I think college is a giant waste of time and money, especially for us

[Catalyst]

I do horrible in school. Partly because of my bipolar disorder, and partly because I have trouble learning subjects that disinterest me. Thankfully, I have some interest in math and English. Math is like a puzzle to me and I like to solve puzzles, and I like reading and writing quite a few genres. But some things like history or government I have a lot of trouble in. I did get an AAS at a trade school, which included certifications that were necessary for the field of work I wanted to be in, which are the CompTIA A+ and Microsoft certifications. But just going to school after high school but before the vocational school was a dismal failure. I did try going to get a degree in design at the Art Institute, but I started to struggle there, and then funding ran out so I couldn't go to school there anymore.

I'm thinking of taking a few classes at a community college, but just for structure to further my learning, and there's a waiver that I qualify for that gets me free classes. But I'm not going for a degree anymore, and I'm not taking classes for subjects that I have an easy time learning on my own. Like, I bought a book to teach me how to use Dreamweaver for about $4, and it's got examples and is pretty comprehensive. But for Psychology I want a class so that I can discuss certain things like controversial issues in the field.

 

[FreeDiver]

Whether you could teach yourself is an interesting question. In general, I suppose you can, but it will probably be much less efficient. My main role in teaching undergraduates is to distill a huge field of knowledge into a structured lecture course and to act as a resource to help them understand it. A lot of the source material is now freely available on the internet so you could remove the middleman (me) and read it yourself, but I think it would be hard going and very slow. Of course, there are autodidacts but they tend to be both unusually intelligent and unusually highly motivated.

Being an autodidact is the only way for me. It's just the way my brain works. Whether that's an autistic thing or not. That's just who I am. To me, the education system seems more about prestige and status then it is about the advancement of knowledge. People seem to go there and spend thousands of dollars and waste years of there life just for a stupid piece of paper. But I do get your point about being an autodidact. I too have gaps/cracks in my knowledge and you need to be good at interpolation and extrapolation to help fill in those cracks. But there are times it would be nice to ask someone a question now and then.

I do very much agree that you should only go to university to study a subject you find very interesting. Perhaps this is a privileged viewpoint.

If I was born 30 years eirler. Then more then likely, I would've gone to university and studied. But today, it seems more like a sadistic joke then anything, corrupted, perverted and just was too much politics.

I recognise I'm very biased, partly because my field is my lifelong 'special' interest, so you could argue that being paid to think, write and talk about the subject that I love suits me very well and I would not argue against anything that enables me to do it!

You might make a few people jealous. But hey. If it works for you, it works for you.

 

[dhl02]

I could have gone to school for two of my aspie interests, astrophysics and meteorology, but I chose to study Chemical Engineering and that was a big mistake. I've always been talented with math, and I thought that engineering was an ok profession to be socially awkward and still be able to function. That could not be further from the truth. If you like math and science, and are on the spectrum, go to a hard science 10/10 times over engineering. Engineering in the corporate world involves having a high EQ and most aspies are really bad at that.

 

[Mr Allen]

I could have gone to school for two of my aspie interests, astrophysics and meteorology, but I chose to study Chemical Engineering and that was a big mistake. I've always been talented with math, and I thought that engineering was an ok profession to be socially awkward and still be able to function. That could not be further from the truth. If you like math and science, and are on the spectrum, go to a hard science 10/10 times over engineering. Engineering in the corporate world involves having a high EQ and most aspies are really bad at that.

High IQ? Means nothing, I had an official IQ test last year and I still don't know my exact score, all I do know is that contrary to the opinion of SOME people on the Internet, I am NOT retarded or mentally incompetent.

 

[Judge]

Engineering in the corporate world involves having a high EQ and most aspies are really bad at that.

High IQ? Means nothing, I had an official IQ test last year and I still don't know my exact score, all I do know is that contrary to the opinion of SOME people on the Internet, I am NOT retarded or mentally incompetent.

He clearly posted an "EQ" relative to being on the spectrum. Not an IQ.

Meaning one's emotional intelligence quotient.

 

[paloftoon]

Everyone is different. If you won't have significant debt after graduating from a college, that is worth considering too. Trade school is where it's at and not every trade school opportunity is "blue collar" economically anymore as some people have implied in prior posts.

It's better to try for something than nothing if you have the option and the means and/or if it's reasonably feasible without (much) debt.

Having a college education or trade school certification makes you more eligible to be around other people you are trying to date possibly. It's a sign of potential independence.

