COLLEGE or no?

What Plan do you have after you quit your college?

Continue.

Which is honestly more likely: to finish it off and to be cursing yourself and have regrets later in life and think "I wish I'd dropped out after two years", or to drop out now and regret it later in life and curse yourself for it and think "I wish I'd finished it off"?

That doesn't matter at all: with rare exceptions, education isn't about using the specific "things you learn", anyway.

It's about what's left with you after all that detail has been forgotten.

My opinion on this subject is often in a minority in the Warrior Forum, where the small, self-selected group who discuss "education" inevitably includes a preponderance of people who take an entirely different view of "formal, academic education" from mine; they typically think of higher education broadly in terms of its income potential, whereas I think of it in terms of developing the judgement, learning-skills and analytical skills necessary to apply to new and different and unrelated situations. For "running a business", those are invaluable skills.

I'm probably significantly undereducated, for internet marketing and especially for its technical aspects, compared with many people here than whom I'm actually far more successful. But I don't think that matters at all: the reality is that for me, being highly educated in the formal, academic sense has helped me enormously and is far more important, in my opinion. Once you're trained to develop the judgement, learning-skills and analytical skills necessary to apply to new and different and unrelated situations, most of the other, practical stuff you really need is relatively easily picked up.

I think people who complete their college education are (for many reasons, some obvious and some very far from obvious) overwhelmingly more likely to be successful.

This has been reliably proven, over and over again, for over 100 years now, in the countries in which statistical records are kept (and that's a lot of countries). It's simply incontrovertible fact.

It's true however often rare, exceptional, anecdotal evidence like that of Mr. Gates and Mr. Zuckerberg is mentioned in such conversations.

I think it's very easy significantly to underestimate the extent to which education (of various kinds) is beneficial to "being a successful internet marketer". I also think, overall, that in spite of the undeniable reality that some entirely uneducated people have become very successful through internet marketing, one typically hears far more about the rare exceptions than about the norms: everyone's quick to tell you that Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg aren't college graduates, but they're often a little less enthusiastic about hearing that they were both people with impeccable academic credentials who had no trouble getting into Harvard in the first place, and they both attribute their own success, in large part, to that fact and partly to being lucky enough to have been in the right place at the right time.

The other career possibilities, including perhaps IM-career possibilities, are not running away.

Don't drop out of college.

There's no real long-term advantage to doing that, and you know it, really.

Switch degree courses if you really can't stand the one you're doing. In the long run it doesn't normally matter much exactly what you study and exactly what degree you get.

It's completing one that matters.

The Myth of the Successful College Dropout: Why It Could Make Millions of Young Americans Poorer - Robert J. Zimmer - The Atlantic

This thread should provide some insight:

http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...e-college.html

RoD

Could you lend me the crystal ball that you're using?


Even IF you have no intention of working ever again in that field, your degree will come in handy.

I once had a job that had absolutely NOTHING to do with my degree, but I got it because I was the best qualified (i.e. the only one with a degree)

Currently I'm doing freelance writing - some of which is related to topics from my degree.

Your degree is far more than just a piece of paper, and I believe that the reason why you don't see any incentive to finish college is because you fail to appreciate that a degree has far more value than you're putting on it.

If you've already gone halfway through your degree, what's the point of quitting now?

Anyone making even a little bit of money in internet marketing assumes it will automatically blossom into a full time career with amazing financial rewards. But the only thing for sure is a college degree. That means a guaranteed job later on whenever you want it. And, it could mean a degree in other unrelated professions, as many times a job will require a degree of any kind, not just specifically the one you have. So a degree will pay for itself. You are about halfway done, so why not continue and get your degree?

Hello Friends ,
Takes this seriously or not

You must complete your degree first ,whether you are interested in subject or not .I am degree holder in Mechanical engineering but working in IT sector.Your degree is not a certificate of your knowledge but it is a prerequisite for a job.

You are good guy respecting your parent's wish so it will be a honour for them if you show them a completed degree.

And last words all things in this world have a definite destiny , so you should enjoy your degree maybe it hold a better future for you.

You know you should be staying at school otherwise you probably wouldn't even be asking other people what they think

BTW I think Alexa's advice was absolutely spot on

Kim

What are you currently studying? Have you considered switching to a major you're more interested in?

College or Not..? "I will have nothing but a degree" Never mind. Get your Degree.
Knowledge doesn't take room in your brain.

Meharis

Hi Joshua,
This question was asked here recently, in another (very active) topic.

My situation a few years ago was a bit similar to yours.
I didn't enjoy College, and I didn't think it would benefit me greatly.

You should read my 2 responses there, when you have some time:

Andrew's Reply 1: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post8476412

Andrew's Reply 2: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post8477192

Best of luck on your desicion!

What's with all of the college threads lately?

If you need the education that college has for your future, then keep it. If you plan on doing something else then this college is a waste of your time. The richest people I know did not go to college. But they did have to get a degree-equivelent education on what made them successful.
So it is a mater of how you want to spend you time.

Knowledge is power, and a degree will give you a good social position. You are lucky because you can go to college. Many other people wish they were in your place, but they cannot study anything because they are trying to survive in the crazy world.

