Is College/University really important?
Growing up I was told that a College degree is a must and to be successful in life, you have to attend college/university. I did attend college, got my degree and went job hunting…..sent out over a thousand job applications and did like three (3) interviews. Out of the three interviews, I secured 1 job that lasted on a 3 months contract. When I look back at all I have gone through and what I am doing now I really have to ask the question “is college/university really important”.
- Did I choose the wrong degree?
- Did I give up too quick on job hunting?
- Did I meet the wrong people?
So many questions come to mind but in reality not everyone gets what they want or go for in life. Lets look deeper into the pros and cons of attending college/university.
Pros (summary)
For some people college is important for many reasons, including long-term financial gain, job stability, career satisfaction and success outside of the workplace. Nowadays with more and more occupations requiring advanced education, a college degree is critical to some people success in today’s workforce.
Cons (summary)
The main disadvantage with college is that its expensive. Most people do not have enough money to pay for their college education upfront, requiring them to take out loans. You may go out into the job field in debt and you are not guaranteed a job.
Wealthy individuals that never attended or dropped out of college
One of the main eye catching thing for people is the Forbes billionaires list and what they did to become rich so below I have outlined a few billionaires that never attended college or attended college and dropped out.
Bill Gates
Net Worth: 114.7 billion USD
Source of Wealth: Microsoft
Dropped out of Harvard University
Mark Zuckerberg
Net Worth: 92.9 billion USD
Source of Wealth: Facebook
Dropped out of Harvard University
Larry Ellison
Net Worth: 78.7 billion USD
Source of Wealth: Oracle, software
Dropped out of University of Chicago and University of Illinois
Sheldon Adelson
Net Worth: 30.5 billion USD
Source of Wealth: Las Vegas Sands, Casinos
Dropped out of City College of New York
Francois Pinault
Net Worth: 44.3 billion USD
Source of Wealth: Luxury Goods
Dropped out of high school
Li Ka-Shing
Net Worth: $32.6 Billion
Source of Wealth: CK Hutchinson Holdings
Dropped out of high school
Conclusion
My views on all of this is college/university can be important for some people while for others it makes no sense. For people with strong business mind they can be successful by just having a vision and going with their plans, while others need a college education to achieve things or to advance in life. So all I can say is go with your guts and push for what you believe in and never give up on your dreams.
