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iām so glad i went to college, long post bc i have so many feelings about it! my disclaimer is that i was really lucky to receive need-based and merit scholarships so despite my familyās income it ended up not being a financial burden for me. i feel like getting my degree was worth it for a few reasons.
the main reason is obvious: going to college really expanded my knowledge; i encountered so many different ideas and it cemented my love for learning. and unlike in high school, i had significant autonomy in choosing what i wanted to explore. besides important things like theory etc, i also was taught skills like using statistical software and academic writing. because of this, i learned my professional and academic interests, so i now have the option to go to grad school or pursue so many different jobs. i also did a few extracurriculars and had campus jobs, which i feel also contributed to my growth.
work isnāt the end-all be-all, so the other important reason it was worth it are the personal benefits. college was really a perfect place for growth between high school and āadulthoodā. it was a safer space to learn about myself and the world around me, independently but still in a supportive environment. also it was just really fun sometimes! in some ways it was much freer than life with a full-time job.
i went to a liberal arts collegeāso iām totally biased about that, butāi think it provides a far better education than non-liberal arts programs lol. it took me until my third semester to learn what i wanted to study and that wasnāt a setback at all; i still benefited from those courses and if i didnāt get to different explore subjects that first year, i would not have found my love for the fields i got my degree in. i think college should be about exploration and well-roundedness as much as it is about preparation for the future.
and all this isnāt to say colleges are perfect; i have plenty of āivy towerā criticisms and there were plenty of shitty things i experienced personally and academically bc life is just that way sometimes, but i think for me, the pros of attending still outweigh those cons. in the right place you can get a better idea of what you hope to do in your life, be equipped for that, and grow a lot of confidence in yourself, your dreams and your goals! :) overall it was very worth it and i donāt regret it.
Jun 18, 2024
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i donāt think dream jobs exist in the way weāre told because work is draining and is exploitative no matter what but i definitely have as close to a ādream jobā in terms of, most of my job duties are things i really want to and enjoy doing. on the other hand it is a Job and it is a very stressful job (and often iām stressed about my work when iām not even working!) and the workplace isnāt the healthiest, to say the least. i really enjoyed college and my degree program (sociology & gender studies) is totally one some people think is āimpracticalā even though i got great research and writing skills and issue-based knowledge
however the job market rn is AWFUL and i have a lot of friends who have been unable to work in their field or exact job of choice but it really is across most fields (including STEM, except for maybe medical). i know some people who are already onto their second job that is exactly what they went to school for even if their first job wasnāt. i think most people donāt have their ideal-type of job first thing in their career; i have colleagues who had different types of jobs before coming to where i work.
in terms of college i 1000% think itās worth it, if anything for getting to expand your knowledge of the world. but a lot of degrees teach you skills and things that are broadly applicable regardless of the field or at least for more fields than is in the title. unless you are wanting a career that requires highly specific skills (i.e. biochemistry, graphic design etc) i would worry less about what degree you get. this is especially true at liberal arts colleges where you get broader freedom in what you take, so you can explore interests and extra skills in electives i.e. taking python as an english major or a creative writing course as a computer science major. and TBH the world is falling apart so you may as well enjoy the 4 years youād spend in school and try to get a job thatād make you feel somewhat fulfilled
and if you arenāt working your dream job and have the freedom to do so, iād try to do something easier/chiller if you can so that you can relax more and pursue things you want to do in your free time. and of course all this is very privileged, i was lucky to get good scholarships to school and donāt have any dependents; my mom had a very different experience but she always does cool stuff outside of work and childcare.
2h ago
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i loved & miss university, it really helped me figure out some things i was passionate about, have some cool experiences & learn a lot about myself, plus i just love learning and being in school in general (i always say if i was rich enough to not work i'd spend all my money getting degrees for fun), but that being said.... i no longer work in said field nor do i have any interest to at all lol
i feel like if you're going to go to college you need to be sure of your field and the possibilities that come from it, or at the very least, go into something broadly applicable and then do as many things as you can (related clubs, volunteering, competitions, whatever) that allow you to explore the field while there. i got a broad degree (comms) but then made the mistake of not exploring enough avenues while in school and wound up locked into one that i didn't like post-grad. tried to leverage my degree to break into fields i'd enjoy more, but with my focused background, it's unfortunately not enough.
Jun 18, 2024
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I did a two year masters program to receive my masters in social work. It was definitely worth it for me, because I needed that in order to become a licensed clinical social worker. I will say that there were pros and cons. I felt that I learned a lot more in my internships than in my classes, which makes a lot of sense to me knowing how I learn. My second year internship is where I discovered my loved and gift for working with children, and I canāt be more grateful that I found this work. I also got to go to Guatemala for two weeks as part of a class, which was amazing. I never got a chance to study abroad in my undergrad for various reasons so that was the closest I could get. Overall, it was a really positive experience for me.
I would say do some research on if people that are working in your desired field have found it useful. I do think that the connections and internships you can get from grad school alone can really make it worth it.
Oct 17, 2024
Top Recs from @marxinista
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being traditionally cool is really quite boring and iterative, and itās actually very cool and sexy to geek out about something you like or share bits of knowledge on a topic youāre passionate about
Aug 17, 2024
HAPPY INTERNATIONAL WORKERāS DAY!!!! i love having a union, i love being a union steward and getting to support my unit. when my union won its contract, i got a pay bump, better benefits, and increased protection as a worker. š„³
unions help address racial and gender pay gaps, issues workplaces impose on families and those having kids, addressing unsafe conditions, plus things like better health insurance, wages and overtime, weingarten rights to representation, and more!!!
if you donāt have a union but are thinking about forming one, check out AFL-CIOās page (linked) or Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee. thereās always more power in a union!! āš„š¹
May 1, 2025
a million times cooler than the lackluster āsleekā tech color palette used today
Feb 22, 2025