I was thinking why all the college post recently too. Of course new semester is coming but is it all about it? Is it because of the bad economy and the money involved in getting your college education?

Ok. If you are paid to get your college education, 1000 every month when you stay in college in another country and they even pay for your insurance, tuition is cheap and room and board is cheap, do you think it's good chance and will you ask this question again? (I am not talking about theory, in my country this does happen to foreigners)

I am self-schooled. Have been since the 4th grade.

I make 6 figures a year and I'm completely self-taught in copywriting/marketing.

Never let anyone tell you what you can or can't do.

Mark

P.S. I don't even have a high school diploma and I've been offered big-time agency jobs. School means nothing - IF you take the initiative to create the reality you want, need and deserve.

As I've said before, the one thing that all successful people have in common is a thirst for knowledge. They get nourishment from learning.

That is the point of college. Broadening your horizons.

If you don't have that trait, I'd suggest you try your best to get it... because, without it, chances are you won't be successful.

The best copywriters are ones who know a sh*tload about multiples industries and areas. There is a reason for that. This is just as true for the best CEOs, the best investors, the best speechwriters, the best chefs, and so on.

My two cents.

Ps- Also, pretty sure you stand more to gain by finishing your degree than you do by not.

Same post - See my reply here: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post8455100

Finish school... where else will you go and have a ton of beautiful women waiting to have lunch with you everyday? Not to mention what they'll do to you when they invite you back to their dorm lol...

No seriously though. Finish school. Use it as insurance. Have it "just in case" sh*t happens, and you need a nice paying job to pick up the slack from your internet business - and pay bills. And remember what i said above about the women lol...

Let me just start by saying that yes, you should continue and here's why:

I felt the same way about having finished college as you for quite a few years after I completed (top of my class too). I got a job in my field and realized "hey, I don't like this as much as I thought I would " and after a couple of years decided to go another direction.

But, you know what, despite the fact that I don't do what I went to college for now, I still use a lot of the skills that I learned there - they've served me well and I've been able to expand on them in different ways.

Worse case scenario - that degree is a fall back plan.

So, yes - you should continue. Finish what you started.

http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...e-college.html

How many of these threads do we really need?

If that one doesn't do it for you, a simple forum search will turn up plenty more, all saying almost exactly the same thing.

Being an adult means making adult decisions. Which will also tack on responsibility and repercussions. Make choices for YOU.

So you're giving minimal effort which means you're going to see minimal results. Why halfass it at all?
The problem with all these college threads is that hardly anyone ever asks what the person is majoring in.

Are you majoring in engineering or medical or pre law? Awesome, stay in.

Are you majoring in a silly fake degree like anthropology? Stop wasting 50k+.

Also, many posters seem to fixate on just the overall aspect of a college degree. But college is an investment and not all investments are created equal.


OP, if you want to quit, then quit. Besides, there's no set rule that you HAVE to complete college within a given time frame. Take a semester off, go work full time at some crappy company where you learn that it totally sucks to work under a boss who's a complete idiot and then realize that getting a degree (in something real) is worthwhile.

I'm not sure I understand... you seem to not feel any passion about the field you're investing in... then what is the point? shouldn't you graduate in a field you enjoy and look forward to develop a career? Perhaps it's time to reset your compass?

Finish off your degree, you done 2 years already . Yes perhaps you won't even touch the subject afterwards or perhaps you will, you never know what will happen in the future but at end of day you will have a degree !!!!

Everyone citing that having a college degree guarantees you some sort of a safety net needs to pay attention to the new reality we live in.

Before I rant...

Let me first say that education is crucial. You should never stop learning, reading, writing, exploring, wandering, observing and engaging.

But to say (or imply) that having a college degree is some sort of golden ticket to financial security is completely ignorant.

Sure, there was a day when talking up your college achievements meant something (and got you somewhere.)

The problem is...

Student loans are killing more people than they're helping. GOOD jobs do NOT pay a living wage anymore. (Or it's rare to find one.)

The kind of education people need is more about being shown how to develop their ability to see (and create) solutions.

We're plagued with more problems than at any other time in human history. (And more opportunities to fix them.)

More people, less resources, higher cost of living, a world-wide financial system that's quickly biting the dust. The list goes on and on.

We don't need more people being spit out of the machine; we need people who understand the problems we're collectively facing and see ways to fix them.

The kind of education required to do that is seldom found in conventional college courses.

As I said above...

I have a on-paper 4th grade education. And yet, when I was a teenager and in my early twenties, I got paid $100 a pop to write essays for college kids. I'm talking about students from College of Marin, UCSF and Berkeley. I would often sit-in the classes I wrote for, and man, the BS that some of these professors spat blew my mind. There was so little real world information being discussed.

Was there awesome stuff too? Sure. Sometimes. But I've gotten way more out of reading books I wanted to read, then following somebody else's opinion of what I SHOULD be reading.

Again...

We live in a whole new world.

And people who cling onto the old paradigm are going to experience massive disappointment and pain.

Of course...

