A couple of weeks ago, a new batch of freshmen moved into their dorms at my alma mater, Santa Clara University. Although I don’t envy them having to manage protocols due to a pandemic (and I am very glad that the university had clear and strict protocols), it did bring a burst of nostalgia and a faint wish that I could live it all over again.
In recent months, I’ve become increasingly troubled by articles and statements about how the college degree is obsolete and unnecessary for success. While I do believe that college tuition, expenses, and the student loan system have grown out of hand and become detrimental to our shared future in need of an educated population, that is a topic for a different day. Today, I’m here to say that a college education is more than just academics. Unfortunately, it’s not discussed as often as it should be in light of the previously mentioned conversation on the irrelevance of college.
In looking at the social media photos of move-in day, I saw the same mix of emotions on the students’ faces that I had: excitement, anticipation, concern over if they remembered everything they needed, effort at trying to remember everyone’s names, eagerness to unpack, thankful for parents’ help, and then the eventual goodbyes to those parents who had brought them this far and were about to let go. Then there were flickers of self-doubt over whether you could handle the academics along with whatever part time job there may be, club activities, sports, and general socializing. There would be parent-free life lessons in time management, prioritization, being self-sufficient, learning truths about yourself (I am NOT an 8 am class type of person), and consequences. And that was just the first day! Ok… maybe the first month.
There were the joys and struggles of meeting people from different backgrounds, cultures,
and with different personalities. Coming from a small city, I was eager to meet people on my dorm floor who were from states I had never visited like Alaska, Missouri, and Texas. I’d later make a life-long friend in a student from France, do my capstone project with a classmate from Italy, and learn about Belize from a fellow music student. And for as many thrilling exposures like this, there were many times I stumbled in learning how to socialize, get along with, and work with vastly different personalities.
I learned basic office skills in a campus job that involved organizing campus entertainment and advanced skills on the fly like negotiating a contract, managing a business budget, and logistics. I was sent to conferences where I met an even more diverse set of people, represented a company (the university), and worked on networking skills. I had access to equipment that allowed me to learn photography and video editing, new musical instruments I’d never buy but could learn to play, and countless opportunities to hear other points of view, formulate my own opinion, and learn to discuss them in a civilized manner.
In the end, these experiences prepared me to enter the workforce with a higher level perspective than if I hadn’t. I am a more flexible person — in demeanor and skill set — for having this experience. Although many of us don’t necessarily work in the field we studied, there are lessons that we carry with us from those studies that are always viable. And in a world that changes as quickly as ours, it’s valuable to be able to pivot your career or even launch into a new one. It takes courage, but also the ability to pinpoint and utilize transferable skills. You tap into your network that you started building in college. You look at the situation with more than just a black and white lens. College gives you a broad spectrum, technicolor experience!
People joke about “useless” majors such as English or philosophy. But the critical thinking and communication skills of an English major sure do come in useful in business as you climb a corporate ladder, as does the ability of philosophy students to approach situations from multiple perspectives. Sure — success can be found without a college degree, but a college degree opens up the world to you by not only giving you choices, but also the skills you need to take advantage of opportunities. A college education and the college experience is something I believe is worth fighting for and just as importantly, worth helping others attain.
So here’s to you, SCU class of 2024 and to all students having kicked off a new school year. You’re in for a great ride!
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