I should've just drifted instead of going to college

"No, I don't thank you for the fish at all" (notindetroit)
08/18/2014 at 23:45 • Filed to: None

For people looking to be true high-end professionals (and by that I mean engineers, etc.) I guess college is the only choice - but I'm wondering if maybe for a lot of people (myself included) if just taking whatever cash you had and vagrantly traveling the country might not be a better learning experience. It's probably a fast way to find yourself - and certainly a fast way to learn about life. Picking up whatever jobs come your way, dealing with the hardships of not having a solid place to live, etc. - you probably learn how to deal with things quickly and learn what kind of person you really are and what you're capable of figuring out and getting yourself out of.

DISCUSSION (24)

GhostZ > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/18/2014 at 23:49

I would worry that the idea is greatly romanticized.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/18/2014 at 23:50

I reckon it depends on the person; their lifestyle, upbringings, and education and knowledge.

mcseanerson > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/18/2014 at 23:51

If I hadn't met my wife at the tail end of high school that is exactly what I would've done. I wanted to be a vagabond and just end up places all over the world experiencing their cultures like a native working with them, not like a tourist.

pfftballer > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/18/2014 at 23:52

No, cars are the segue to all the life lessons you need to learn. You need to abandon your family and randomly buy a POS car. Make sure you spend every dime you have on it and have no exit strategy. Then you meet people who can help you keep it running, people who help you improve your position in life and as soon as you're stable, back on your feet, you take your savings and buy another random POS car and start over. This could turn into an actually entertaining reality show.

Leadbull > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/18/2014 at 23:53

I always thought it'd be cool to ditch my current life and go nomad, but it's really just a fantasy.

I'm really grateful that I have the opportunity to get a higher education. There's always time to drift around once I graduate, probably making much better money.

Big Bubba Ray > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/18/2014 at 23:55

I think a considerable amount about this every single day of my life. I'm 22, bored, not sure of what to do with life, WAY behind in school, and wanting to experience a different side of life.

Too bad it's just a fantasy at this point.

For Sweden > pfftballer
08/18/2014 at 23:55

When does Xzibit come in?

For Sweden > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/18/2014 at 23:56

It's easy to go nomad; just work in the oil industry.

lone_liberal > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/18/2014 at 23:58

If you are decent looking, white, outgoing, and charming then that might work for you. Basically you need to be Shawn Spenser. I do believe, though, that more people would be better off going to a trade school than getting a four year degree in something they don't give a shit about.

Leadbull > lone_liberal
08/19/2014 at 00:02

I've heard it both ways.

Frosted > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/19/2014 at 00:02

Agree completely. I've been in a rut lately as I ponder dropping out of college. I have absolutely no motivation to go back. I enjoy the job I have now and would rather do that full time. College for me has been a shitshow and now I'm the only study in my major which leaves the school unable to offer my major courses as no one would be taking them aside from myself. So graduation is a light at the end of a very dark, long tunnel. Couple that with the fact that 75% of my credits will not transfer if I go elsewhere because of how my major is set up and how different it is from anywhere else and the school already on the brink of losing accreditation but spending millions of dollars to build new buildings for other majors and you can see why I'm frustrated. I worked at the grocery store for 2 months. I spent the first month as a cashier making minimum wage with barely 20 hour weeks. I was moved immediately to a department to stock shelves, given a 25 cent raise and now work 30-40+ hour weeks. Go to school, spend money and get nothing in return or get a job, make money, get credit cards/credit scores and start working towards a future is how I see it atm.

rb1971 ARGQF+CayenneTurbo+E9+328GTS+R90S > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/19/2014 at 00:10

1. College is definitely not for everyone. Trade school can be much more appropriate, and although a lot of people look down on it I've never understood that approach.

2. A LOT of people that go to college at 17/18 could benefit from working a few years figuring out what they want to do.

3. Given the cost of college, you are definitely better off getting a degree in something that leads to a job (e.g., engineering, law, medicine) rather than a general liberal arts degree, unless your family is wealthy.

Conan > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/19/2014 at 00:29

I totally reccomend my students getting a trade degree, doing an apprenticeship, joining the military, technical certs/school, volunteering, Peace Corps and that kind of thing if college isn't for them now or for them. I think that's a lot different than drifting without a plan though. I don't reccomend that.

