The Truth About Your Education & Career

Part 2 of “What’s In Your Life Script?”

Do you feel like you were lied to about how the real world works?

I do.

In high school we’re told that college is the next step.

Trade schools are often looked down upon, as if going into a trade means you’re intellectually lower than those pursuing “higher education.”

That being said, I have a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.

I even applied to and got into graduate school, but almost immediately found that the type of work I’d be doing was absolutely not what I wanted to do.

So I dropped out.

I don’t actually use my degree.

It was a requirement for the job I’m currently in, but I use very little of the knowledge I learned in school.

In fact, most of what I use and do is self-taught, or learned through online courses that were not part of my undergraduate career.

In 2013, the Washington Post reported that only 27% of college graduates are using their degrees. This figure is excluding those with graduate degrees, such as doctors and lawyers.

My graduating class (keeping in mind that we’re all mechanical engineers) was consistently told that companies were just waiting to snap us up and that WE had the negotiating power.

LOLWUT

The reality is a very different story.

Half of us had job offers before graduation.

Some of us don’t work in our field, and a few haven’t found a job at all.

Sounds cynical, no?

When are high school counselors going to stop insisting that college is the answer?

There are so many different tracks to follow. So many different scripts to read from.

College might not be for you.

And your career might not be aligned with your degree.

No Experience = No Job = No Experience

If it sounds defeating, it’s because it’s defeating.

There’s a very real shortage of workers in some industries because of a lack of experience and a lack of willingness to train after hiring.

This is how we end up with un- or under-employed engineers.

There’s also a corporate resistance to paying someone what they’re worth rather than the low end of what’s been budgeted for a position.

That’s how we end up with people being paid a pittance at one job and thus needing two others just to make ends meet.

If you’re interested in reading all about the job search struggle, Reddit’s r/recruitinghell is a great place to start.

What’s in Your Life Script About Education & Career?

Is your job what you thought it would be? How different is your career from what you wanted to be when you were a kid? Did you go to school for what you do?

Are the trades a viable alternative for high schoolers?

I went from wanting to be a veterinarian to a psychologist before landing on engineering — and realizing after four years of school that I didn’t want to be an engineer.

None of my most important life skills were learned in a classroom, high school or otherwise.

College is a choice that should be evaluated very carefully. It’s not something that a graduating high schooler should jump into feet first without a plan and a desired outcome.

Choose carefully.