 

[Streetwise]

I think that college outside of a very select career field like medical or engineering, is a complete waste of time. I've spent 7 years in and out of college and I just turned 30. I never got a degree partly because of all the extra BS classes. Now I am looking at what I wanted to do 10 years ago and should have done, manual labor(welding, plumbing, pipefitting). My advise to anyone young here, especially in the US is to look into trade work, unless you are dead set on working in the medical or engineering field and even then you have to decide if all the debt and time is worth it.

I think it depends on how much pleasure it gives you if I give you so much pleasure that you don't want to do anything else then it's not a waste of time but if it isn't don't bother

 

[Judge]

I think it depends on how much pleasure it gives you if I give you so much pleasure that you don't want to do anything else then it's not a waste of time but if it isn't don't bother

It is kind of sad to see so many kids struggling in college who really don't want to be there in the first place. Made worse by an outdated social notion that everyone should be involved in higher education as if it was "the right thing to do".

With a simple truth being that it's not for everyone and never has been.

 

[Ylva]

I had to get away from here. I chose a horrible place to move to for university, but it was the only one far enough from relatives. I couldn't handle the constant sensory overload or the ableist culture there, but I still don't see what I could have done differently.

 

[FlowerChild]

I think it's dangerous to generalise what is best for Autistic people, since we are such a diverse bunch. I've got dyscalculia (basically dyslexia but with numbers), so science, math, and engineering were out of the question for me. However, I found that studying arts (social sciences and international dev.) in university was the best thing I ever did for myself, especially in terms of finding an Autism friendly career field. If I'd never gone back to university after a lengthy hiatus in my early twenties, I'd probably still be miserably floating between ****** jobs in hospitality and the service industries. I really hated working in those fields and had a hard time keeping a job, and became very depressed. Even so, I was very against going back to university, as I firmly believed it was a waste of time and money.

Once I started studying I realised it was the happiest I've ever been. I've pursued postgraduate studies, am teaching university classes (which I find incredibly fulfilling), and I'm able to research a topic close to my heart and make a career out of my Autistic traits. I'm financially stable because the pay is great compared to service work; I am able to work in teaching roughly 6 months of the year (all throughout the academic year) and make the equivalent amount of money that I'd have if I worked ~20 hours per week in service, all year. The rest of the year I just focus on my own research and mostly work from home. This leaves me lots of time to recharge and avoid burnouts. Nobody stands over my shoulder and watches me work, as most of what I do is independent and can be done alone in my office or at home--even when I'm teaching, I'm the one in charge. Nobody monitors my bathroom breaks, and I can take coffee or lunch for as long as I want, whenever I want. It's the best job I've ever had.

I'm even contributing to Autism research, because I believe that achieving representation in this area is an incredibly important step for the Neurodiversity movement. I am accepted for who I am, and being Autistic is even seen as a strength in my line of work--I'm known as somebody who gets things done, as I have a great drive and focus, I'm creative, and I achieve a very high quality of work whether in teaching, research, or otherwise. I'm socially accepted and included amongst my peers (coffees, lunches, some great friends at work, etc.), my department is friendly and accepting, and I'm 'out' to many of my colleagues, which has been a really positive experience--I never could've come 'out' in my non-academic workplaces. University can be an excellent choice for some Autistic people! I can't stress that enough.

 

[eulimk]

I enjoyed college, when I was still able to attend it. Even the classes that weren't relevant to my intended career. Except when it came to working in groups.

But I agree. It is a waste of money. Even if you start with community college you'll still be in debt up to your eyeballs in the end. And the way the job market is, you're looking at companies that want minimum 3-5 years experience, even for a low-level job, and the pay is probably poor.

Trade schools are where it's at. I agree.

 

[I love roses]

I think that college outside of a very select career field like medical or engineering, is a complete waste of time. I've spent 7 years in and out of college and I just turned 30. I never got a degree partly because of all the extra BS classes. Now I am looking at what I wanted to do 10 years ago and should have done, manual labor(welding, plumbing, pipefitting). My advise to anyone young here, especially in the US is to look into trade work, unless you are dead set on working in the medical or engineering field and even then you have to decide if all the debt and time is worth it.

I was a 17 yr. old pregnant teen high school drop out that landed a 20 telecommunications career. But of course they didn’t have schools for that at the time. So I just had to convince them I had aptitude to be trained by them. They were hiring warm bodies. But the economy was good then and there was way less job market competition. The job was perfect for me because I did trouble shootings and analysis alone. But if I had to interact as a team I had problems. So it’s all about niche fit.
The biggest advantage I know about college is the ivy league people that walk out millionaires as corporation founders, specially spectrum people. People on the spectrum who can ace every subject are still a mystery to me.

