Do We Need Higher Education?

Higher education is one of the first points in the description of the requirements for most vacancies. Many people are convinced that universal higher education is simply necessary, and life will go downhill without it. But is it really so? Today we look at the most common reasons for getting higher education, especially when you want to become an engineer.

When you need higher education

1. Getting a specialty, which is impossible to learn on your own. And this is perhaps the only one hundred percent objective reason. Indeed, a number of specialties require higher education. For example, it is impossible to become a doctor or chemical engineer without long specialized training. Higher education provides close control over the acquisition of skills and provides the basis for their practical development. Initially, the higher education system was aimed specifically at teaching specific skills, the independent development of which is difficult, unreliable or even unethical. Over time, higher education began to cover a wider range of activities and spread to professions that previously did not require higher education;
2. Increasing the overall level of erudition. First of all, higher education does not teach specialties but where to find information and how to process it in order to learn the specialty independently. This is one of the key skills for successfully adapting to changing living conditions. Of course, you can learn this without universities, but the institute provides a good opportunity to do this in a short time. If you want to learn how to study, higher education will really help. In addition, higher education provides knowledge in general basic academic disciplines – psychology, philosophy, economic theory, sociology, law. Basic knowledge of these subjects in life can only help. At least for general development;
3. A smooth transition from childhood to adulthood. The two previous reasons concern people of all ages, but this applies only to school graduates. Adulthood is different from yesterday’s schoolchild. For many adolescents, the period of adaptation to a new status can be traumatic. Students can become a kind of psychological buffer for parting with childhood. The reason for getting a higher education is, of course, subjective, and it is not for everyone. But it is still an advantage because the desire to be a student in order to at least slightly extend the carefree youth is perfectly normal.

When it only seems like you need higher education

1. The inability to get a good job without a college degree. The manipulation “if you do not study, you will become a janitor” beloved by the older generations settles firmly in the mind and takes on a negative color. If you are forced to get higher education by such attitudes, it is better to think hard or even work with a psychologist before entering a university. This will help to separate the real desire from the imposed sense of guilt. Success in life depends on the ability to adapt and not on the propensity for academic success. But we are about something else. It’s not so difficult to get a good job without higher education, it’s enough to have any skills. For example, making repairs in apartments is a good job. Being a flight attendant on a passenger plane while looking at the whole world is also good. No higher education is required for either specialty. And the list goes on and on. In addition, some positions that do not require higher education for employment can be studied at the expense of the employer. For example, policemen can do this;
2. The inability to be a respected specialist (and person) without higher education. This reason also requires psychological work. There are real examples that destroy this myth. Midwives, jewelers, architectural restorers – they all do not have higher education. But hardly anyone would call their work unrespectable.

Bad reasons to get higher education

1. Parents said I must get it. Yes, you should obey parents, no one argues with that. But you live your life independently and only you determine the need for studying. Parents, of course, can advise something but they should not make categorical decisions;
2. Everyone gets higher education. Doing something for the company is not the path that will lead to success. Getting an education is a conscious, responsible step that can seriously change your life. And this step should be based on personal goals and desires. Higher education is a great tool that can make you a professional. But it is not necessary for every specialty. For example, many humanitarian areas can be mastered independently much faster and much deeper than in a university. A banal example of this is famous writers, poets who did not get higher education but honed their literary skills throughout their lives and achieved brilliant success. Many technical specialists also refused to get higher education. Many well-known companies can boast self-taught programmers in their staff who are in no way inferior to their colleagues with a diploma. Examples can be cited endlessly, the essence is the same: higher education is not always the only source for mastering the profession.

Conclusion

The decision to get higher education should be purely individual. Someone really needs it, it is simply impossible to carry out certain types of activities without higher education (for example, engineering). Higher education is a great tool that can unlock outstanding potential. But today you can easily live without higher education. No doubt. Therefore, it is not a controversial issue of whether we need higher education or not. This is a question, the solution of which is individual in each case. And the decision depends on the goals, desires, existing skills, and resources.