7 Things I Wish I Knew Before Dropping Out of University

I missed out on a lot more than I thought.

“Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs all did it…”

— the 19 year old me foolishly thought.

“… surely University is just a waste of time then.”

— I considered whilst in the comfort of my parent’s home, half way through a three-year Bachelor’s degree that was paid for using an interest-free loan from the Australian Government. In other words, I had it good — and I decided to leave it all.

Back then I considered university as just a means to an end — with the end being my eventual employment.

Boy was I wrong.

While my life didn’t turn into a cautionary story you’d tell young boys and girls, it was certainly a rocky road to get to where I am today. It’s been 7 years since I dropped out of University, during that time my view of the world has matured to the point that I now cringe at the things I thought I knew at 19.

Over the years I realized that there were so many opportunities that I left untouched when I decided to drop out. If I could tell myself these things back then I would but unfortunately that isn’t possible so instead I’ll leave these here in the hopes that someone currently at University (or soon to be) can utilize their time better than I did.

It’s a Goldmine for Great Mentors

I accumulated a long list of acquaintances during my short year and a half at University —groups of people I found myself sharing an hour in the same lecture with, fellow students that made up my study groups, and those cool cliques that always knew where the best parties were at. With all the time I spent at that place, not once did I consider building relationships with tutors and alumni that could one day become valuable mentors.

It wasn’t until I started my career that I realized the value of having a few good mentors in your circle. Had I known this back when I was in University, I would have made a greater effort to meet and grow substantial relationships with potential mentors who would have undoubtedly made my journey to becoming a Software Engineer a tad smoother.

Don’t Pigeonhole Yourself

“What do you want to be when you grow up” — is something we’re all asked since we were young. Despite the quick response of some extravagant career like “Astronaut” or “Fireman” from our younger selves, very few of us really know what we want to do even when entering adulthood. So when we’re asked to map out our entire lives and pick a career path for the next 50-or-so years, we might as well have closed our eyes and pointed to any option in a long list of possibilities. There’s one thing I wish someone had told me back when I was told to plan my life:

It’s okay to change your mind. In fact, you probably will.

Even if you are one of the lucky few who have their careers all thought out, the reality is — that can all change. Life has one constant rule that applies to everyone: it is unpredictable and ever-changing. The worst you can do is to pigeonhole yourself into the narrowest path so early in your life.

So paint your future with the broadest brush you can find, pick a degree that is within the field you wish to work in but be as all-encompassing as you can be.

You Don’t Have to Ace it to Make it

The perfectionist and competitor in me wanted to ace every course I took. I relished every time my paper was called out as an example of what to strive for, and felt defeated any time I received a score less than a distinction.

This was exhausting, and definitely not healthy.

No one cares how well you did in that one pesky course that you were required to take as part of your curriculum. In fact, barely any company would bother asking where you went to school or what your GPA was. Even if they did, do you really want to work for a company that determined your worth based on a number?

It isn’t worth working yourself to the bone for a perfect GPA.

At the end of the day, you all get to stand on that podium with a piece of paper in your hand.

Electives are a Gift — Use Them Wisely

Following through with my previous point — the specifics of which courses you took, and what your scores were don’t matter, as long as you get that piece of paper at the end of the day.

I saw electives as a way to showcase what I’m capable of. So I took whatever I thought sounded great on my transcript — clearly I was playing the game wrong.

As with anything in life — it’s not about working hard, it’s about working smart.

Stay away from electives that will suck up your time and energy. Play to your strengths and pick courses that give you the best chances of succeeding (or just passing). Do you have a creative flare? Pick something in the arts department. Are you good with numbers? Try a first-year accounting course.

Repurpose Your Assignments

You pour your heart and soul into your University assignments so why let them live and die so quickly?

Repurposing your assignments could be as simple as re-writing your essays as a blog post, posting your artwork on an online portfolio, or pushing your code up to a public git repository.

Doing this while you’re at University will mean you’ll have a fully fleshed out portfolio to showcase employers as soon as you graduate, putting you miles ahead from the crowd.

What You Do in Your Own Time is Just as Important

Only when you leave University and land a 9-to-5 job that you’ll realize the amount of spare time you once had. I know it’s tempting to spend those hours at the school’s pub but let me tell you something I now know clear as day — time is the most precious resource that you can’t get back.

All that spare time can be used to beef up your resume — take on extracurricular activities in your field, go volunteer or take up an internship. Whatever it is, if it fills up your resume, it’s probably worth doing. You’ll thank yourself for it in the future.

It Isn’t a Race

A bit of a dichotomy to my previous point, I know — but let me explain. We’re bright-eyed and bushy-tailed in our late-teens and early-twenties; itching to make our mark on the world. In reality, unless you’re one of those prodigy kids who built computers from scratch at the age of 12, you’ll probably take some time to find your feet let alone make your mark.

Don’t be afraid to tackle University part-time, especially if it means you get to experience other things — intern at a company you’ve had your sights on, take up hobbies and discover what your passion really is, travel and meet new people.

University is one of the only times in your adulthood where you get the freedom and flexibility to experience life — make the most of it.

Final Thoughts

I don’t regret dropping out of University, in fact it forced me out of my comfort zone and to take risks; some worked out very well, and some came back to bite me. I don’t think I would be where I am today if it wasn’t for that decision; but it wasn’t easy, and I was very lucky.

Had I known everything I know now, I probably wouldn’t have dropped out. I would have stayed, not just to get my degree, but to milk every moment I had there for all the opportunities it had to offer. If you’re currently at University, or soon to be, let me leave you with one final point — enjoy the ride. Make the most out of your time, don’t let opportunities go to waste, but make sure you enjoy every bit of it.