I’m almost finished with college, but I might quit

Once this spring semester is over I’ll have just seven classes left to take in order to (finally) get my B.A. degree. Tomorrow marks the beginning of signups for the summer and fall semester. There’s a problem though.

I really want to quit college instead.

In September, I’ll turn 34 years old. I’ve been going to college off and on since I graduated HS back in 2000. That’s 17 years of failing to complete my degree. That’s numerous changes to my major (I finally settled on Marketing and vowed this was my last chance 3 years ago). That’s years and years of grant applying, debt accruing and so far the only “college” thing to show for it is my two year Associates degree in General Education.

It’s frustrating to be so close, but feel so uninspired to finish.

Every week I go to class or complete my online assignments and I learn absolutely nothing. Last semester I adopted the “Cs get degrees” mantra and with each subsequent assignment that I turn in, my focus is singular; get it done and done quickly — quality be damned.

A couple of years ago I vowed to finish. But, I was in a different place and a different time. Back then I was stuck working at places like Starbucks and Domino’s Pizza. I had no reprieve from years and years of service industry, dead end type jobs. No offense to people who choose to stay in those careers, but after working there for all of my teens, into my twenties and even early thirties, I was over it. I wanted something else. I wanted to have an “adult career” for once.

Then, I got it.

I started as a community manager at a digital marketing agency in February 2015. The feeling was incredible and I still remind myself everyday of how happy I am to move far away from the food industry. The first day at work, I cried to myself.

But, here’s the kicker (Domino’s Chicken kicker pun not intended). I didn’t get it because of a college degree or my glowing “general manager of a fast-paced quick-serve restaurant environment” tagline on my resume. I got it because of all the work I did on the side, between my pizza/coffee slinging shifts.

I was a blog writer. A leader of creative, funny people. I had marketing skills (that school was yet to teach) that I taught myself through blogs and books . I worked my butt off over a short amount of time because I felt perpetually behind in life and I wanted a change. I got lucky to have a girlfriend who accepted my mediocre salary (among many other things she accepted about me) and believed in my potential.

Through my side work, I also made friends with someone who worked at the agency I would become an employee for. School didn’t help me network, writing comedy at night did.

When I went in for an interview, my potential employer, soon-to-be boss had no interest in the fact that I was in college and whether I did or didn’t have my degree. She was more interested in my side work, my passions and whether or not I’d fit into the company culture.

Luckily, I did.

And now, that I’m “in” I feel like I’m in for life. Over a year later I have lots of skills that I could use to land another marketing job if this one goes south or even do freelance work on the side. I know this because I do freelance work on the side.

Yet, here I am — literally sitting in this Intro to Digital Marketing Class (as I write this) — accruing more debt, wasting my time and wondering if I should finally cut the collegiate plug.

As an example of how meaningless this class is, last week we learned what “Twitter” was. At my day job, where I’m a Content Manager, I handle Twitter accounts where hundreds of thousands of dollars are thrown around each year. No exaggeration. This morning alone, I allocated $49,000 for one account on paid Twitter media. Yet, here I am sitting next to 19–22 year olds as they learn about hashtags and what a trending topic is.

It’s kind of insane.

So, why keep going?

There’s really only one reason in my mind — just to get it done. Just to get a degree. Just to FEEL like I didn’t waste 17 years of my life.

On a deeper level, there will be a certain degree of personal satisfaction in being the only person in my family’s history to get a college degree. But, I already felt that satisfaction when I became the only one to ever graduate HS. It was a lackluster and fleeting feeling to say the least. Like, cool — but, also so what?

Then, there’s the argument that we can get better jobs or make more money because of a college degree.

But, I’m already there man.

Last argument I can think of is “but, you’ve accrued so much debt, aren’t you wasting that money if you don’t finish?”

Last month I had a salary conversation with my boss. I received a 7% raise, but was told that it could be more, if I’d commit more time to the job instead of “all the extra things I do.” Full disclosure — this is not just school, I do a LOT of extra things. I essentially run a start-up company on the side that I hope will someday pay my bills full time and become my empire.

But, a decent chunk of time spent on those “extra things” does involve school. I have to spend 2 hours a week IN class and then at least 2 hours a week in ONLINE class. Then, depending upon how much homework I have, there’s another 3–6 hours that I must devote to getting that done.

Even just to get a C.

So, now I’m not only accruing more debt, but I’m also losing money in opportunity cost (learned about that a few semesters ago in Economics class).

My time has become more valuable then it was three years ago. My time is worth a helluva lot more than it was for the past 17 years and that opportunity cost is rising as more time passes.

Realistically, even with just seven classes left, I have at least three semesters and more like four semesters that I’d have to commit to in order to finish. If I take the long road and decide to limit myself to one class per semester, that means I’d have another 2+ years of school left to do. Sure that would limit the amount of time I use each week preventing myself from growing my business or earning more money at my job. But, I’d also have to start paying back my student loans and paying for school with cash.

Mo money, mo money, mo money.

My girlfriend wants me to finish college. On some level, I want me to finish college. But, what damage am I doing to myself financially and is there any reason to actually finish?

Right now — sitting in this class where a student just had to explain to the professor how you can search a hashtag on Twitter — I can’t think of any good ones.

But, I’m willing to listen. I think part of me wants to find a reason to keep going and finish. But, the smarter person in me realizes it’s a huge mistake.

Am I missing the positives of having a college degree in a world where “everyone has a B.A. degree and in the future it won’t even matter” (something I’ve heard a few times now).

What do you think? Have you had a similar experience?