Yesterday, I posted a list of 5 things college students do to ruin their lives. Now, I am going to give you 5 more things. This is an excerpt from my book, "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About College." Education is one of the most important things for our people, and we need to make sure our kids are prepared.
6)Choosing a major you hate or one that doesn't make as much money as you would like
You should not choose a major just because it makes money. You also should not necessarily choose a major just because it is exactly what you want to do. The best way to choose a major is to figure out what combination of things are going to make you happy in the long-run. I LOVE playing basketball, but I would not enjoy playing basketball for a living, since I am not good enough to make money at it. So, I play basketball in my spare time and I work as a finance professor, which I enjoy, but also pays the bills. You should choose a major based upon the ability of the major to take care of your long-term financial needs, as well as provide you with a job you can enjoy. So, don't pick something just because you love it, and don't pick it just because you have money or prestige. Find out what is going to be important to you in the long run and let that be the basis for your choice. You should also factor in what kind of life you want to have when you are older, say, 30, and how this job fits into that plan. Do you want to have a family? Well, they are going to need time and financial support. Does your future job give you that? Also, you should never let anyone choose a major for you. That is usually the world's quickest way to unhappiness. Instead, you should listen to the advice of others and then use that information to make a decision that works best for you. It is silly to not listen to your elders, but it is also silly to let them control your life.
7)Getting too caught up in things that don't have anything to do with academics
It's great to be involved with extracurricular activities, it is a very important part of the college experience. But one of the main reasons that students fail in college is because they get carried away with all the exciting things there are to do when you get there. The idea is BALANCE. If you find yourself doing too much of any one thing, then it's probably not good for you. Even studying is not good for you if you do it 24 hours a day. Your life is meant for you to enjoy, not for you to work yourself into a coma, drink yourself into oblivion, or play Xbox till your fingertips fall off. You are there for your education, and you don't want to ruin your GPA over something silly. Make sure that you manage your time properly and that you make others respect your time. If you are not taking care of things on the academic front, then everything is going to fall apart for you. The idea is very simple: just take care of your school work before you do anything else. After you've done that, you are free to do what you want. As a student, I had a nearly perfect GPA, and I had an absolute blast. I played videogames until the late hours of the night, I hung out with my friends, traveled with them all over the place, the list goes on and on. The key thing that I figured out early that led to my success was that I should put in my time with schoolwork early and then I would be free to do whatever I wanted. So, although I had a blast in college, the real fun started later, when I reaped the benefits of years of hard work. Partying is fun, but it's a lot more fun when you are a little older and have money in the bank (can I get an "Amen"?)
8) Going home too much
College is a time for you to grow up and learn to be an adult. Don't catch yourself going home every single weekend. The umbilical cord that you shared with your mother at birth should be cut by the time you are 18. By going home too much, you are simply extending the cord down the highway. Visit your family, but don't spend too much time leaning on them. You will never learn to take care of yourself, and you will find yourself in your mid and late twenties asking your parents for money. While it's ok to get help every now and then, you are better off when you learn to be self-sufficient. Imagine if you had problems of your own and then had another adult asking you to take care of them? It would irritate you, wouldn't it? Well, that is how parents can feel sometimes.
9) Not thinking about going to graduate school
Any person with a Bachelors Degree who is in a field where graduate degrees have value should definitely go on to graduate school. The marketplace is changing, and the Bachelors Degree doesn't carry the same heat that it did in the past. You have to be able to compete with those out there with better credentials, and you are seriously hurting yourself if you do not go to graduate school. Your educational level can also have a big impact on your salary and job opportunities. Finally, the world economy is integrating, so you are going to have to compete with people all over the world, in addition to those in the U.S. You don't want to be left behind.
10) Not listening to the other 9 rules
Young people are naturally stubborn. No matter how much good advice they receive, they are going to make the mistakes that last a lifetime. But even if they don't use this information themselves, perhaps their children will learn the lessons that they themselves would not receive. Either way, sharing knowledge ultimately leads to progress.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is a finance professor at Syracuse University and author of 'Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about College.' To have Dr. Boyce's commentary delivered directly to your e-mail, please click here.
