Why am I trying to get a degree? I ask myself this question a lot. Usually when I can’t do something I want to do because of school responsibilities. (This week I had a chance to go to the Penn State-Syracuse game. I couldn’t go because I have too many things due early next week.) It is a good question though. I asked myself why a degree was necessary coming out of high school. Sadly I didn’t find much of an answer then. Even at this later stage of life it took multiple factors to push me into enrolling in a degree seeking program. I’ll list some of the reasons I have now. Maybe I can use this as a reference for the next time I have free tickets to go to the second largest stadium in college football. I’m not going to list them in order of importance, just as I think of them.
Unfinished business. Although I didn’t start college immediately after high school, I took several AP courses during high school and I always assumed that I would be going to college. Not going seemed a little like giving up on something. I’m not a big fan of giving up on anything so it bugged me.
Career. I’d like to think that this one isn’t a driving factor, but that wouldn’t be truthful. I’ve faced the degree question a lot, even in my short professional working career. Even a degree in a non-related field is acceptable to a prospective employer as an indication of task completion. However, I have received the most pressure in this area from my current employer. Although each of my reviews has been good, the advice I receive always includes something to the effect of: ‘a degree would make a big difference’. When I ask exactly what difference the response is varied, but always a positive one.
The Future. Before starting college I made the statement (probably on numerous occasions) that a college education was a lot of ivory-tower, unnecessary teaching that didn’t apply to the real world. The further I get into it the more I see how wrong I was. The skills that I have learned even at this stage have given me a much more realistic shot at success in whatever I might attempt in the future. So, even though this was not a reason when I began, it’s a big one now.
An Example. This kind of adds to the previous reason, but I think that placing an importance on a college degree in my own life will influence my children to also emphasize the same thing. There are a lot of things that I took lightly and education was one of them. I don’t want my child(ren) to make the same mistake.