 

[Joel's Hear]

I think it depends on how much pleasure it gives you if I give you so much pleasure that you don't want to do anything else then it's not a waste of time but if it isn't don't bother

There has been a multitude of wonderful replies on here but yours takes the cake.

 

[Bronzelincolns]

couldn't agree more. for the most part it's a scam.

barring going to be a doctor, lawyer, or engineer, you really don't need it. it's a ton of money for absolutely nothing.

even when dealing with an employer who requires you to take courses, they're just forcing you into the scam.

 

[Gritches]

I'm inclined to agree. My resume looks like it got beaten down by a career interest survey (I've done a lot of different things) but I don't think I've ever gotten a job because of my qualifications on paper. It's always been the case that my network, my "connections", have been responsible for my gaining employment.

But yeah, short of developing a network, the trades are where it's at.

 

[mw2530]

Accounting is another technical field that is ok for aspies and there is a fairly high demand for accountants. I can't say I always love it but being a CPA has provided me financial security. I think college can certainly be the right choice for kids, but it certainly is not for everyone. What bothers me the most is (at least when I was in HS) college was pushed like crazy as if it was the only option if you did well in school. Like the OP said, there are other routes that could be taken. I feel most degrees could be done in a much shorter period than 4 years (or 5), but college is a money making industry like every other industry so maybe that's why it gets drawn out. Also I think kids try to push off the real world as long as possible and college is a means to do so. A two year degree can be a nice option. Just think, you could have a 2 year degree by the age of 20 and start making decent money at that very young age. As opposed to accounting where you basically have to go to school for 5 years to take the CPA exam. I didn't start working until the latter parts of age 23. It certainly is a big investment of time and money if it doesn't work out.

 

[J.T.]

From my experience, unless you're going to college for a STEM, economics/business, or even a soft science degree then don't bother unless you have other trade type skills to fall back on. When I went to community college the first time I took general studies because I didn't know what I wanted to do. I also didn't know myself near as much as I do now. When I went the second time it was for Electrical Installation, like what electricians do. I got burnt out because I was in college full time and working full time which didn't work out. Then ironically (I think) while I was in CDL school I got a job offer from the IBEW union that I had previously worked for but gave up on because of how difficult it was to get into their apprenticeship program. I turned it down to get an otr cdl A driving job that was going to pay better. Then I ended up leaving that job. So in the end, I guess my advice would be to find what motivates you, what drives you to get out of bed in the morning and how to make enough money from that to be independent, degree or not. Then take the necessary action.

 

[Desiree W]

I agree. You're so right. College is a waste of time and money, except for specialized subjects, etc. I have a BA in Spanish and a certificate in medical coding. The problem is I took online classes for medical coding and never got to get hands on training. The tech school didn't have enough people to enroll for classes in person on campus etc. It's extremely hard to get a job in medical coding, unless you have years of experience or better yet know someone higher up who can get you in. I've been working in retail for a while now, because they're the ones who will actually hire me. I'm grateful to be employed though and will remain positive. However, I prefer to be in the health care industry.

 

[NothingToSeeHere]

It depends on the person and what they want from the experience, and what career they are aiming for.

Personally I absolutely loved uni. For the first time in my life I was surrounded by people who cared deeply about the subjects they were studying, and people who shared my personal interests (ecology and the environment). When I went on to do my MSc it was the first time in my life that I was with people who could keep up with me academically and challenge me to work harder than I needed to to just breeze along and get 70%s. It was an extremely valuable experience.

Also I definitely needed my degrees to get my job, having an MSc was a requirement, and I would never have been able to hold my own in the interview if I hadn't spent my years at uni discussing and debating research topics with my lecturers. While I could have the learnt the basic facts of ecology and environmental science by myself in a limited way (many of the research articles in my subject are not freely available, so much of the depth and breadth of the science would have been beyond my reach) it was learning the academic way of thinking and critical analysis that was the most valuable part of it all, and which inspired me to pursue a career in research myself.

There were many people on my degree who really didn't need to be there though. The people who just turned up to lectures and never did any independent learning. The ones who wanted to go into practical nature conservation rather than the more science focused career paths. The ones who were just there because uni is something our schools say everyone is supposed to do. Too many people go straight from school to uni without stopping to thing about whether they really need to, or whether they really want to, just because it is what society expects, and as a result the job market is flooded with graduates with middling degrees of no real use.

My advice to anyone thinking about going to uni would be "work for a year or too first, then decide".

 

[SimplyWandering]

I went through nursing school, culinary arts and business and right now I don't feel like I have anything to show for it... but that's just me. I try not to make blank statements as it doesn't apply to everyone.

"especially for us."

Each and every person with ASD excels at something better than others, some find life meaningless without scholarly learning and others simply struggled their way through.