Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg. Apart from being some of the greatest minds in the tech world, what is that one thing which is common in these three? Well, as you might’ve guessed by now, they all dropped out of college at one point or the other to pursue their vision and change the world.
As it might have become evident to you by now, this article talks about dropping out of college. But there’s a catch, we’re not here to romanticize dropping out of college for you. Rather, we’re here to tell you if you should drop out of college or not.
While Jobs and his contemporaries had some of the greatest minds and were facilitated by a number of other factors in their ascension to the top of the world, the harsh reality is that not everyone is blessed with a brain like these luminaries. And before your parents start running all over us thinking we’re trying to persuade you to drop out of college, let’s get the record straight: dropping out of college is definitely a risky thing which is followed by a life full of uncertainties. While uncertainties bring out the best in some people, it spells absolute doom for some others. So, should you drop out of college? We discuss why it is fine to drop out of college, and why it is not. Stick tape to those lenses, and get onboard.
Before we begin our quest, you need to remember that dropping out of college doesn’t mean you’re surrendering. It simply implies that you’re taking time off to try out new things in life and explore things that can add some meaning to your life. Having established that here’s why it is absolutely okay to drop out of college:
#1. A New Discovery
Colleges generally take up around 4 years of your life. And, one shouldn’t forget that colleges tend to get monotonous after a while. By dropping out of college, you can set out on a journey of self-discovery. There is a whole new world out there, and it’s all yours for the taking. Go out, venture into new ideas, meet new people, and widen your perspective. Basically, you can do what you want to.
#2. Work In Different Jobs
In college, there is one subject that you major in. But, what if down the line, the subject that you studied runs out of demand, and there are no jobs left in the market? Your life will literally spiral down to an uncertain ally. But, if you drop out of college, you can work as many jobs as you like. You can work as a waiter, as a writer, as a mechanic and better your people skills. Besides, most companies expect experienced candidates for any position. In college, there isn’t much scope for getting work experience apart from a few internships here and there.
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#3. Meet New People
Not that you don’t meet new people in college, but almost all of them are identical in one way or the other. But, if you drop out of college, you get to meet different kinds of people. People with different mindsets, goals, and intellects that can have a positive impact on your life. You might start seeing things a little differently when you meet all these new people.
#4. The Limitations Of A College Degree
There are very few subjects today that equip you to work multiple positions. For instance, if you study management, you can only take up managerial positions in an office. You can never become a writer or something else that you want to. Whereas, dropping out of college exposes you to the big world out there. There is no limit to the type and number and jobs that you can do once you drop out. Besides, there was a reason that Jobs, Gates, and Zuckerberg dropped out of college and that because their college degree wasn’t helping them with their vision. So, if you are a visionary, you don’t need a college degree.
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#5. For You’re Young And Have A Long Life Ahead Of You
This point couldn’t have been truer. A college degree will set your life path in a particular direction, and coming out of it could be an uphill task. Perhaps, 10 years down the line, you might question a career that could have flourished, had you dropped out of college. Here’s the thing: you don’t know what’s going to happen in the world and neither do you know the type of jobs that will be available 5 years from now. If you’re a college dropout, you can try your hands at almost everything.
#6. You Can Change The World
And to further substantiate why you should drop out of college, we have to come back from where we started; to the three people that we mentioned at the begging of this piece. Dropping out of college allowed Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg to change the world. Who knows, you might be one of the greatest influencers of this generation in the making?
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While we can go on adding more points to this argument, we also need to shed light on the other side of it. Dropping out of college might not be the best solution for a lot of people. Here’s why:
#1. An Education Is Respected In The Society
As silly as this reason might sound, it is absolutely valid in the practical realms. Society has always emphasized the importance of education and people who contest this are seen as rebels and troublemakers. While there is nothing wrong with being a rebel, man is a social animal at the end of the day and has to follow certain norms laid down by the society. Besides, you are respected in the society if you’re educated.
#2. Life Becomes Certain
Like we said before, some people don’t like uncertainties in life. They would rather prefer a stable life with not much risk and adventure. Education does bring some amount of stability in your life as you start following a tried and tested path to success.
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#3. Boredom Can Kill You
If you drop out of college, you have to spend a substantial amount of hours in your home until you have the next groundbreaking idea in your mind. As you sit through your days, boredom will eventually catch up to you and will start killing you from the inside. Going to college keeps you away from home and also gives you a purpose in life.
#4. College Is Like An Extended Holiday
The prospect of dropping out of college and experiencing a life full of adventures sounds fun, but, one can argue that college is perhaps the College time is best time of one’s life. It is not the time when you’re not so grown up to take up responsibilities nor are you so young to not have fun. It is true that you can have fun while in college and pursue all kinds of hobbies. You can skip classes if you want to and even go on long leaves.
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#5. Education Is Important
The point is, we all need a basic understanding of things. Yes, we argue that Jobs and other dropouts of college have been immensely successful, but we often fail to see what they took from their time in colleges. Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg both could write wonderful codes, and a lot of that was due to the education that they received. Besides, the bottom line is that education is indeed important. To grow in life, you need education. Now, either you get the same in a year and drop out of college, or complete your course in the stipulated time, and then plan to get a job. Education is the basis of everything that you do in life.
So, there you have it. It was a sincere attempt to present both the sides of dropping out of college so that you can figure out if you should go ahead with it or not. If you think this article helped you, let us know in the comments below. We would love to hear from you.
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I don’t think that a person should ever drop out of college. I’m saying this, because I did and what followed was a life full of darkness. I was young and all pumped to have my own business and company. I thought I had the perfect idea and now all I needed was to get some good investors to fund my idea.
In order to do that, I dropped out of college to begin my pursuit of that investor who could change my life. I set out, knocking several door bells to no avail. I was still patient and hoped that things would get better for me. A year passed by and then two and I was yet to get a single dollar invested in my idea.
As the days kept on going by, I started to lose hope until it came to the point where I started seeing myself as a failure in life that would never have anything. I talked to my family, my relatives, and my friends, all of whom had advised me not to drop out of college. Now, all they had to say was that it was too late and that I have to think of another idea to begin with.
I thought I had the perfect plan, I thought I was the prince the Silicon Valley had been waiting for. But, like most of my assumptions, this too went down to the drain. I soon started working on a new idea, a new mobile app which got some funding; enough for me to start my company. I would say that I got lucky, but I still don’t know if what would my life had been like had I completed my college and built a proper and solid professional network while studying.
As time passed by, one thing became clear to me that to be successful, you don’t necessarily have to drop out of college. Clearly, when I set out on my journey to launch the next big company that would change the world, I got a lot of things wrong. But perhaps that is the beauty of being young. I was lucky that I got an investor, and so were Steve, Bill and Mark. But, are you one of those three? Even if you are, I would advise you to stay in college, be a good kid, and get a degree. You will have enough time to venture into your entrepreneurial idea once college is over. What more? You can work on your idea in the vacations too. You got to make the best out of what you have. That is certainly the best way to go about it.
So, in conclusion, I would like to say that please don’t be a college dropout. The society literally looks down at you