Higher-Education and Learning

It's never been easier to access the resources needed to learn just about anything, on-demand, and whenever convenient. Because of this, I often questioned the need to attend a higher-learning institution. It's a hard decision to make, as my generation has been raised to believe that a degree is, without-question, required to make a decent living. In some cases, this is true, and in almost ALL cases, a degree will place you higher in a recruiter or employer's stack of applicants. I want to try to get back to the original intended purpose behind attending higher-education institutions in this post though, and figure out if it's still applicable. I'll be writing mainly from the point of view of Design, but the idea behind this post can be translated to many other fields.

The purpose of higher-education

Let's start by laying down the intended purpose clearly: To learn skills and gain the knowledge needed to operate in the modern world, specific to a particular field of study, from experienced individuals in the field. We go to school to learn, so that hopefully, we are equipped to operate at a high-level in our chosen field.

Keeping this purpose in mind, It's no secret that today's universities (sans some of the top guns out there) are generally stuck a few years back, and lack context into current methods and "best-practices" when teaching on tech topics. Design curriculum far to often focuses solely on print methodologies, missing out on an entire world of device-wielding users that need better-designed apps & interfaces. The reasonings behind this lack-of current knowledge could make for a different, deeper topic that I won't try to dive into here. But given that any driven individual can fire up the internet and watch videos, read articles, and take tutorials to learn things at their own pace, what is the purpose in paying a fortune to learn from someone that probably has years of experience in outdated technology?

The basics, of course

Learning the fundamentals of design is a great and crucial thing, but can only get you so far if unable to properly apply them. This is where self-driven learning kicks in as a valuable extension to the current learning environment. This type of learning, depending on how seriously it is taken, can be far more valuable than the hours (and dollars) invested in the classroom. Simply absorbing institution-designed curriculum will cause you to learn about, well, everything that the institution believes is valuable for you to learn. But there comes a point where it isn't enough to satisfy the curiosity you have for the professional world, or to satisfy your own creativity. Going beyond the assignments, there is great value in simply making things that you WANT to make.

After all, investing energy in a project that 100% captures your interest will no-doubt yield higher results than those motivated by a letter grade. Learning will massively increase in these scenarios and you will get to a better state of knowledge far quicker than you will being directed by an outside force alone. In fact, you might find yourself filling your portfolio with this type of work rather than school assignments because you are being motivated solely by self-growth.

So, do I need to go to school?

Unfortunately, I don't have a good answer to this. I can say that I absolutely do not believe that by not attending a University, one is disqualified from doing what they want to do. Those who are truely passionate will put in the work to get to where they want to be. Some of the most successful people in the world are college-dropouts, or never attended at all and have simply learned and worked hard to achieve their goals without touching college (see Michael Dell).

I'd say the most important thing to an employer looking to hire someone in the tech industry is a portfolio of work to show. The degree might bump up the chances of getting that interview, but your work will speak volumes if you can show that you're driven and a life-long learner.