5 years of college, was it a waste?

Question

went to college from 2001 until last (spring semester) this year, then dropped out this semester.
It kinda dawned on me it was all a waste, I mean most of it was. Chemistry, biology.. I mean a lot of this stuff was good for my own personal knowledge I guess but I hardly remember the details for pretty much everything. This sucks.
I think about it now and it's like.. 6 years.. where have they gone, I don't remember anything from the last 6 years. All a waste. This is like a tragic loss to me. Like being in a coma for 6 years.
I don't plan on ever going back, and I don't need a degree (as I'm not interested in having a "job" or being "employed"), I have other means and will start a business soon.

No, I didn't make any friends. I hated college. Worst experience of my life.

Answer 1

How sad. Good for you for having other means. I assume you're a "trust fund" baby whose time has come to collect what your relatives worked hard to get, or you were "lucky" enough to get a big enough inheritance from someone who thought you must be worth it.

You must be omnipotent if you can start a business and make it successful--which I hope with all sincerity that you do--without having some knowledge of finance/accounting to handle invoices, payroll, insurance plans, 401(k)s--you are going to have other employees eventually, aren't you, that is if you're successful. And speaking of employees, how are you going to deal with interviews and office politics? Even if you work by yourself, you still have to deal with customers and clients and suppliers. Psychology classes can start to look pretty good when you're facing a dubious lawsuit for whatever reason. There are people, you know, who will sue because they know the other person doesn't know anything about defending themselves.

Have you ever heard of networking? Maybe those people you're blowing off from college will end up being your clients. How do you expect to spread the word? Even if you use advertising, a lot of it is word-of-mouth?

It must have been in the back of your head that you were going to start your own business. Why, then, did you "waste" your time on the sciences? Why not take the classes that could do you some good.

You sound like a petulant child. You didn't get what you wanted out of college and now you're going home with all your marbles.

I'm not going to comment on why you went for 5-6 years to college. I realize you may have had to go part-time for any number of reasons, or else you changed your major more than once. Whatever. I wish you well in your venture. Just don't be too cocky about never going back. Someday you may find yourself having to go back whether you like it or not, and there will always be somebody to have the last laugh at your expense.

Answer 2

You learned multiple things from those years- while you might not remember the academic lessons, you will always carry with you the lesson of appreciation- which is the most important of all.

Try not to look back at it as time lost-- did you make friends? Did you enjoy life and continue to grow as a human being? Did you go to parties and read books and watch television and do EVERYTHING that you would otherwise have done MINUS the financial side of things?

Sure, during those years you didn't make as much money as you would otherwise have done, but it was still a time of growth and was what suited you at the time.

You still have the rest of your life for exploration, travelling, money making, etc. and now you have this lesson to bring with you that a lot of people will not get a hold of until they are much older- you've learnt to really value the use of your time and your life itself.

Like I said- focus on all of the wonderful things that came out of those 6 years- relationships made, good times had, lessons learnt, all of that-- at the end of the day, that's what is the most important above anything else.

Having regrets will get you nowhere- but remaining positive and learning from your mistakes will do wonders.

Answer 3

no, but my 9 years of hanging around the local community college, eventually "graduating" at 27, was sort of a waste,
though a splendid waste of time it was. I probably spent a
total, all added up together, of an entire year hanging around
the library, and a total of two years hanging around the cafeteria
looking to hook up with the local skanks......yes, what a grand
waste of time it was.....could think of worse...........to the person
who wasted 6 years learning rote crap that was/is unmemorable
and inconsequent, remember this:
The rich run, and always will run, the world....at best, if you are not on of the "rich", you will go to school for 12-16 years to be their lackey, and carry water for them(i.e. work for them)....
on the other hand, if you plan on owning your own means of production(work for yourself), then a degree, for the most part,
is redundant and meaningless. That sounds very much like the route you want to go. This way you can hire college grads
to carry "your" water, as you proceed to extract the good of
the earth for your benefit alone.
To sum, it wasn't a waste if you learned that you would be working for the man anyway. You don't need to follow "scripts"
to succeed in life on your own terms, and the education grind
is a script made to create good workers, subservience,
and group-think. Don't worry about the money, or the get-rich
quick crap....do what you love and succeed on your own terms,
and you'll end up making more money anyway, without your
nose and lips affixed to some superiors hindquarters the rest of your working life..........

Answer 4

Education is never a waste. Even if you had started your business six years ago, do you really think that you'd be better off without having learned about biology or chemistry?

It is knowledge about our world and it may prove useful one of these days, if only possibly to seem fairly educated when interacting with fellow "businesspersons".

You'd be surprized how much more respected people are when they have a decent knowledge of the way the world works. And when you're planning to start your own busines, you're going to need to win the respect of anyone you plan to do business with.

You'll probably be glad you had experince in college and look back on it as a great period in time one of these days.

Answer 5

Mate, there's your own decision. Besides, succes in life isn't determined by how long you study in college. Succes is measured by how you have achieved your dream and you can enjoy your own achievement.

6 years in college is long... but your life is even longer than that. Why should you're grieving for 6 years if you somehow can manage to live much longer than that? Good luck on your business, mate! And believe me, it's not a waste. Call that a lifetime experince....

Answer 6

Kind've a waste, but hopefully it helped you to grow and mature. I met some great friends and had a lot of fun in university, going to parties and stuff. Learned a bit in the classes, but don't remember most of it, like you. You are smarter now probably, so that is good.

Answer 7

My condolences. You dont need an answer as you have already made up your mind to start a business. Thank you for the 2 points.

Answer 8

some of your comments sound like you are depressed