Why I’m Leaving College

I never wanted to go to college, but I went because it was what was expected of me upon graduating high school. My parents wanted me to go, and all of my peers were going to their respective schools. College felt like the only option. I felt stuck.

Still, I hoped college would be different from high school. Something within me believed that I would finally be able to pursue my curiosity and ask big questions while engaging with professors who were also my mentors, but the closer I got to high school graduation and leaving home, the more this hope faded. When I got to campus, I was proven that school is still school, no matter the level. It was still about standardization and completion versus curiosity and creativity. Like high school, I felt contained in a box that I had to check. Except for this time, I was living far away from home and paying more than I would like to admit. 

Now, I have always loved to learn. Whether it is improving at the things I am passionate about or further understanding the world I live in, I love to learn. I enjoy following my curiosity where it leads, diving deep into my passions, and creating new things. And at an early age, I realized that I could not count on school to provide me with this experience. I separated education from school and put my education into my own hands. This is only possible due to the internet. With the internet, I have been able to go directly to the source of knowledge, learning from world-class performers, all for free. I have been able to translate my knowledge into creating things of value, both for myself and others. And I have grown by getting feedback and comparing my work to that of others, all through the internet! The internet has given power to the individual and stripped the need for the educational middleman known as school. 

Putting my education into my own hands at an early age blossomed, unknowingly at the time, into a life centered on liberty. I desire freedom above all so I can order my life as I see fit rather than having it ordered for me. That is today, with passion, making an impact on others, being creative. To begin, I can’t put my life on hold because it is happening right now. My time is limited in this world, and slipping away with every second. Next, I want to live on fire, knowing why I do what I do, providing value to others in ways that are unique to me. And lastly, creativity is essential to living a fulfilling life. I perceive college to be in direct opposition to my purpose at this time. At college, I am having to put my life on hold to check a box. And I further slip into an apathetic bubble as I am not making an impact on others and being schooled rather than educated. College is inhibiting the life I want to live. 

This is, with the mission statement above centering me, to be a public intellectual, entrepreneur, and investor. I want to be someone who initiates change through ideas. The key to success is individual initiation. It is adding value without permission. 

How can this be done? For over a decade, I was instilled with the lie of going to a good college to get a good job to make lots of money. This is the model of success that society sets up for young people. Breaking this process down into first principles: a good college creates personal value through education, getting a good job means you have shown value through your education, and making money means you are adding value and in return receiving. My entire decision for leaving is based on value. What is the most valuable way I can spend my time to make myself valuable in the job market so I can gain financial value? It is outside of college, developing as an individual through the internet and interacting with the real world. The internet, as I have outlined before, grants the individual the opportunity to learn anything for free to build exceptional ability, show their exceptional ability by displaying their work, and reaching out to others to add value to benefit monetarily. This is all in the real world, where an education is gained through experience and life itself. 

In all, I am not finding the college experience valuable to my intellectual and professional goals. While it is fun and safe, my life is more important. It won’t be easy, but as Benjamin Franklin says, “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.” The time is now. The decision is mine. I am leaving college.