How important is it to get a degree or even a high school diploma these days? I know that this is a vague question but I’m seriously thinking about dropping out of high school and learning useful things instead of the state-approved curriculum.
I’m not too sure about dropping out of high school, but college doesn’t seem all that necessary if you’re an entrepreneur.
Yes, it is necessary. If you drop out, you will most likely end up in a job you hate being treated like shit for the rest of your life. An education might just buy you freedom.
I can still get my GED. Right now I have no clue what I’ll be; I’m just preparing myself by studying and knowing as much as I can.
what do you mean instead of state approved?
is the states version of the scientific method different from other versions?
is the states periodic table different from other versions?
is game theory different when the state teaches it?
are essay forms different when the state teaches them?
school is not neccicary. you can get a education without the state. i don’t think you will learn a different system of calculus outside of the state, but the state in not neccicary to learn calculus.
I’ve been through this exact thought process, Luminar. Let me know exactly what bothers you about high school, and maybe I can give you some advice. Pm me if you prefer.
Don’t just drop out without a plan. Look at joining a trade, such as electrical, plumbing, electronic technician, etc. Even hairstyling or something like that. Get yourself out of the “minimum wage noise region” or at least have a plan to do so. Check out the entry requirements - for many of the “high demand/highly unionized” trades like electrician, you have to win a lottery, so bear that in mind. I’m sure most or all will require HS-diploma or equivalent (GED), so either get the diploma or get the GED and then drop out.
Don’t be afraid to wander but don’t be stupid about it. If you get a trade and a couple years of savings under your belt, you can branch out and explore from there. Are you still living at home? Get along with your parents and don’t move out! Free rent is the best way to save massive amounts of cash in a very short time.
Bide your time and don’t jump into a permanent romantic relationship (aka knocking someone up regardless of legal/residency status) until you’re on a sure footing. I made the mistake of jumping in too early and now my paycheck is being sliced 10 different ways by the courts, laywers and a psychotically vindictive ex. If you already have a HS girlfriend, I would plan on “moving on”; not to be callous but you really don’t want to end up in a marriage (or live-in equivalent) with any woman born in the US, UK, Europe, etc. basically any place with a “modern middle-class” mindset. It doesn’t matter if you “know her”, they’re all the same - they’ve all been programmed by the television, schools and magazines since they were knee high that they are owed the world and that the government is there to make sure they get it from whoever is foolish enough to have a child with them. Think of it as involuntary privatization of welfare.
When you come to that time in your life, many Asian, African and Muslim countries are much better places to marry into. The rules are stricter - you’ll have to immigrate and conform - but the return is that you can have a large family and maintain a high income in the confidence that you’re not going to be systematically plundered by a vicious, materialistic ex under the full protection of the law.
Clayton -
A high school diploma can get you a job flipping burgers so not very.
Don’t just study though- get a job. If you already have some strengths or interests, go in that direction. If you’re good with your hands get into an entry level trade or manufacturing. Always be learning more so you can move up. You discover your interests through action. Thinking is simply regurgitating what you already know and many things can’t be learned from reading.
Wisdom to live by: if you want to move up in an organization, take on the responsibilities of the job that you want whenever you can. Don’t sit idly waiting for a promotion.
If you find you want to move into something that requires more education, get a GED and apply to colleges. This can be a bad investment though as you probably know. Learning to manage your money now is incredibly important. You will be more wealthy than your peers who go ear deep in debt in hopes of a job that might never materialize. If you know exactly what your aim is by already working in that field, you can graduate quickly and already have your foot in the door.
Disclaimer: I’m one of those bums that bounces around jobs so take my advice with a grain of salt (that’s probably due to my own personality quirks though, you may have different results). Also, read 48 Laws of Power. If you just want to be cranked through the machine and work whever the system puts you, this sort of knowledge isn’t necessary. A self made man needs to learn how to not step on people’s toes and how to influence others.
Define your own meaning of success. Don’t be preoccupied with what your peers may be doing. This is our own human tendency to look towards others for guidance. You’re taking a road less traveled and that can be a challenge.
Don’t be preoccupied with doubts of the future either. There isn’t a finish line. Enjoy life.
@NonAntiAnarchist, I despise school because it wastes seven hours of my day and forces me to do things that are irrelevant, pointless, and sometimes silly. For instance, Friday in “health” I was supposed to be cutting out advertisements from magazines and writing down details about them (the logic being that that would train us to make smarter decisions when buying things). I’m failing in Biology for no other reason than that I don’t feel like doing work and never hand my assignments in. There are lots more reasons but that’s just some of the basic stuff.
@Clayton, thanks for the advice; although I’m not entirely confident if I could work as a fifteen year-old dropout. I do live with my parents and I have cash already thanks to Israel’s socialist policies (an Asperger’s label given as a toddler apparently qualified me for disability money >.<).
I graduated one year ago, so I have had recent experience with the employment situation. Unless you have connections who can employ you (e.g. an uncle who owns an auto repair shop), I would not recommend dropping out of high school. Most employed drop-outs I know have some kind of connection in the business world.
