Education Is Important
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I’m a high school dropout.

I’ve worked five jobs and each of them had a high school diploma or equivalent under the qualifications.

I don’t hide the fact that I’m a dropout. I put that down on my applications and if questioned about it. I explain what happened.

I’ve come to realize that this “requirement” for jobs is mainly written down as a formality that looks good and companies don’t really care as long as you seem right for the job.

Obviously for any work that involves higher education such as college, you can’t get around this issue, but for anything else. It’s possible.

The fact of the matter is, companies need workers and as long as you excel in every other way they’re often not going to be caught up on a detail like not having a diploma.

That being said, I still recommend getting one because it is a valid excuse every workplace can use to reject you if they want. The less reasons you have to be turned down, the better.

You aren’t doing yourself any favors by not graduating, but it’s also not the be-all and end-all people make it out to be.
Reject
26-30, M
14 replies 121 views 16 hrs ago16 h
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TinyViolins · 31-35, M
It's so weird for me going from a family that valued education above all else, as my siblings and I are all college graduates, to spending time with my girlfriend's family that are all high-school dropouts.

I'd say that having a college degree, or multiple in my case, does open a lot of doors and make it easier to stand out from a candidate pool, but like you said, it isn't everything.

I'm slowly starting to undo my bias towards academia and higher learning in general, but when they discuss current events and their lack of education is painfully apparent, I can't help but revert back into college snob mode. Skills can be learned, empathy can be cultivated, but knowing how to effectively gather, analyze, and synthesize knowledge is sorely lacking from the world at large
+ 2 · Reply · Translate · 15 hrs ago15 h
Reject · 26-30, M
@TinyViolins You’re right. I think the general consensus is that most Americans are poorly educated. That being said I’ve met many who have their high school diploma or even graduated from college and they still know next to nothing about life.

Oftentimes their knowledge is very specialized and doesn’t account for the world at large they can’t navigate well. Then I’ve met people closer to me who have very little education but are a lot more capable than any masters degree at the school of life. Generally speaking, I judge people by their character and not their education. Thankfully jobs tend to do that as well.
+ 3 · Reply · Translate · 13 hrs ago13 h
TinyViolins · 31-35, M
@Reject Yeah, I would argue that college education is generally useful only in specific fields and is more of a barometer for aptitude than for actual intelligence.

Without critical thinking skills, that knowledge primarily serves it's own end. Information comes in a lot of different forms, and being able to wisely filter that information is vital to a well-rounded education. I would say that I learned far more outside of university than I did in it, but I wouldn't have been able to know what to look for without being academically-minded

Ultimately it's a person's attitude that carries them further than their accreditations. Without having intellectual humility, knowledge only serves as a crutch rather than a means to build better connections and a better world
+ 2 · Reply · Translate · 11 hrs ago11 h
Reject · 26-30, M
@TinyViolins Exactly. You’re very well spoken. I think education is very comparable to a tool. It’s extremely useful and opens up a whole new world of potential you wouldn’t have without it, but ultimately it’s only as good as the person using it. What life outside of school teaches you is ideally how to become the right person for that tool.
+ 3 · Reply · Translate · 11 hrs ago11 h
hunkalove · 61-69, M
I always lied. Tell them what you think they want to hear. They're gonna lie to you. I have a B.A. in Literature. Best job I ever had was as an airport luggage handler and I said I was a high school grad.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · 14 hrs ago14 h
BlueVeins · 22-25
Do you think you'll ever go back around to get your diploma?
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · 15 hrs ago15 h
Reject · 26-30, M
@BlueVeins You know I understand that would be nothing but beneficial and a smart decision, but I didn’t drop out by choice. I was in a residential psych ward for more than half of my senior year which put me behind on credits I couldn’t make up in time when I got back. I didn’t ask for any of that. I was forced.

I was very angry at the time and felt cheated not getting to graduate with my class. I was so upset I washed my hands of the education system of this country and told myself I never wanted to come back to it. I didn’t care how, I’d find my own way. That’s not to say I won’t ever come back if something changes that makes me need to, but I’d rather not if it can be helped.
+ 2 · Reply · Translate · 13 hrs ago13 h
KingPierus
School a joke
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · 8 hrs ago8 h
Monaschandroff86 · F
Most jobs look at quality than qualifications if you’re good enough and they like your interview skills they don’t care if you’re a high school dropout or have a disability
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · 9 hrs ago9 h · Edited: 8 hrs ago
Wiseacre · F
U can always decide to finish highschool.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · 15 hrs ago15 h
Lilnonames · F
inot graduate but hands on experience is betterwith proof
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · 15 hrs ago15 h
swirlie · F
A minimum education standard of a high school diploma is nothing more than a screening device that is used by the employer which assumes by virtue of the applicant's high school diploma, that the job applicant is not illiterate but which the diploma doesn't guarantee, but it does suggest that the applicant at least meets the minimum base requirements for literacy, numeracy and general knowledge. This means the person can read, write and add numbers together.
+ 1 · Reply · Translate · 15 hrs ago15 h
Reject · 26-30, M
@swirlie Right. It’s an evaluation of basic life skills. The bare minimum of that. Growing up though people always made it seem like I’d go nowhere and in life and accomplish nothing if I didn’t graduate high school. To them it wasn’t a screening for basic life skills. It was the only option for success and without it you’re hopeless.
+ 0 · Reply · Translate · 13 hrs ago13 h
 
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