What is the point of school?

[AirMedic]

To me, in my mid 30s, college has become just a way to get that magical piece of paper that can potentially open more doors for you in the real world.

Right on--my thoughts exactly!

[marianne202]

I vote for it keeping Alzheimer's and dementia at bay!!!! At my age I need all the help I can get! I just hope it works! But just in case it doesn't I have already warned my kids they better be ready to keep bibs on me and change my diapers. Turn about is fair play! I told them it was the least they could do since I did it for them. In all seriousness I'm finding school much more rewarding and enjoyable now than I did in my 20's. Maturity has its benefits, besides the senior discount!

[Griffin]

I've had conversations with my co-workers about what the piece of paper really means to the Fed, and this is what we came up with:

1) The recipient has the ability to learn new skills
2) The recipient has written language skills that are needed for many positions
3) The recipient is capable of abstract and critical reasoning skills needed for problem solving
4) The recipient has the tenacity to make a plan and follow it through to the end

:iagree: I don't think I could have put it better myself! I've had the pleasure of knowing lots of people who were smart, bright, team players and the whole nine yard -- but who had ZERO written skills. None, zip, nada. Not illiterate, but they struggled to get their point across in a paragraph. For them to finish college (and some did!) would take tremendous drive that most people aren't willing to put in.

[Griffin]

What is the point of school?

I am 25 now and have developed a small career. But the winds of change blow through every field, and it is now pretty much required to have a degree to make even a lateral move. (Unless you freelance, but I am sick of freelancing).

And if I want to change careers and go into psychology, that requires graduate study.

For me, the point of school is to open doors to a better life, one that I wouldn't have access to otherwise. Attending class enables me to create a nice GPA that showcases my earned knowledge to admissions committees, scholarship committees and prospective employers.

[Maniac Craniac]

Not too long ago, I wondered if I would ever create a thread that would go to more than five pages long. Now, I'm working on a new record! Only about four million pages more, and I finally will beat the I Hate You ALEKS thread milelol:

[rickyjo]

Ha! That thread is mine, I didn't even realize it was mine until you said that :-D. Is it really the record? Is there a way to know?

[Maniac Craniac]

Thanks for the post. Hi guys, Im a newbie. Nice to join this forum.

No, you are a spamer who is unwelcome here. Nobody is going to click your link, and your post will be removed before it helps your search engine ranking. You are the weakest link...

[ann70821]

Inspired by another thread, I am working on some soul-searching. I am an idealist, but have become disillusioned with the reality of formal education.

What say you? What do you hope to gain from college that you couldn't gain otherwise, beyond just a degree? Would you be doing the same thing even if the degree served no purpose in your life?

I'm finishing my degree because I had promised myself, and my parents, that I wasn't dropping out (in 1979) I was just taking some time off. A promise is a promise, after all.

Plus, higher education is a serious tradition in our family. My mother's family had been educating the girls in the family for generations--long before it was commonly accepted. There's something about following family traditions at work with my decision, too.

It won't make a bit of a difference career-wise for me. I am a political researcher and consultant, no one even asks if I have a degree!

So it's really all about me, and looking in the mirror.

[dondeal]

A bachelors degree opens the doors to becoming a military officer and federal law enforcement for me. I'm 6 credits away from opening those doors.

[studyhard]

Okay, gang, I need a pep talk.

I frequented this forum a lot when I was getting my undergrad. I got a BA in history from TESC. Now I'm working on a master's in military history, Civil War emphasis from American Public/American Military University. Out of 12 classes, I've finished three and am working on #4 and #5.

This week I just feel bleh about the whole thing. Grad school isn't quick. Having a capricious prof isn't helping much, but if I was motivated I could work around him better. But today I suddenly starting thinking, "What IS the point?" Quite honestly, I don't know what to DO with a master's in history, I only know that I really despise the formality and intensity of conventional research. I could teach I guess, except that I can't see a college hiring me without a Ph.D. and I would never want to teach in a public school and have hang-ups about private schools too because I disagree with institutional schooling for young folks on a philosophical level, period.

I mean, the stuff I'm studying interests me but even if I could write the most brilliant paper in the world, in the long run, what difference does it make if General X could have won ABC battle if he had only used XYZ strategy?

Basically, I'm getting the degree because right now I have the time and money to pursue it. But in my gloomy chocolate-deprived state of mind, the whole thing seems like a big waste of money. I could do all this learning on my own withOUT having to sweat my brains out over Chicago-style footnoting. The only real benefit I have right now is access to some great online libraries and the discipline of having deadlines. Those are good things but I dunno, I'm still feeling bleh.

So y'all, give me a pep talk and remind me why I'm doing this, okay?