Hi,

I'm a 16 year old boy who is at a higher grade of the secondary school in the Netherlands.
But last time, i tought why am i doing this. I mean, it gets a little bad with me on school.
Is this the right place for me, or am i only doing for a high education and a better future.

But do you think it is true? When you have a beter education , will je become richer and have a better future?
O even with low grades you can make a lot of money and have a good future.
When you have own experience , please tell.

Sorry for my English, i'm coming out of the Netherlands.

Greetings, Erwin

Hi Erwin,

Good grades in school means you can get into a better college (generally) and perhaps even go to school for free through scholarships if they're high enough.  College will lead to more money and likely a better quality of life on average but there are no guarantess in life.  But it's curious that college grads tend to live longer, earn more money over their career span, have children who are more likely to go to college, etc.  But I think most of that has to do with the increase in average income combined with an ability to think critically and make informed decisions.

As for your case?  I don't know, I would probably listen to my parents, they know you best, they know your circumstances and even if it doesn't feel like it now, they probably have your best interests in mind.  If they have college degrees themselves it's likely they know what they're doing in your case.

I wish I had started college earlier, it would have saved me a lot of time, a lot of grief and probably spared me some nasty jobs I've had to put up with over the last many years of my life.  Speaking for myself a higher education has changed almost everything for me in my life from being able to earn more money, to buying a nice house with that money, to providing for my family better, to having better working hours, to increasing my skill set and of course I've learned how to reason, research and communicate better.

Technically you could do all of that without college, but trust me, that's a steep hill to climb.

Hello Erwin and welcome!

Don't worry about your English -- it's a lot better than my Dutch.

So if I understand you, you're not enjoying school and are wondering whether going on for study would really be worth it?

If so, what I think is a little different from the way most people think.  Most people simply say that the odds are that the longer you stay in school the more money you make, therefore you should stay in school.  And if you study the right things, that's probably true.  But that doesn't necessarily mean it's right for you.

I realize that at 16 very few people know what they want to do in life, but that's the key to this whole question.  That's the point of going to school, especially to university.  If you want to become a physician and go provide medical care to orphans in Africa, then yes, you'll need to stay in school and study medicine for many years.  If you want to start a business, then it may make sense for you to study business and it may not -- there are billionaires who dropped out of school.  If you want to be a soldier, then you probably don't need to go to school. 

So let me ask you -- what's your goal?  When you have the answer you'll be closer to knowing whether more school will help you reach that goal or not.

-=Steve=-

Hi ,

thanks for your quick reply.

 According to your question,
i have a few studies which i want to decide of, the two are Architecture and Mechanical Engineering. Both at the TU Delft in Holland. I have to make this decision quite fast. Because i have only 3 years to decide. And mostly you get intrested in another study when your acctualy studyng already. 2 years ago, i've made the decision to go to University and not to a lower grade high school. ( i don't know how to call it). I've chosen for the University. So i hope i have made the right decision.

Erwin

Erwiin92NL:

i have a few studies which i want to decide of, the two are Architecture and Mechanical Engineering. Both at the TU Delft in Holland. I have to make this decision quite fast. Because i have only 3 years to decide. And mostly you get intrested in another study when your acctualy studyng already. 2 years ago, i've made the decision to go to University and not to a lower grade high school. ( i don't know how to call it). I've chosen for the University. So i hope i have made the right decision.

If your goal is to be an architect or a mechanical engineer, then I'd say you've made the right choice.  I'm not sure what the requirements are in the Netherlands, but in the U.S. you'd need five years of university to join either of those professions.

-=Steve=-

Hi Erwiin92NL,

Both degrees good, maybe better industrial than mechanical engineering.  Don't worry about finding something else you like more while in university, to do what you like is sucess in itself.  Hopefully it would be in a related field and at the begining of your studies so you don't have to be in school for too long.

There is a significant statistical correlation between years of schooling and personal income.

Also education prepares you better for the future.  Ask your college counselor and speak with your parents and people who are there which jobs will there be in which field 5 years from now and beyond.

Also if you dont like school, think about the professional technical college system in Holland.  These provide much more applied education, much more practical, and get you a job faster as the degrees are shorter and much more defined to get you the job.

Examples:  Certified electrician, plumber, mechanic, telecoms installer, renewable energie systems installer, lab technician, etc.