Why College is a Waste of Time
And ten alternatives to attending one.
I was sitting in my dorm room with two roommates. I hated them, and I knew it was mutual.
I was at my desk, thinking and writing. The top of the notebook page said, “Should I stay in college?” followed by a T-shaped chart with ‘pros’ and ‘cons.’
I never understood this: You graduate from high school at 17 (more or less), and you’re supposed to make a decision that will shape your whole future. It’s also supposed to be the right decision because the stakes are so high.
“Not that big of a deal,” you might say. But I would argue it is.
Choosing a college is an investment — of money ($100K-$200K), time (2–4 years), and opportunity cost. Like any investment, it requires clarity of thought and at least some degree of rationality.
Would you let a 17-year-old make that decision?
You Can’t Be ‘Too Late’
The most common argument I hear when I tell people that they can’t rely on a 17-year-old to make big life decisions is, “Well, I don’t want to lose time.”
What does that even mean? How can you ‘lose’ anything, if all you’re doing is living?
