What am I doing?

“Who Are You and What Are You Doing Here” made me question if I actually want to be in here, in college, getting a university education. Am I just here because of the pressures of social norms? Honestly, yes. How are we expected to succeed in life without a college degree? How can we prove that we’re actually knowledgeable to future employers? I grew up knowing that I was going college because, well, what else would I do? If a high school senior didn’t go to college, it was assumed that they were taking a gap year and that they’ll eventually go to college. It can quite a toxic system but I can’t imagine not going to college. It’s incredibly brave to go against society and to just look for a job or pursue a passion right after high school.

It’s also true that there is more to a college degree than proof that we’re smart. A college degree means that you went through the social aspects of college that make us “real adults.” Right? I don’t even know. I feel like university education is almost a vehicle for those valuable “real-life” experiences. Some of my classmates from high school go to college with only a degree in mind and they spend all their time studying and aiming for good grades. I think they’re really putting themselves at a disadvantage because they’re not taking advantage of the freedom that’s given to you in college. The freedom to be a new person, separate from who your parents think you are, separate from what your high school friends thought you were. The social aspect of college is really important to me and I’m glad that a lot of people around me value that too. This also means that there’s less of an emphasis on the academic part of college. I’m sure that there’s cheating in college but it gets ignored for the sake of image. The logic behind cheating is that if there’s an easier way to get a better result, why not? I know that even high schools like to sweep things under the rug. Once the parents bring out the lawyers, the school administration quickly cowers. I’ve seen so many occasions of the administration threatening the student with expulsion, only for the punishment to reduce to detention. It’s funny (in a ridiculous way)

Anyways, the whole message in article made me think about what I’m really doing college, whether I’m pursuing my passion or not. I still think I’m doing what I want but sometimes I wonder if my passion wasn’t bankable, would I still pursue it?

I still have some words left until 500. I have a paper due tomorrow that i have yet to start. Looks like I’m staying up tonight.

-Crystal