Jay Lauer > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/19/2014 at 01:00

I advise taking a semester off, maybe a year. Working a bum job full-time with only your high school education will teach you quickly that those jobs suck and being poor fucking blows.

If I want to travel the country, I'd much rather do it when I'm rich than poor.

I was lost and broke for a while after freshman year. I took a semester off and delivered pizzas full-time. At the new year, I started school again, started a small business shortly after that, and am now in my senior year undergrad while working at a law firm. I've still got the small business and I haven't looked back.

I'd way rather do what I do now than be poor. You can call it superficial, but I'd rather have money than not.

Jordaneer, The Mountaineer Man > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/19/2014 at 01:59

look up Adam the Woo, he did exactly that, he quit his job, sold all of his possessions, moved out of his apartment and into his van and travels around the country, and does videos on the internet and sells some t-shirts to make money.

Jordaneer, The Mountaineer Man > rb1971 ARGQF+CayenneTurbo+E9+328GTS+R90S
08/19/2014 at 02:03

general studies, political science and philosophy are not majors that are useful,you can't get a job with any of those really.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/19/2014 at 08:59

I think this whole "gap year" thing that all the cool kids are doing these days is actually a great idea. To get a break after high school, try to figure things out and get to know yourself more, and then dig into college (if that's the right path) afterward seems like a great way to do it, for those for whom it's an option.

I never had to work hard in high school to get good grades, so I never really learned how to study very well. Since I was good at math, engineering was the safe choice (I didn't grow up with much - you don't hear about many "starving engineers"). I majored in civil engineering (should have chosen architecture), and after three years of trying to stick it out even though I knew it was the wrong course, I changed majors. My fiance got a good job, we got married and I ended up getting a BFA in graphic design (a very good fit for me). Those three years in school were fantastic, but finding a good design job afterward was a challenge. I'm 36 now, and I still do design on the side, but my day job is more technical: software and mapping support for a group of geologists. It's a very good job, and it pays well, but it's not my dream job, by any means. At this point, I'm saving a lot and killing off debt so that my second career can be something that is more rewarding/fulfilling and allow for more travel and freedom.

One word of advice: the savings you can put away for the long term at a very young age can make a huge difference to your long-term financial health. Having a job in your early 20s that allows you to do this is very valuable. Spending your first 5-10 years of working life "drifting" means that you won't really start earning good money until your mid-30s, and the longer you wait to start saving for the long-term, the harder it is to build up what you need...

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > For Sweden
08/19/2014 at 09:05

Yup - Midland or Williston will take you. There may not be a place to live, but there are jobs.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > mcseanerson
08/19/2014 at 09:06

No regrets?

Collin > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/19/2014 at 09:58

For a year, I'd definitely recommend not going right into college after high school, but I'd also highly recommend having a plan to obtain some sort of education or vocational training. Not everyone needs college, but not everyone needs to be a plumber/electrician.

Some people need a college degree but don't do well in traditional college. Those people often hate online education because it's all the same hoop jumping of regular college (taking required/irrelevant classes, assignments feel like busywork, etc.), but a growing number of universities are offering competency-based programs that teach skills and don't waste their students' time with two years of unnecessary classes to take.

But yeah, for some people, even really smart people, college sucks.

mcseanerson > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
08/19/2014 at 10:02

I love my wife and kids. I still long for a nomadic life but I'm happy with what I have for now. Maybe it's something the wife and I can do in retirement.

Keith Moon > No, I don't thank you for the fish at all
08/19/2014 at 10:11

I think the idea is highly romanticized. As a kid I wanted to travel the world, be an adventurer and all that stuff. Thankfully, I went to college and then grad school. I still don't think I earn enough, though, so imagine what would happen had I just packed my bags and left home.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > mcseanerson
08/19/2014 at 10:28

Very much the same with me. I wish I'd been able to explore more when I was young and unattached, but value my family so much more than any of that. I'm 36 now, and working toward a second career that allows me the freedom I desire...

My response to OP:

http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/i-think-this-w…

Leadbull > Jordaneer, The Mountaineer Man
08/19/2014 at 10:41

If you like what you're doing and get involved, you can get jobs with social science degrees (aside from general studies...).

Granted, with some of them it'll most likely be teaching, but if you know that going in then what's the harm?