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.

This page is a permanent link to the reply below and its nested replies. See all post replies »

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

swirlie · F

@TinyViolins
Very well stated!

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.

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

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.