Education should go beyond the classroom

My typical day follows this schedule: Wake up when it’s still dark, sit through a few lectures, homework, another lecture, work, more homework and then sleep (with bathing, eating, meetings and the occasional few minutes of leisure time thrown in where they can fit).

Lather, rinse, and repeat.

My week can drag on a bit, and I’m sure some of you can relate pretty well to what I’m talking about. It’s been the drudgery of the past few weeks that has inspired this column.

You ever wonder what it is exactly that you’re doing at college? I know we’re supposed to be furthering our educations, preparing for our respective futures, plotting out our lives in black and white. But what are we really doing?

I guess the point I’m trying to make is that I have no idea what I’m doing here. Not in the sense that I’m contemplating ending my college education, but I’d be lying if I told you the thought of taking a sabbatical for a semester, traveling across the country performing music on street corners of big cities and writing a novel or a book of poetry to support myself didn’t sound appealing.

But maybe I’ve read Jack Kerouac’s masterpiece "On the Road" too many times, or analyzed Allen Ginsberg’s "Howl" more than I should.

And I know there are people out there who feel the same way I do. I’ve met them; talked to them, even shook their hand.

So this column is for you. Maybe you can take something from this and apply it to your situation.

My first piece of advice would be the following: Don’t read "On the Road" or "Howl" too many times. It will instill in you a case of wanderlust that only a quick look at your bank account can cure. One suggestion I could make to those of you who feel the need to travel the world would be to check out studying abroad. I’ve heard nothing but good things from people who have done it.

Another reason I feel somewhat disillusioned with my current situation is that I’ve never been positive about what I really want to do as a career. Sure, I’m majoring in management, but as I’ve joked to some of my friends, there are days I’d like to switch my minors to crayons and Play-Doh (and just in case you’re wondering, no, the School of Liberal Arts doesn’t offer those as minors).

There have always been a lot of things that have interested me, and I can’t think of one thing that I’d want to be locked into for the rest of my life.

It was bothering me so badly at one point that I went to an "expert" on the subject: my dad. What he told me was pretty helpful, and maybe it will be for some of you. He told me that even he, in his mid-40s, has no idea what he wants to do as a career.

Now I don’t know about you, but I was always under the impression that our parents had things pretty much figured out. It is comforting to hear him say that he is still confused about his career after graduating from this very same institution over 20 years ago.

It’s not abnormal to still have feelings of confusion. We’re not talking about making weekend plans here, but plans for the next 40 or 50 years of our lives.

But in all the emphasis that is placed on settling on a career, I urge you to remember what is truly important.

It’s somewhat like what Robin Williams was talking about in "Dead Poets Society:" being an engineer, a doctor or a businessman is a great way to make a living, but other, more important things, are what we live for. Things like love, friends, family and your respective faiths are what are truly important. If you’re one of the lucky few that have the pleasure of listing their career as a personal passion, I congratulate you.

I wish I could be as sure about my future as you seem to be.

Brad Pitt wasn’t far off when he said, "You are not your job. You are not the contents of your wallet," in "Fight Club." I know I don’t want to be remembered in my eulogy as a good (insert whatever profession(s) I end up pursuing here), or in terms of financial success or failure.

I want to be remembered as somebody who made a difference. I want to be remembered as a good friend, an excellent husband and a loving father someday. In the end, I want to be judged on my qualities as a person, not the strength of my portfolio.

And I’m sure many of you would want the same thing.

So here’s some food for thought: If we all want to be remembered for who we were, not what we pursued as a career, why are we putting so much emphasis on our careers? Ruminate on that for a while.

So I guess my last piece of advice on this subject is this: If all you’re learning here at Purdue is what your professors put on their syllabi at the beginning of the semester, I feel sorry for you. It has always been my belief that your classroom education is only a small part of your educational experience in college.

If all you’re learning is what is on the final exams in your classes, you might want to start brushing up on that final exam that begins when they hand you your diploma.

Matt Poston is a sophomore in the School of Management, or at least until he flips out and becomes a starving artist. He can be reached at opinions@purdueexponent.org.

Education should go beyond the classroom

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