Are you planning to drop out of college and discontinue higher education? If so, please wait. Read this article thoroughly and if needed, several times. In this article, I will be discussing various features of dropping out of college. And if possible, try and stop you from doing so.
While you believe there’re genuine reasons to drop out of college, I can give you some reasons why you shouldn’t be doing so. Yet, if you’re not happy with my reasons, I will show you how to drop out of college without losing much.
Let’s start with some facts and figures about dropping out of college.
Facts and Figures of College Dropouts
Studies by Education Data Initiative (EDI), an American organization shows, over 40 percent of all students in USA drop out of college. As a matter of fact, this is the highest college drop out rate in the world.
Forbes pegs the college dropout rate in USA at more than one million students every year. The Forbes report says that most dropouts come from financially weaker families, especially those where parents don’t have a graduation degree from a college or university.
These two reports further reveal college dropout rates according to various communities residing in the USA. The lowest dropout rate in US colleges and universities is said to be international students, whose parents bear the expenses from abroad and benefit from fee waivers or scholarships.
Effects on Income of College Dropouts
Now, if you believe that it’s possible to join these ranks of college dropouts and yet lead a happy life, here’re some more shocking figures.
In a single academic year, all college dropouts in the USA stand to lose $3.8 billion per year, shows studies by Educational Data Initiative (EDI). This means you’ll work on much lower salaries by dropping out of college, compared to students that complete their graduation degree or Bachelor’s degree.
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The Balance quotes a report by the Economic Policy Institute, which clearly states that students who drop out of college earn at least $21,000 less than students who graduate. This clearly shows that dropping out of college can also affect your finances and future life.
And even worse, 89 percent of all college dropouts default on education loans. On average, a college dropout carries a debt burden of $35,000 when they abandon further studies.
This has a negative impact on your credit score, which could render you ineligible to get loans, mortgages, or even a simple credit card in the future.
Bad Effects on Personal Life
However, the ball doesn’t stop merely at lower-income and default on student debts. It rolls even further to affect your personal life and future too severely.
A study by Pew Research shows that at least 80 percent of all women in the USA who graduate from colleges have a long marriage that lasts an average of 20 years.
This is drastically half- or less than 40 percent- among women that have only a school or high school education or have dropped out of college.
Even worse. A study by Partnership to End Addiction proves that 41.6 percent of all dropouts use alcohol while 31.4 percent use illicit drugs compared to their peers who are still studying at high school and college.
I’m sure you know that alcohol and drug addiction have severe consequences on the physical and mental health of addicts.
And if you’re still considering dropping out of college, here’s some more bad news. About 50 percent of all students that drop out of college suffer from some of the other mental disorders. Often, these disorders are severe and require expensive psychiatric treatment and medication.
Now, if you still believe that there’re some genuine reasons to drop out of college, read further.
Reasons to Drop Out of College
As a matter of fact, you could be affected by any of these reasons and hence, consider dropping out of college. The above facts and figures might not be convincing enough to study further. Therefore, let’s examine some of the reasons why students drop out of college.
1. Inability to Pay Fees
The poor financial situation at home is the biggest reason why students drop out of college. There’re a few scholarships and fee waiver programs available but these might not be sufficient enough to cover all your educational costs, plus staying away from home, to complete your college degree.
This isn’t a unique problem. That foreign student at your college would also be facing a similar situation. Yet, they’re not dropping out of college because they have certain ambitions for life.
2. Unable to Cope with Studies
A lot of college students find, they’re unable to cope with studies and the curriculum. Hence, they try to find an easier and softer way, which is by dropping out of college. This can prove very bad for your career, finances, and life.
3. Choosing the Wrong Course
Another big reason for students to drop out of college is because they’ve selected the wrong course. You might have taken a course that seems appealing and just right for a superb career. But when courses start, it’s boring and you lose all interest.
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4. Hostile Ambience
Generally, all colleges and universities in America ensure their students are safe against bullying and other malpractices such as discrimination. However, there could be instances where you might experience something negative from other students or peers, that makes you consider dropping out of college.
5. Medical Reasons
A few students face medical problems at college. That’s because they move to an area where the climate can be much different than back home. And added to that is the stress of living alone at a dorm, combined with the pressures of studying.
All these might make you feel sick. In such cases, you might be considering dropping out of college and returning home. This is actually a minor problem that can be solved if you do certain things before dropping out of college.
6. Homesickness
Homesickness generally affects foreign students at American colleges and universities. However, if you’re at a college that’s very far from home and the place seems strange or alien, you might experience homesickness and might be considering dropout. This is a passing phase and you can easily overcome these feelings.
10 Ways to Drop Out of College
If you’re suffering from any of these problems, here are some things to do to drop out of college. I strongly suggest that you go through each of these steps and take the necessary action to drop out of college.