Here are some suggestions:
-Try to graduate from high school in three years. Don’t talk to your guidance counselor-their paycheck in part depends on how often you are in school. Look at your school’s graduation requirements, and see if you can attend a community college in the summer to get some credits out of the way. Ask your school’s registrar if the credits transfer.
-Learn programming languages, and offer yourself as a free intern to some company to build up a resume. I would say Matlab, Python, Java, and C++ are the best. If you are disciplined and eager to escape college, this shouldn’t be a problem. If you can force yourself to learn these languages inside and out, and I mean very very well, I would say dropping out of high school would be ok. My mom was a programmer for some time in the late 90s, and she knew people who earned modest salary on little formal education; she also said that advancing in salary could be difficult. Programming may not work for you, though.
I hope this helps. I’m in college now, but I plan to graduate in three years. I share your hatred for high school education. Please tell me if you have any further questions.
@Luminar: Well that simplifies things, then. Israeli culture already has strong mores built in surrounding marriage and divorce and I’ll leave it to you to figure out how to navigate that. I work with a lot of people from Israel and I can attest that there is a lot more conservatism regarding family structure than here in the US, which is a good thing.
As far as being 15, that’s irrelevant. In the State where I live (Oregon), you can start full-time employment at 16 with a GED. So, find out what the laws are but don’t let them hold you back; even if you have to wait until you’re 18 for your first formal job, that doesn’t mean you can’t work under-the-table. Get a GED and start peddling. I assume you have the equivalent of Craigslist wherever you are - use it. Learn how to wheel and deal and work your cellphone. Don’t have a car? Take the bus - you have all the time in the world. I recommend this even if you eventually plan to invest. The skills you learn horse-trading will follow you wherever you go… when it comes time to sell that car you’ve been driving for the last 3 1/2 years, you’ll be much better prepared to make sure you get paid its full value. Best of all, it’s 100% tax-free as long as you deal in cash and don’t put it in the bank where the government can tabulate it. If you build too large of a pile of cash (what a thing to worry about!), you can always convert it into silver and store it in a safe-deposit box or in a real safe.
Clayton -
Fair enough.
I’ve been a perennial underachiever in school. I made the choice to drop out and get a GED a few years ago. I’m in community college now. I’m not sure the GED per se has held me back (though I still have my own problems coping with school). If you go to a community college afterwards (you can even go earlier than most students would asusming you’d get your GED before you’d graduate) and do well, you’ll still be in prime position to transfer to a decent college, perhaps even a better-than-decent college if you can stick a 3.5 GPA or above.
So, yea, highschool itself is relatively unimportant. That said, dropping out could cause you social problems later in life, give you a stigma you might not want to walk around with, and I don’t really see an advantage to dropping out, besides getting more free time to do whatever you’d like. Have you ever thought about homeschooling?
Never work for free. If nothing else, it’s a bad habit. It makes you feel and appear less valuable than you are. You can earn plenty of money doing contract programming. Degrees are generally irrelevant for this (though completed projects are highly relevant).
Clayton -
This is just about getting references to build up a resume, not forming a habit. A six month unpaid internship would give you valuable experience in designing programs. Seriously, having the words “corporation” and “programmed” on your resume can work wonders for you. Contract programming could be done on the side, but it’s really not enough to make a living; I know someone who did odd jobs like that.
If you’re determined to work for free, your efforts are better spent working as a volunteer developer on an open-source project that you like (e.g. Perl 6). I work for one of the largest tech corporations in the world as a computer engineer (programming is one part of my job) and I can assure you that you will gain more experience and more valuable experience working outside the corporate setting. Its stifling and it’s meant to be. Opportunities are kept out of reach and doled out only to management’s favorites. The primary purpose of the tech corporate structure is to regiment technical people; over-achievers are not welcome and low-performers who know how to kiss up to management will outperform the substantial contributors every time. Hardly the early lessons you want to inculcate in yourself.
Start small and keep it real. Never give up control and never put yourself in a situation where you are dependent on your job.
Clayton -
Keep as many doors open as possible. Finish your schooling and then decide what you want to do. You have everything to lose and nothing to gain by dropping out. You may be right in believing that you are being taught shite, but employers nevertheless look at your qualifications and will judge you for not having any. You will suffer.
-I was thinking of doing the same: get a GED, self teach myself a useful skill (i know some C but not enough to earn an internship or a job–> and so plunge deeper to learn, but if you are skilled enough to get an internship, here is one: http://tbe.taleo.net/NA5/ats/careers/requisition.jsp?org=NCSOFT&cws=1&rid=972 ) and enter the workforce. However my parents would kill me at the thought of dropping out of school.
Tomorrow, i shall delve into the dark, over waxing hand of the public education system. Behold all those who triumph against the state. Comrades, give me motivation and strength to resist the indoctrination, the lies, and brainwashing babble that which comes hailing down upon our youth’s ears from the department of education.
I am ready.
Tu ne cede malis.
^ Lol
Related:
We talked about this a while back didnt we?