Just A Piece Of Paper

I have heard from many students that their degree is just a piece of paper. This is true insofar as a diploma is printed on a mash of wood pulp. That paper does open doors. Education is the key to a better job and a higher quality of life. This is true in theory at least. Our economy is not differentiating lately as to what degree one may hold. Theory is also what is being taught in colleges across the country.

As much as I hate to admit it I am a college dropout. I left the University of Michigan without a degree. I received one from Henry Ford Community College years ago but that hardly counts. The reason I got fed up with U of M is based on theory. Nothing that I could learn was derived from real-world environments or situations. I felt that I would be ill-prepared to seek my way into the world of work.

Granted I did realize my true destiny (tongue-in-cheek) as a writer. A four-year degree is hardly necessary to put pen to paper as it were. Also, as any professor will tell you, theory is what students must learn as a gateway to appreciating and understanding real-world examples. This is fine and dandy but why not teach the foundational underpinnings of a course the first few weeks? The rest of the semester should concentrate on what a student will reasonably encounter in the real world.

My wife is a fine example of what I propose. She received her MBA as well as completed various certifications. As she would tell you most of what she learned in school, although interesting, was of no use in her career. Any particular business process she encountered was usually proprietary and could only be taught once she was there on the job. She would agree that much of what she paid good money to learn was for no more than to earn her Masters degree.

Education should be made available to everyone. Spend the first couple of years teaching people how to learn and to appreciate the myriad of disciplines out there. After they have chosen their desired profession it becomes time to teach what is truly useful to one already in that profession. And if that particular professor has been in the academic world so long that they have become out of touch, I say, drop their asses for better and more experienced personnel. Those who pay to be prepared for what awaits them in the real world deserves no less.