It’s October 2011 now and the dream of continuing my studies in the Unites States is becoming shadier by the day. Not because I got rejected for the University of Minnesota fall intake; but because I really don’t know if I want to do this anymore.
I have been working 6 month now at Starbucks while waiting to transfer to an American University and time has hit me to think I may just be taking the easy route. Leaving home, going to college and doing a degree course which I’m not even fully passionate about. I look at myself and realize that damn “my parents are about to spend half of a million on my education”. Why would my parents do this, why is it so easy for us to spend money on education when education in actuality is free out there if we just open our mind. Most of what we learn in college is just cited from books that we can read in libraries and bookstores for free. Some may try to justify this by saying that lecturers are industry professionals and thus we can learn a whole lot from them. But, heck, I doubt it would cost me a thousand bucks to pick the brains of a few successful professionals. The point is, in this day and age education is out there free for us to absorb, all we need is to have an open mind. I have learnt so much working in Starbucks for 6 months now, and let me say this - Starbucks is much more than delivering you a cup of perfectly brewed coffee!!. Deployment of human resources, costing, marketing strategies, advertizing, discipline, risk management are some things I picked up working as a casual barista. Did I pay to gain this education? No. Do I have a certificate? No. But what I have now is money in my pocket, time on my hands to start charting my destiny. It’s difficult for me to understand why the majority of us would subscribe to this trend of school>college>career, and then finally start to “live” the life we “want”. Maybe, it’s because we’ve been groomed since young to behave that way or maybe the road littered with footprints is a safe road.
My parents can accept working their whole life struggling to pay for formal education at a prestigious university abroad rather than accept my decision to keep that money and put their trust in a future without a formal certificate. Yes, I am passionate about education; just not in this manner that society has pressured me to subscribe to. Who decided we have to get a degree after school? Why are kids forced to make a decision on what to study after school even when they’re not ready? They like to ask us what are we interested to study, instead of why we are interested in doing so. The problem is not education, the problem is we are not ready, we don’t know what we want, we should be given the chance to test the waters and find our field of interest and passion. We must have sufficient time, enough information (not internet half-truths or misinformation) and the opportunity to meet industry professional in order to make the best decisions.
So what if our neighbors, aunties or uncles, grandfather children have a PHD by 23? Does an honors degree guarantee you’ll get a good job? Knowledge and know-how just won’t make the cut in achieving excellence. Many successful people and world leaders today didn’t even graduate… they succeed because they have the drive & passion.
Right now, I’m interested in bartending, I want to pursue my study in this area, it may not be a degree for Masters, It may not sound professional to you, but it is something I’m passionate about and that should be the only thing that matters. Being creative, thinking outside the box and have an open mind is all we need to achieve excellence. I’m not saying it’s bad to go to college but the best advice I can offer to my fellow juniors who are about to enroll in a course is, please be extremely certain of what you want to do, take your sweet time to decide, exposure is key. Understand the value and amount of money your parents are about to invest in your future. It may be easy for you to put your finger on it and decide but it will not be easy for our parents to bear the cost. Of course, this does not apply to filthy rich kids, with million dollar mansions (you know who you are).
I just had to get this off my mind. I’m still heading for the States, I don’t know if I want to continue my degree in communications or switch field. Courage and logic should take lead not FEAR and emotion.
Don’t ask me what course I’m going to study, ask me why.
That, my friend….. is another story
I rock … skating or not skating
Ameen Ruslan
