College make me wounder ...

Hello everyone,
this subject has nothing to do with Java or game developing, however, i was thinking about it almost everyday (specially on depression moments ;D ) so i said maybe i’ll have better opinion here from large numbers of good people with different ages and experiences ::slight_smile:
the thing is that i didn’t go to college since last December, in that time i felt a real rage because of the quality of what they are teaching us, i couldn’t stay cause i felt very stupid and that am wasting time and money for things i know 7 years ago, i remained at home trying to learn some stuff alone (mainly Java game programming) am feeling very happy like this, but also am very worried and afraid, am not sure that what am doing now is right or wrong, i don’t want to found myself 4 years later regretting those time and looking everywhere just to get a license in some field.
So now am finding myself frustrating and very confused, i don’t know if i should go back to college and spend a whole 2 painful year and half to get a degree that i don’t know how to call it in english :stuck_out_tongue: (we say “BTS” here ) and then wishing to find a job in some shitty enterprise (yup finding a job here is like digging for water in a desert)
or keep on doing the self learning thing also wishing that i could find a job soon (even online) and that’s it :slight_smile: life will go on and i’ll be happy ::slight_smile:

your thoughts ?

That’s a quite difficult question, I wouldn’t say that going to college is a bad idea, indeed I am going to study in some month. In my opinion degrees are keys that open doors, afterwards you have to handle the new opportunities. You should think of what you really really really want and how you can achieve it.
why 3 times really?

  1. really: no, you won’t achive it because your family wants it
  2. really: no, friend/girlfriend isn’t better
  3. really: yes money is nice to earn, but I don’t think that you will make a lot of money / get happy if you just do it for the money

Well, maybe this does not help you but I had a similar experience; only difference is that I got kicked out of school (Medicine).

Let’s start with people. People always respected me. Not after going to the faculty but before. When I got kicked and went back to my hometown, I saw people’s changed attitude. People who called me “Sir” were treating me like I’m shit. People who asked for my opinion on something were giving me advice about what to do next. And their advice was humiliating.
I lost self-respect. How could they maintain it huh?

Anyway, this situation at hand, I found a job in a music market. Stayed there for a while, taught guitar to a couple of people… Then one day a guy came to me for a short translation. I was doing it just to please the guy (He did not treat me like shit), but then he offered money. I wouldn’t take it so he gave me his advice; “If you are free, work as a freelance translator. But go back to your faculty first”. I always thought I had to have some degree to be able to work as a translator. That’s why I did not do it before.

I made some good money on that job. Being familiar with medicine and medical terms, I am still a wanted person around here. Back then, I could estimate if I worked like this for a while, I could stand on my own feet and need no one. After all, that’s why we go to school, right? To be independent (Sort of, except for your future boss).

I worked like that for 3-4 months. Then one day it struck me. What if this thing goes down? What if I stay behind the advancements? I couldn’t work for a translation agency, because I did not have a certificate. I had nothing more than a couple of bucks on my hands.

So I studied and made my way to the faculty again. I was lucky and I could start from where I dropped.

Now I am working as a freelance translator (also have flexible contracts with 2 agencies) and I continue to the school.

This year at school was a little tough for me. Because you know, I could make money! I knew I had to treat either school or translation job as a side-project. But I couldn’t make that decision. That led to inefficient time management, sleepless nights and days etc.

But… Although it is pretty late for this, I managed to make that decision and the primary thing will be my school now. I am the 10th or so oldest in my class, in normal conditions I should have graduated… There are many troubling facts about this, but that’s my choice.

If I had to give you an advice, I’d advise you to do the same. Continue to what you are doing and continue to the school. Pick one of them as your primary objective and the other as your side project. This will provide you some alternatives, and some advantages. For instance, I probably will be the go-to guy when there’s some foreign patient or some English document.

I know, I know, many geniuses who are richer than most of the countries dropped the school… And we tend to see only these people. Because the ones who dropped school and failed with their plans have no means to contact us, do they? One million people dropped school in 2000, 3 of them became successful and we hear about them. The 999.997 people are now living a life they hate.

