were led to believe.
I pretty much agree with you, but wanted to share a different view. I loved college, but it wasnt what it was made out to be...and really, it can be like putting off life. This is how I saw school most of my life...
Me in Grade School "This sucks!"
People in Middle School "Middle School is so much better"
Me in Middle School "This sucks more!"
People In High School "High School blows Middle School away"
Me in High School "Holy crap, this is better than middle school, but not by much..."
People in college "College years are the best years of your life"
Me in college "This is pretty cool, but not the heaven iyou said it was"
People in Grad School "Wait til you get here, its even better"
Me now "I think I will pass, I have been putting off what I want to do for so long thinking I needed a degree."