Although accessing the information on any subject imaginable is now as easy as taking out a smartphone from a pocket, most people still believe that you need a college degree to

become successful business manager

. Despite the rising costs of education, which causes young Americans to be in debt right from the start, many people simply don’t consider another option. The job market is oversaturated with people who hold a college diploma without any practical experience. Although successfully passing dozens of tests after several years spent at the university shows that an individual has acquired knowledge about a relevant subject, it isn’t the only path worth pursuing. Many of the world’s most famous and successful businessmen, such as

John D. Rockefeller

, Henry Ford, or Richard Branson, didn’t have college degrees. Below we will elaborate on this subject further.

Is College Education Really Useful?

When young people discuss whether they should go to college, or if it’s better to go directly to work, the argument that formal education is worthless nowadays is bound to appear. The first reason for this unfortunate state of affairs is its cost. Depending on the college that they choose, young people have to prepare that they’ll have to repay students loans long years after they have finished their university education. Most people agree that college lectures and classes can broaden one’s perspective, but there are cheaper methods of getting basically the same education, such as online courses. However, even people who find their college experience enjoyable might discover that they are questioning whether it was a good decision from a career standpoint. We shouldn’t expect young people always to make the right decisions - their brains are still developing, and deciding about their future isn’t exactly easy. They might not know what they really enjoy doing, what it is like to repay a $100,000 loan,

what is a Postgraduate degree

and if they should get one, or

how long is a doctoral degree

. Some people prefer to attend classes each week, with regular exams, as otherwise, they would lack the motivation to really focus on the material. On the other hand, there are those who might not excel with

traditional learning

methods. Their GPA might be rather mediocre, and they might have trouble paying attention during lectures. However, it doesn’t mean that they lack potential - it’s just that they would be better off trying alternative learning methods. The quickest way to learn is by doing; it doesn’t apply to every field, as we wouldn’t want the doctors to have only a general idea of where the kidneys or the intestines are. However, mistakes in most jobs don’t carry such serious consequences. Those young individuals would make mistakes - preferably frequently. If you look at the lives of the most successful people in the world, you’ll discover that not all of their business ventures achieved astounding success. They failed, and they failed hard, but they used those failures to learn valuable lessons about the business world.  

The Benefits of College Education

However, it wouldn’t be fair to point out that a lack of university education is somehow correlated with achieving success. It is true that Mark Zuckerberg,

Bill Gates

, or Steve Jobs don’t hold college degrees, but most successful entrepreneurs do. We don’t mean to suggest that going to college is pointless. It’s an excellent opportunity to meet people with fascinating ideas about the world that might be useful in your later entrepreneurial endeavors. Apart from that, let’s be honest: most companies pay close attention to the college education of the job candidates. However, if you don’t want to spend several years attending classes that might become useful later on though you couldn’t say that with a high degree of certainty, then trying to

develop your skills

on your own might be a better idea. Remember that if you discover later that college education could really help you in a way that nothing else could, then there’s nothing stopping you from enrolling in a year’s time. However, if you don’t struggle with discipline and prefer to acquire knowledge about subjects that fascinate you at your own pace, we would rather suggest relying on

online courses

. Their cost is significantly lower, and you could focus on things that could help you develop skills that you would find most valuable on the job market.  

Conclusion

Despite the high cost of college education, many young people still cannot imagine taking an alternative path. Although it might be, in fact, the best choice for some individuals, we shouldn’t forget that people differ. It means that for some young people going directly to work would be a better idea. This way, they would find out more quickly whether they actually enjoy working in their field; the process of learning would be as well faster.