Lemmy, I have completed tens of modules across several different universities. I have been course-hopping for long enough that I’d have a bachelors degree by now had I found and stayed on a course that suited me. I can’t be asked to commit to one and study it for yet another 3 years before I get a degree*. Yet I feel like all of the effort that I have expended up to this point will go unacknowledged, just because it was spread across several unis and doesn’t fall into any of their pre-defined study plans. I am a person driven by short bouts of intense curiosity of the type that dives down Wikipedia rabbitholes**. I want to do a highly qualified job but am failing to fit in to the rigid framework that academia sets you. I have several Master’s theses that I’d start researching tomorrow if the system let me. Yet without so much as a bachelor’s I might as well go work in a supermarket. How do I move on from here?

*Perhaps it’s also because I’m now in my early 20s and finally want to have some time to explore.
**I am a logical thinker and predominantly interested in STEM topics.

  • frickineh@lemmy.world
    9·
    6 months ago

    I’ll second what another commenter said about talking to a doctor, because it does sound like this might be more than just disinterest. That said, drop out. Get a job and work for a while. Try different things. The path we think we want in our late teens and early 20s is often very different from where we end up, and that can be a good thing. I finally quit trying to force myself to finish my degree when I was 22 and I wish I’d done it much sooner. I did eventually go back and get a different degree in my 30s, but in the meantime, I worked at jobs I never expected to find interesting and learned a ton while building a solid resume. College is great, but it’s not for everyone, and it’s definitely not for everyone at “college age.”

    • SubArcticTundraOP
      3·
      6 months ago

      How hard would you say it is to get into a field without the required degree? Because I feel like what’s weighing me down is not that I’m unwilling to learn, but that I struggle to prosper under the monotonous lecture->exam system that is a requirement for most degrees.

      • frickineh@lemmy.world
        4·
        6 months ago

        It’s really dependent on the field. I started a job as a temp and then proved that I was smart enough to do other things, so I got hired permanently, but it wasn’t in the field I was studying, just something I ended up enjoying. There are some jobs where that won’t cut it. Whatever your dream job is might be one of those, but I don’t really believe in dream jobs, so I was open to stuff that seemed kind of weird on the surface. I learned a lot about what mattered to me in a job doing that.

      • RGB3x3@lemmy.worldEnglish
        1·
        6 months ago

        Where do you live? If the US, (but look into it if not) check out Western Governor’s University. The format might be exactly what you’re looking for.

        They have one or two assignments per class and let you take those assignments as quickly as you want. So you could finish a course in 3 days if you want (which is exactly what I did several times). I got through my Bachelor’s in 1 year, and my Master’s in 1 month. Literally 1 month. And each degree had included industry certifications. I was able to do it so fast because I could hyper focus on the content, not have to sit in lectures all day, and take the test when I knew I could pass. It was perfect for me.

        What nobody seems to say is that what the degree is in doesn’t matter that much and nobody cares where it’s from. It’s mostly a checkbox for hiring.

        People are suggesting to take a year off. I disagree because you sound like me. Taking a year off meant I didn’t go back for 8 years. Took me almost a decade just to get a Bachelor’s.

        If WGU is not an option for you, stick it out with one program and just get it done. It’ll suck much less now than later. And trust me when I say I know how hard it is now. Don’t worry about what the degree is in, don’t worry about how long it takes while you’re in it, just get it done now because you’ll regret not doing it if you wait too long.

        • SubArcticTundraOP
          1·
          6 months ago

          Ooh this sounds perfect for me. I’ll have a look if something similar exists over in my country. Was yours an online course? (It sounds like it would suit the format). Yeah I feel like if I went on hiatus now I would settle in a job/place I wouldn’t want to leave but be stuck with limited prospects. I might sign up for a bachelors in coding (which I can already do) just to tick the box and devote all my remaining effort to extracurriculars/internships in the fields I’m interested in.