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Ask HN: Should I Quit College?

by easyalgocode on 2/20/22, 2:06 AM with 12 comments

• by NonEUCitizen on 2/20/22, 5:19 AM

  Ask your university about how to register as a part-time student. Instead of viewing it as one semester left with risk of failing all your courses, you can recast it as 4-6 semesters left where you only need to take one class per semester, and have a high chance of passing every class (but really, you should aim for straight A's; hire tutors if necessary so you really understand the material).

  It's useful to get the degree even if you think you won't need it, esp. since you're so close to finishing. Ten to fifteen years later, you might decide to go to medical school, or to law school to become a human-rights lawyer, or to get a master's degree in astronomy. It'd be a much bigger hassle to have to go back and finish the B.S. at that point.

• by jprd on 2/20/22, 2:59 AM

  Yes. If.

  If you are an autodidact with drive on something you love, and want that to be your career, and don't think the loans justify the lack of payoff. If you are born wealthy, there's no point in college other than using it as an act of rebellion to piss off your Grandfather and get an Art degree. If you are disadvantaged and of color, it might be your ticket to acceptance in a totally fucked society (USA).

  Otherwise, go to school, get the cred, then get the actual knowledge by learning on the job and from the graybeards. That also starts your network, which is infinitely more important than credits and a piece of paper.

  IMHO (colored and completely biased by my non-neurotypical brain and what it has had to endure), college/Uni degrees only assert that you can slog through BS day after day. They are the perfect bona fides if you want to be part of the machine.

  This, naturally, excludes anyone seeking a Physics degree at CCNY and similar. For anything other than the top 1% of actual Comp. Scientists in Academia (and thusly Google), the thing you should remember is that in 5-7y no one will give 2 f*ks about your degree unless they are an alum.

• by Trasmatta on 2/20/22, 3:05 AM

  You only have one semester left? Then yes, you absolutely should finish. Cut back the hours you're working and finish, you'll regret it later if you don't, especially that close to finish line.

• by bell-cot on 2/20/22, 2:19 AM

  If you aren't going to have the time to pay attention / learn / get decent grades, and you aren't in a field where having the degree is Important (for whatever reasons), then definitely quit. Or at least put the college "on hold" (to the degree possible), so you're not closing that door unnecessarily.

• by smt88 on 2/20/22, 2:26 AM

  Find out how long it takes for your credits to expire first.

  Many schools allow you to finish by taking classes online. See if you can take a single class online at a time for the next few years.

  Either way, your grades don't matter now, so just do the bare minimum to get the degree (now or someday in the future).

• by softwarebeware on 2/20/22, 4:24 AM

  I think only you actually have all the context to be able to make that decision. Don’t let it be decided by a vote from people who don’t know you based on five sentences of limited information.

• by downrightmike on 2/20/22, 2:33 AM

  My experience with college is that they don't kick you out if you don't register. It may be worth saying screw it and taking a 1 credit class.

• by nnoitra on 2/20/22, 7:39 PM

  " at multiple startups around 650K USD/annum " fo sho fo sho

• by frontman1988 on 2/20/22, 9:08 AM

  If it's an online degree, pay someone else to complete it.

• by jsiaajdsdaa on 2/20/22, 4:14 AM

  Get the degree.