year off and/or college dropouts

[Green Kool Aid]

Dear OOT,

I am a college sophomore at a pretty good university, but I don't like school at all anymore. I take easy classes and get Bs skipping a lot of classes. I am basically blowing a ton of my parents' money (which I don't like). I wanted to transfer to the local state school but my parents/advisor convinced me to take a year off instead. I plan to get a full-time job the next year while living at an apartment with some of my friends from my current college, also playing some poker on the side.

My question is, of you who took a year off, did you come back? If so, were you more productive afterwards? Other dropotus...I'm interested to hear your reasoning for doing so. I know there a lot of very successful people who don't have college degrees. I just don't see myself wanting to get a degree for any time soon. I'm technically a Philosophy major FWIW.

Also...Any reccomendations for full-time jobs I should look for would be great.

Thanks in advance.

[guids]

I dont understand why they convinced you to take a year off, imo, Id take 8-12 hours at a community college. Take some classes that you think you might enjoy, even if they dont end up workign out, you are at least keeping the chane you wont go back to school down, and maybe finding something you really love to do. If I could go back and do it all over again, I would have busted my [censored] ass, got a BS in communications, MIS, or some other fairly easy degree in 3 years. Then after I got my degree hammered out, I would have spent 2 years finding out what I really wanted to do, that way I have a degree to fall back on if I find nothing, and there is no chance that me [censored] around will limit my job ops later.

[DonkNitUP]

I hated going to class and would skip regularly. THe fact is i still do, however i only have 1 semester left and then im through forever.
You might as well just suck it up and do it for a couple years to graduate (esp while they will pay for your college)

[ALReturnsLOL]

I am currently taking a year off, but I have really come to regret it. It certainly has been one of the poorer choices I have made. But I can promise you that each situation is totally different. From my experience a year of work will have you begging to go back to school. Whatever you do you have to follow your heart. If your choice ends up being bad (either way) it will only make you stronger.

[Aytumious]

I went to school for 3 semesters before dropping out and working for a year and a half. I actually basically flunked out since I stopped going to class and just ended up getting all F's.

Working fulltime can be a very large motivator. I worked in a shipping department for about a month and a half, worked in customer service, and had two different deskjobs all within a year and a half. All things considered, the job I ended up in wasn't bad for someone in my position, but I only held that job for about 4 months before deciding I wanted to go back to college because the grind of work when you know your ceiling is limited due to a lack of education did not appeal to me at all.

I went back to school, aced all my classes for two semesters, transferred to a better school and finished my Philosophy degree with a 3.7 GPA. I had planned on going on to grad school but poker has gotten in the way of that. It is possible I would have ended up in the same position job wise that I am in now, but I am very glad I went back to school.

Being in college with no direction is basically a huge waste of time and money, as you appear to realize. I'd recommend working for awhile just so you get a feel for what it is like. If you are anything like me, if you do decide to go back it will be on your own terms and your newfound focus will make the classes seem both easy and enjoyable. If you find work you enjoy there may be no reason for you to go back and that certainly would not be a terrible thing either.

[sushijerk]

Green, nobody really likes school. Unfortunately, it is still something that is required in many parts of society and for a lot of us without special talents, we just have to go with the flow.

I know a good amount of people who took a break. Most of them went on to become deadend college dropouts or transferred to community where they will get a degree that is next to useless. The thing is, people who take a year off usually end up working, and by then they are so used to a the work/income routine they never bothering going back. By the time they realize they should get a degree, a lot of them are too busy or in too much debt to go back.

You want to transfer to a local school because you feel you are going to study a easy major for a very mediocore GPA, so you would rather do it on the cheap. I don't think this is a great idea unless you have totally given up on trying at your current university.

There are successful people who are dropouts. I know a kid who saved up enough money from high school that he started a restaruant with his friends. He works there as a partial owner and makes good money with good growth potential. Another taught himself enough database knowledge out of high school to get a very nice paying job without ever going to college. Another dropped out to work a telemarket job but got so good at it he runs an office.

You are young, but it seems like you don't really have real direction. Taking a year off is no biggie but it implies that YOU ARE GOING BACK TO SCHOOL. The majority of successful people who quit school quit it in order to pursue something they are more passionate about, not because they "don't like it".

Also, the majority of jobs available to you at this point are going to be sales rep, phone tech support, or retail. Do you really want these positions?

[Green Kool Aid]

All,

thanks for the good responses. the matter is not liking school, i do have a good time here and i know my life would be a lot more enjoyable continuing to slack off in classes. the point is i feel that working a minimal skill/wage job will make me appreciate the costs of college and how important an education is. it will also give me time to contemplate the "direction" i want in life. i know that taking a year off implies going back, but i know that there are people who end up never going back. the bottom line is, i would love to take the line of aytumious and go back to school more motivated. i just dont know right now.

also...suggestions for jobs (i'll be living in the boston area and have access to a car).

[soko]

I took a year off and never went back.

[kibble420]

OP, I took four years off and just started again this semester (at a different college). I would advise you to try going part time. Sometimes a little break is just what you need to figure out what you really want to get out of your college experience.

My reason for dropping out --- I was a math major, and wanted to put more focus on running my business. Now I run my business part time, while working towards a business degree part time.

[Peter Harris]

i took a year off and travelled between high school [A-levels] and college [university].

The first 2 years in a scottish degree count for nothing, so i coasted 2002-2004. Now i'm picking up the pace. gl, hope you stick with it, as college times do indeed rock...in retrospect [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

can't wait to come back for a ph.d. [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]