The pioneers for the new way of doing things will suffer too. Visionaries (i.e. people who break down the walls of conventional thinking) always encounter hardships. It's just a matter of your own character and how much you're willing to endure to get to where you KNOW you can be.

Mark

Finish school, look for some insurance. You need a degree because living costs get higher and higher. Do im as a side.

My gut reaction would be to say leave. College is a scam. They teach all through your childhood that not going to college will make you a bum and that going to college will get have the six figure jobs come crawling to you. Bill Gates is proof that that's not true.

One statistic I read was that 93% of all college grads do not even find work in a job or career related to the degree that got their college degree in. Another statistic was that something over 90% again, land jobs because of prior work experience, not because of their college education.

Perhaps the biggest thing to consider in all of this is the student load aspect. You haven't mentioned whether you are like millions of other students, and are taking out a student loan or not, but if you aren't, DON'T!! Even if that means you don't go to college.

Student load debt has now become even bigger than credit card debt, and even students who do graduate and find a career, pretty much still live in poverty after they finish college because all they money they make goes back into paying off the student loan.

You are much more likely to be hired with a degree, even a 2 year degree. These days with No Child Left Behind and schools being unable to flunk students that just won't do their work companies don't want to hire you if all you have is a high school diploma. Especially when they have people with degrees applying for that same job. You learn problem solving skills in college you won't learn in High School. If you're concerned about not using the classes you are currently taking add a business management class as an elective, pay attention in English composition it will teach you how better to make your point and sound like you've got a clue, if you need a math/science class and it looks like physics is in your future take Astronomy. Some other good classes to take as electives are psychology and sociology. Especially if you want to go into any kind of marketing.

If you have that platform to launch yourself off of and a degree to back you up you'll find job hunts, or even entrepreneurship, much easier.

Finish what you started.

If making money online is what you are getting into, do that while you go to college.

Had I known about the awesome opportunity to make money online while I was in college...

Probably would have never gone out on a Thur, Fri, Sat, or Sunday night

(or Tue and Wed too)

I was in a similar situation years ago and I decided to quit.

BUT...

I am not saying you should do the same.

I believe it's not about "the best choice in life", it's about the best choice for you.

I made my decision, but I was a different person, in a different situation, with different goals, skills, experience, etc... I would never tell you to do the same thing just because it worked for me.

Unfortunately, I don't think anyone here can tell you exactly what to do. Life is tough and we have to make our own choices. You are the only person who can find the answer for that question.

Good luck!

A degree looks good on your resume and is the second most important thing next to job experience. In the current day and age, education is everything. No quality company will hire someone with only a high school diploma, therefore I recommend you finish some kind of program. Maybe try to transfer to a program that suits your better?

EDIT: I'm not saying that you need collage to succeed, but I'm saying that collage statistically improves your chances of finding a job.

It really depends on what options you have out there OUTSIDE of college.

You should leave college if you have a better option and clearer direction in life. Otherwise, being lazy and staying at home and waking up whenever you feel like is not going to do you any good.

It also depends on what you don't like about college:
- structure? - uhhh, ok you're gonna need that in life
- education? - yeah...you don't have to get this from college, but you'll need it
- discipline? - if you think going to college is hard, wait till you get a real job with a real boss who will fire you if you come to work late or do only 70% of your job instead of 100%
- doing work you don't care about? - again...try finding a job where you only have to do things you enjoy
- waking up early? - again...try getting a real job


I think the most legit reasons for leaving college are:
- it costs too much and you are unable to move to a cheaper college
- you've found a paying job that gives you more knowledge and experience than being in college
- the career you want to be in does not require or value a college degree
- you are extremely self-motivated and know how to learn (through books, internet, friends, etc) on your own
- you're lazy - if this is the case, you should quit ASAP because no professor or fellow students should spend energy on you when you don't even care to invest in yourself


While I do feel college is in many ways overrated, it does come with many benefits:

- opportunities to socialize and meet people in a non-competitive setting and genuinely social setting (it will be very hard to do this later on in life)
- opportunities to get exposed to different kinds of people and their passions
- learn how to work with other people, different backgrounds, and gender

consider it bitter pill and just get the degree-- it helps (my experience)

I think from all the negative things said on both sides, you shouldn't listen to any of these guys. Follow your own path, just don't let anyone tell you that you can't do something.

Stay in college and be a student. Sometime you think it is right to leave college, but you will not know what will you think in future.

Just dont be regret what you do.

I give up.

People here are referring to Bill Gates as proof that you do not need a college degree to succeed(I'm not saying you do BUT). Bill Gates is an outlier, if you were to look at thousands of data you would realize that Bill Gates is a one in a million. Look at other million/billionaires, I can guarantee you there's more with college degrees than there is without.

If you're paying tens of thousands of dollars a year for a degree in a field you're not going to work in then you should either A) drop out B) pick another major or C)be content that you're spending a ton of money for something you'll never get a return on and will likely put you in a worse financial situation that you would have ever been without college.

college is great... if you need it as a "cost of entry" into the field you want to work in and actually plan on using that education or.... you don't mind spending a fortune on the "college experience"

IMO... a huge chunk of people enrolled college will not use or benefit from their degrees in any fashion whatsoever.