Growing Up: 3 unpopular opinions I wished I knew in my Early Twenties (as a college student)
When I was in college, everyone around me was focused on acing examinations, as if it were the holy grail to social acceptance. In order to get top grades, studying became the only thing they did all day long. There also seemed to be no other way out of the rigorous educational system since everyone in school is very competitive, shattering the bell curve in order to differentiate themselves. So, I kept focused on keeping myself afloat by not getting distracted by others.
For some families, having a first-generation university graduate can completely change their financial circumstances within a generation. Parents of lower and middle-income families, especially those with less education, find that sending their children to college is a major achievement. When their children graduate from college, they could receive more financial support, which could allow them to better their circumstances. If the opportunity arises, this could be a life-changing decision.
Whenever we come across headlines concerning how one entered a local university after attending an Institute of Technical Education (ITE), the media cleverly framed it as if it seemed almost impossible. Because of the low probability of these students succeeding in the rigid and unforgiving education system, they became an overnight sensation being described as one of the few success stories.
This has cultivated in me a scarcity mindset, and I grew up believing that if we studied hard, we would achieve anything we wanted. Till today, this belief is still heavily ingrained in our meritocratic society.
Moreover, me being risk-averse drove me to want to succeed in an imperfect education system. In other words, it is to survive as long as I can in order to graduate from institutions that are considered socially acceptable.
Most people want to get into local universities because of their academic reputation and recognition, which usually have more stringent admissions criteria. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t one of those who wanted to admit it…
