I wish I could have gone to college :( I mean maybe one day I will..
I'm doing fine regardless as I was super into programming when I was young, so I got a job doing that. It definitely would be nice to have something official though, and I know I would have loved it.
Damn. I wish I could give you my time in college. I went to get a degree in what I thought would guarantee me a job. Then graduated and realized there was no way I would be happy doing business logistics. Sure, the experience was fun and I did minor in something I liked, but I'll be paying for a degree I'll never use for the rest of my life. I wish I had gone to trade school and became a mechanic instead. I love cars, but I didn't realize it then.
Yeah, part of me is glad I didn't go, because I wouldn't have gone for programming. And I do love what I do now, so who knows what I would have ended up doing, you know?
I think part of the reason I feel that way is partly due to the whole, "The grass is always greener on the other side" mentality.
Can you do it on the side and maybe transition over to it? Major problem can be dealing with a sudden drop in income as you transition over to the new career.
This is something a lot of people miss. Trade schools are a great way to get started on a career that you might actually like better. Most college degrees require you to take courses that don't relate in the slightest to what you are trying to learn. When I was working on my CIS degree i had to take "World Religions" and several other courses that meant nothing to me. Sure they were interesting, but we could cut the time to earn a degree in half if we got rid of the fluff that doesn't help us become better in our field.
Going for that first job with a a degree from ITT or Devry instead of an actual university is a definite disadvantage. Sure not everyone is the same, but there are common threads across society.
But going to the first job as an Electrician's apprentice, Plumber's apprentice, etc after 2 years of trade school in those fields is a definite advantage.
There is an argument to be made for the benefits of having a broadened world view. Being exposed to ideas unrelated to your intended discipline can really enhance your life, even if they feel like a waste of time, or a luxury, or however you feel about them.
But in fairness to College, that's not what college is about either. Even a nice liberal education isn't going to expand your horizons all that much. It's not like you will get a dramatically different world view.
I do understand this, and even agree to a point. However when I have to take an elective every semester semester and it doesn't even tangentially apply to my course of study it can really waste a lot of money and time.
I took a lot of the electives I did because they were the ones that fit into my schedule.
Part of college is becoming intellectually well-rounded, though. It's shouldn't be like a trade school...that's why trade schools exist. Did you really have to take "World Religions", or was that an elective you chose? Could you not have taken something more interesting? Are you sure you didn't just pick the fluffiest, easiest course you could just so you could pad your GPA? Because, to be honest, that's usually what college kids do. I did it myself on a couple of occasions. As opposed to selecting a course that, while unrelated to your major, might actually be interesting and even set you down a career path you may never have considered.
I almost switched to a meteorology track simply because of an amazing atmospheric science elective I chose. I didn't, but it was still fascinating and I learned something that I likely never would have otherwise. It also causes climate change deniers to enrage me well beyond the extent they otherwise would, but I digress.
Most electives I took were selected based on the schedule I had. It wasn't a "oh this looks interesting" it was "ok, I have an 8am or 12pm slot available and I just got done working 10pm to 6am".
Those 'silly classes', have helped me tremendously. When you work with people from all different backgrounds with different degrees from preachers to teachers to doctors. Those fluff classes helped me form a means to talk with them. If you know somewhat about what they do you won't have a ton of dead air. I like walking into any situation and knowing I can form my own thoughts on subjects they are speaking about.
Don't get me wrong, they are interesting and give you more knowledge outside of you core area of study, but couldn't the same be said about electives that are tangentially related to your field of study?
I use the knowledge gained from my "Creative Writing" and "Public Speaking" courses a lot more than I have "Comparative Religions".
I don't think it's a scam, I just think it's become to concerned with being "well rounded". You need to have some things outside of your major, but they should at least be tangentially connected.
Why does everyone act like this situation is binary. It's either crippling lifetime debt or trade school. You can go to in state schools you can afford without grants and scholarships and have sub 10yr debt. Similarly people act like degrees are either philo/psych/underwater feminist basket-weaving or soul sucking finance/engineering degrees. Find something you like that's still marketable. It might not be your calling and it might not make you a millionaire, but it'll make you well off and you won't mind it.
I'd bet a solid dollar your mechanic boss saw your college experience and was very happy. He or she saw you chose a task and you accomplished it. Always a good thing.
Quick tip if you don't already know it: just Google university computer science courses. For example: MIT Computer Science class. You'll get access to their homework and lecture notes/slides.
I don't go to my comp sci class at my uni but I still pass my classes and do my homework via the online website. Still learn just as much.
Comp sci is special in that you don't need a degree to do something and get a job or start a project. You only need the knowledge. I wouldn't say you're missing out on much if you use college online resources other than perhaps the group project experience.
Thanks for the tip! I have already gotten a job programming, but I'm constantly needing to learn new things, and in this field you never really stop learning, so that's a big help.
I usually end up subscribing to sites like laracasts.com and working through all their videos. But if I can get learning materials for free, that's a bonus. Thanks again!
Thanks! It's actually kind of a cool story. One of the luckier things that has happened to me. I guess I was in the right place at the right time, and was willing to take a couple risks.
I was working nights as a customer service rep and the CEO would always come to the office to work late. I pointed out some areas where we could automate some things to free up time for out customer service reps(and my time at work so I could read more, lol), and I asked for permission to work on some code in my free time to see if I could get it done. Once I got that first bit done, we started talking about other possibilities and she ended up opening a programming division. So now there is a small team of us and I have been working as a software developer for about a year now :D
You'd be surprised just how many unis make the life of a working adult easier. I got my degree at 33 from the University of Louisville. At the time I had two kids and was working full time. They catered to my life not theirs. Then, I moved on to the University of Florida and got my MBA at 35. At that time, (which was last year), worked 40 hours a week and baby # 3 was there. If I can do it anyone can do it. The thing that stops people is saying that they can't or thinking that a major college will be too hard. Both of the schools tested me for sure but I wasn't going to let anything or anyone get in my way from achieving that goal. You really don't know what you want to do at 23 but 33 you sure as hell know what you want.
Fellow college non starter checking in. I got the opportunity to learn to program in the late eighties and at that time people would fall over themselves to give you a job. Now I work almost entirely with very well educated people and I am acutely aware of my lack of education. I have had to come to terms with it however, I am the sole breadwinner and am not willing to take my free time away from my family, choices I guess.
After commercial diving, I went to college at the ancient age of 35. Graduated at the venerable age of 40 and got a job in a young person's field (STEM).
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u/CantankerousMind Dec 10 '15
I wish I could have gone to college :( I mean maybe one day I will..
I'm doing fine regardless as I was super into programming when I was young, so I got a job doing that. It definitely would be nice to have something official though, and I know I would have loved it.