All college students should be required to read this article based on a recent prediction by Peter Thiel, co-founder of PayPal. He states that the higher education system isn’t working in today’s economic climate.
It’s thought provoking, scary, but most importantly, true.
As a senior at the University of San Francisco, I can feel the stress and uncertainty among my classmates after the $250,000 education we’ve purchased. In all small talk conversations, the inevitable question is always brought up.
“So…what are you doing after college??”
Never in our lives has there been such a defining question. On the surface it looks like a question with an open-ended answer, but at the core there are really only two. Do you have a job, or not.
If you answer with “yeah, I have something lined up” the conversation immediately has a more lighthearted feel. The tension is cut, and your friends know you’ll be doing just fine.
If you answer “I don’t know”, people immediately say. Oh ok, so what are you thinking? The mood is cloudy, passive, and uncertain. Your friends then think through all the assumptions below in a split second.
– Are you trying to find a job?
– Do you think you’ll find a job?
– Did four years in college help at all?
– Is your major worth anything?
– Are you scared?
– Do you feel unsuccessful?
– Will you move in with your parents?
– Are you gona enjoy eating PB and J for dinner every night until you get a paycheck?
So…what are you doing after college?
Stuff. 