Students' biggest failure is their lack of recognition and appreciation of the great gift education is. The purpose of education is to obtain the knowledge to do what we really want to do in life. So students should ideally go to school with aspirations of doing something they actually like and want to do, as opposed to something they believe they ought to do.
How many people go to college for the wrong reasons? If I ask a student what his major is, after a few questions I can usually tell if that person is going to succeed in that major or might have to change it to be successful.
On the contrary, if I ask somebody what they really want to do in life and they are able to answer it, then I would tell them what education they'd need to be able to do that. Then the value of education would be better appreciated and understood.
If you go to any higher education institution, it's sure you'll see people who are middle-aged or elderly and might just be now going to school for what they really wanted to do in life but never did. The reason might be that genuine success must be defined by the individual's standards and not by something else.
So the question every college student should ask himself is, "What do I want to do in life?" and not, "What should I do?" When you bring outside influences into your inner self, you are no longer being true to yourself and you are diminishing your own potential of genuine success in academics. A student is no longer going to school for himself but for other reasons.
As part of the curriculum in schools, specifically at Merced College, we have career guidance classes that help us assess ourselves and our likes and dislikes to help guide us onto a proper career path. While helpful, the student must also do some deep soul-searching and have enough knowledge of himself to take on the right career path without the interference of outside influences, such as a parent, a job statistic or even pay.
That takes courage since the decision of a career choice may not seem like it will merit success at the moment as defined by societal norms. In the long term, however, it might just bring you the happiness you seek.
Education is to give students the background knowledge and skills to do what they really want to do, not just a degree to fall back on. That's why the biggest failure of a student in college is not recognizing the purpose of his education. An education is the greatest gift you can give to yourself.
With the beginning of a new semester at Merced College, or any higher educational institution, comes the opportunity, or missed opportunity, for students to ask themselves one of the most important questions they will ever need to answer: "What do I really want to do in life?"
The author is majoring in ag business at Merced College.
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