1. Write Reasons to Drop Out of College
Always identify and write reasons to drop out of college. That’s because often, the decision to drop out of college can be taken on an impulse or some difficulty that you believe is insurmountable.
That might not be the fact. Writing these reasons on a computer or even a notebook can help you a lot. It could help you analyze the exact reasons for trying to drop out of college.
2. Discuss With Your Family
Discussing your plans to drop out of college should always be discussed first with your family. Always take them into confidence and approach your parents with proper reasons to drop out of college. This won’t be easy.
That’s because parents often have great expectations from their kids and want them to get a good college degree. That’s the reason parents spend some money and help you get to college.
If the parents don’t have the money to continue their education, it’s still worth discussing the plans to drop out of college with them.
3. Speak to College Counselor
Almost every college nowadays has a counselor. They’re psychology and education graduates and are well aware of various problems that college students face, especially during the first or sophomore year.
When you approach the counselor, you can look for a sympathetic ear and some good advice. They will give you some options such as stepping up scholarship money or even offer one. You can consider these options.
4. Discuss with Faculty Members
It’s also a good idea to discuss plans to drop out of college with at least one faculty member that you trust. Obviously, you will have someone in the college faculty that you like and can trust.
Speaking with such a person can have a superb effect because they would be able to guide you about any problems in studying a particular subject from the curriculum or even in personal life. Such discussions can have a very beneficial result too.
5. Consider Higher Education Options
The evil effects about dropping out of college are many. Therefore, I strongly recommend looking for other options in higher education. These could be changing the course you’re studying to something that’s more of your interest.
Alternatively, you could also consider switching colleges, if you find a better course elsewhere. Changing a college can also get rid of problems such as hostile ambiance, if you’re facing such a problem.
There’re also lots of community colleges in USA which offer certificate courses and Bachelor’s degrees. Consider joining any of these.
6. Take Part Time Job
As a matter of fact, there’re several problems that you could simply overcome by working part-time from the dorm or home. One of the greatest advantages of a part-time job, a preferable online one, is that you can earn a lot of money.
If your parents are facing financial issues that’re forcing you to drop out of college, a part-time job can actually help you pay fees and help get that higher education degree such as a Bachelor’s in the course.
7. Try Freelancing
A lot of college students in USA do freelancing. That’s because it helps them earn a lot of money that covers their fees as well as other living expenses. Surely, you have some knowledge about a course or subject or even a hobby.
Doing some work on an hourly basis online can help earn this money, which is necessary for continuing education. There’re several websites where you can create a profile and find excellent freelancing tasks. These include Upwork.com and FlexJobs.com, Fiverr, Freelancer.com and Guru.com.
8. Look for Scholarships
Facing financial problems? These can be overcome easily with one or more generous scholarships that’re available in USA. Check if your college has any on offer. Also, browse the Internet for scholarships in your field of study.
Then, we also have general scholarships available for financially weaker and deserving students. Applying for these scholarships is fairly simple. Though there’re no guarantees that you’ll get a scholarship, it’s still worth trying.
9. Fee Waiver Programs
Hundreds of colleges across the USA have fee waiver programs. This means they can decide not to charge full fees or simply, allow a student to continue studying without charging a since Dollar or just some nominal fee.
Such fee waiver programs are available for students from certain ethnic communities, students from poor families, students that show excellent performance and have the ability to complete a course, and several other categories.
The best thing is to ask about these programs from the college or check at other colleges about fee waivers.
10. Consider Company Programs
There’re quite a lot of large American corporations that will recruit you as an employee or intern while you’re at college or even high school. To explain further, they hire students to work in various fields and pay their fees too.
This means you have a job while your college education comes free of cost. Generally, these large corporations require students from almost every stream of studies for their work. Hence, you can also try some of these programs.
Usually, these companies have campus outreach programs to recruit students. It’s possible to email the program coordinators of these companies and find when the next such event would be held at your college.
Does Rest Help Overcome College Blues?
Now, you know how to drop out of college after doing these top 10 things. One of the questions that students often ask is, does rest help overcome college blues?
Actually, college blues are nothing more than a psychological feeling. It includes a lot of things such as stress, homesickness, pressure to perform well at college and often, money issues.
Therefore, my answer is simple. Yes, rest from college actually helps. In fact, if you wish to drop out of college, the first thing to do is take a break for one academic year.
You could take a complete break in your academic year. Or, take a break from certain subjects, which means you won’t attend their classes. These options can help you reconsider the decision to drop out of college and give a fresh perspective of higher studies.
Closing Thoughts
If you’ve read this article fully, you’ll know the reasons for not dropping out of college. Leaving higher education is very easy: all you need to do is apply at the college to drop out and stop attending, once the application is approved.
However, the life of a college dropout also isn’t easy, as you would have seen from my above descriptions. Follow these steps before you decide that you wish to drop out of college for sure.
Remember, not many students in the USA have the advantage of attending college. Therefore, if you’ve got an opportunity, make the best of it.