TED Conversations

Cornelius Gyamfi

This conversation is closed. Start a new conversation
or join one »

Is a 4 year college always the right way to go?

This decade has seen a wider percentage of people who did not attend college become more succesful than ones who did and now live a debt free life . I want strong opinions.

+2
Share:
progress indicator
  • thumb

    Colleen Steen 500+

    • +1
    Feb 1 2013: Hi again Cornelius:>)
    My "strong" opinion is to FOLLOW YOUR HEART! With our logical mind, we can take in as much information as available, and with all possible information, we can listen to the heart/intuition/instinct/gut feeling.....whatever you choose to call it.

    We all learn in different ways. I learn best from experience, and am not at all good in the classroom....except if I'm at the head of the class....LOL!!! That being said, I do not have a college degree, and I guest lectured at the university for 6 years:>) I have also had some WONDERFUL learning experiences because I believe we are all teachers and students in this earth school.

    The possibilities for learning are unlimited, and each of us may discover different paths to take WHEN we are open to possibilities. Follow your heart, with guidence from the logical mind, listen and pay attention to what makes your heart sing....what brings you bliss....love what you do, and do what you love. If that includes classroom learning, so be it. If it does not include formal education, that's ok too:>)
  • thumb

    edward long 100+

    • +1
    Feb 1 2013: Always? Never!
  • thumb

    Kieran Preissler

    • +1
    Feb 1 2013: As a second semester community college student, I think that the 4 year university path is not always the best path for some people. When I graduated from High School, I honestly had no idea what I wanted to do with my life (I was in a local poetry club, and I had dabbled a little in activism and I was well-known for volunteering for a majority of causes), and I had little motivation to immediately choose a path for my future.
    But now I'm still seeking a passion to pursue and I've been advised by several people to "continually practice my art" by going to a Four-Year and taking classes related to my art field.
    • thumb

      Colleen Steen 500+

      • +1
      Feb 1 2013: Kieran,
      I relate to you, in that I also had no idea when I graduated from high school what I wanted to do the rest of my life. If it's any consolation, at 60+, I still passionately seek life and learning, and will be doing so until I take my last breath. My goal and practice, is to live every moment of the life experience with passion. So many times, people look for a destination, when in my perception, living life to the fullest, is to "BE" all that we can be in every moment of the life adventure. Happiness/contentment is not only a destination.....it is a way of travel:>) How about making "life" your passion?

  • Ben Kocsis

    • +2
    Feb 1 2013: I think we're at an interesting time where a four year college degree is starting to shift away from the past implications. As information and material becomes more readily available, I think that learning is shifting from a traditional closed four wall box, and unleashing itself into the wild. Take Coursera as an example. Now, people with internet access can enroll in classes taught my some of the best professors from the best schools in the nation. I think that it really depends on your life goals and where you want to end up. People shouldn't take the four year track if they are not fully committed to succeeding. The degree no longer means instant employment, and finding any job in this market is scary. Sure, college will give you a leg up, but the most important thing is to find something you're passionate about and pursue it.
  • thumb

    Gail . 50+

    • 0
    Jan 31 2013: There is no "right" answer, but if my children were wondering this, I would advise them to spend a year in school - living in a dorm setting upon graduation from high school. That way they are in a semi-protected environment as they learn to fly on their own. At that point, they can decide this for themselves. They will have a better understanding of who they are - apart from who they thought that they were because they were part of a family that had its own identity.
  • thumb

    Salim Solaiman 50+

    • 0
    Jan 31 2013: Nothing is always right. Nor even anything is right for all at any time point.
  • thumb

    Feyisayo Anjorin 50+

    • +1
    Jan 30 2013: Life has no guranteed formula for success. If there was one, how easy life would have been. It is important for parents and pupils to seek good advice and consider their talent, skills, vision and prospects. When there is adequate information it is usually easy to make an informed choice. THere is no advice that is a one-size-fits-all.

  • greg dahlen 30+

    • +1
    Jan 30 2013: Don't know if you can generalize. For some people four-year better, some people no. To some degree you should trust your feelings, if you feel it's right, it probably is.

  • greg dahlen 30+

    • 0
    Jan 30 2013: Great question. Did you want more time on this, as it only got a week. Hit edit and you can add more.
  • thumb

    Alan Russell

    • +1
    Jan 30 2013: No, it is not. Some of my students want to pursue careers which require college degrees, and others want technical training. Some want to join the military, and others want to work in the family business. Some have no idea what they want to be and do.
  • thumb

    Fritzie Reisner 100+

    • +1
    Host
    Jan 30 2013: As you say, many people have had rich lives educating themselves differently. There are some life paths in which college and the tutelage of those with profound expertise in an area is essential, there are those who can tap into such resources informally because of the family they were born to even without formal education, and some people can lead lives that satisfy them without higher education, content with the level of understanding they gain, or believe they gain, from their own reading and experience.

    No matter how much one values higher education and the mentoring and community learning it facilitates, I don't see how one could argue that "it is always the right way to go."

  • Comment deleted

    • thumb

      Gail . 50+

      • 0
      Jan 31 2013: When I was an employer, I actively looked for the C-student. They were more balanced and better qualified for the jobs I had to offer. In finance, this meant that they were better able to apply their book-learning to the task at hand. When I moved into sales, C students were more socially adapted and made much better sales people (so we all earned more money).

      If I wanted to hire someone for a research position or in the IT field (etc), I might well choose differently. I have no experience in those fields so I have no basis for comparison.
Showing all 17 comments