That’s my opinion :slight_smile:

I have a bachelor of sciences degree in Chemistry, which I have never used in the 22 years since I graduated. I also have an Honors degree in English literature, which is really useful to me as a Java programmer :slight_smile:

On the other hand, these useless degrees open doors for me in the employment market. Without a degree, my CV would go straight to the discard pile.

So I would strongly recommend sticking it out and getting formal qualifications. The system may not make sense, but raging against it will not help anything.

Anyway, my memory of Uni is that I wasted most of my time on my own projects (like designing my own games at the Wargaming Society ;D ) - just do your time and get your degree, but also spend time on your own stuff. Your college years are meant to give you the space to do that.

I skipped university after the first year, mostly due to being bored and feeling like what they taught was meaningless. After I left I was delivering newspapers and then working in a tech support call center, mainly due to not having a degree. After I built up two years of working experience I jumped to better jobs three times and now I have a really nice paying job as a consultant and get to travel the world when I want to and work in a lot of different companies. :slight_smile:

Looking back ten years later I did the right thing to leave the university, but if I still would have been working in a call center I would have regretted not trying harder to stay.

All being said it is a gamble and, the question being, how much do you want to gamble with x years of your life?

Mike

[quote=“ags1,post:4,topic:42271”]
This. Because having a degree shows a special (or rather, “normal”) kind of commitment. However, if you’re good enough and can show it (projects, work experience etc) you don’t necessarily need a degree of any kind.

However, depending on where you live of course, college/uni life can be expensive but it can also be cheap (paid for by the taxpayers). Mostly it’s pretty fun and leisurely (imo). Plus you meet a lot of people. People you might work with later in life. People that might be your employer in the future. It’s not all about the lectures.

Don’t forget that for every job position going there are fifty or more applicants. It’s human nature to try and pare down the huge list of candidates, based on simplistic criteria.

Imo honest opinion you should wheter study at a normal rate and do college, or study at a very high rate and not do college.
Im doing college (its 4years long…) because I dont think I am capable of studying hard enough by myself in order to get the same oportunities as if I had finished college.
Finishing it is not just to learn, but to get the status and a higher job flag.
But still, it depends on your country etc…
I have a friend who has an excellent job and has no degrees or certificates, he was just a hardcore programmer and got lucky enough to be spotted by some good employers. But again it all depends on your region/luck/etc, even inside my country, it’s a very different story talking about it on the north vs on the south (on the south it’s not as important to have a degree as it is on the north).
My advice - dont bet on luck, finish college, get some certifications etc, raise your flag…

what jonjava and ags1 said

although I live in europe and college doesnt cost money here. Also in the US its like most people have to have a degree to be anything. Here its not standard at all to have a degree.
So its elementary different here.

Very much this. Back in the day working for the man any trivial thing put a CV/resume in the discard pile. Spelling or grammar mistake. Gone. I mean I had real work…or goofing off to do and this huge pile to go through before I could get to it. Don’t get me wrong: I actually was looking for reasonable candidates, but it’s a tedious and time consuming task. Gosh I wished I had only 50 to go through.

Whatever you decide, please read this: 6 Harsh Truths that Will Make You a Better Person

Sounds like a joke, but the lesson there is to keep focus on your goals.

It’s easy to fall into complacency, to complain about College being useless, about favoritism making the Job interview pointless, about working for such and such company being soul-draining.

But, in the end, it is about what you can offer to the world, and how to get the most out of the world for what you give.

And sometimes spending a couple years in college to get a better chance of an employer giving you a chance might be worth it. Other times it might not.

@Oskuro

http://s20.postimg.org/qegnqzs8s/happiness_tooks_effort.jpg

i think i just found my new favorite quote, is it creepy that my old one was from The mentalist, “The rest of the time we are living in a world of lies. Lies are what make the world make sense. Ergo, the truth hurts.” ::slight_smile: ??

Thank you guys for taking the time to read and reply to this topic, i knew i could count on you ;D

Anytime :smiley: