Good Enough, Dammit!
I can remember very little about my years in high school. Other than playing team sports, teenage hormones, and art, it wasn't a choice for me not to graduate. I didn't quite understand how minimum wage worked, but I saw that fast food didn't lead to wealth. And as a kid, there were a lot of things I wanted!
I'm unsure where, or when, I developed this early understanding of the socioeconomic status, but I just knew I wanted more. To get more, meant to graduate with a decent GPA and score well enough on the SATs to get into a college. I wasn't sure what I would major in. I just wanted to live better and had an understanding that education would help me achieve my goals.
It's still unclear what motivated me more – the fear of poverty or the propaganda surrounding the educational system in the U.S. We are taught the importance of education at a young age, yet we rarely question what we learn. We are taught that without more than a diploma, or General Education Degree, it is going to be more difficult for us to receive a comfortable income. There is little argument to the importance of education, but has this technique of propaganda created a continuous stream of robots?
Having a degree in a particular field doesn't necessarily mean you are overly talented, or knowledgeable, in that industry. It is a representation of acquiring a basic understanding of your chosen field. However, specialized knowledge is what an individual gets paid more for. Specialized knowledge is generally more hands-on, such as on-the-job training, an apprenticeship, or even a paid intern. Despite a recent graduate's degree, they still may lack the experience to properly compete in this job market. This inexperience, despite completing years of higher education, doesn't guarantee quality employment. So, why are the cost of “higher education” so expensive?
It is no mystery that education has become big business. This can be seen in the continuous rise of online courses and the creation of private institutions of learning. Yet, the quality of education provided often doesn't match it's monetary value. This is what I feel is the basis of the educational pyramid scheme in the U.S.
In a failing job market, promoting and exaggerating the power of a degree is destructive to our society and it's economy. Recent graduates have roughly six months before they are obligated to discuss or begin making repayments on their undergrad or graduate loans. In the current job market, many individuals have been unemployed for periods up to a year, if not more. Flood the job market with hungry and optimistic grads with varying levels of education, and they are now in a competitive cycle for financial stability. A cycle that seems to appear more, if not just as competitive, as the remaining individuals without a diploma or G.E.D.. So which is better off?
Yes, there are a lot of positives to attending a college and opening your mind to new and influential opportunities, yet college is not the only place this opportunity is accessible. Many opportunities can surface merely by one facing their fear of change. An aggressive, yet unadvised, method of facing this fear is to dropout and force yourself to succeed in what you are passionate about. This is possibly why some dropouts have discovered success and influence through this practice such as Bill Gates, Russell Simmons, Kanye West, Maya Angelou, and Malcolm X. Even Madame C.J. Walker, who dropped out in elementary school, went on to invent hair care products to become the first female millionaire. Despite her lack of education, she serves as an example that determination, hardwork, initiative, and a strong will for success is “good enough, dammit!”
R. Herod
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