EDITOR – The arrival of the 2017 matric results has brought a variety of feelings to those receiving them.
However low or high their marks, so many more hearts are set on attending university than there were in previous years.
Back in the day, university entrance was something only the academically-minded and those with great plans and fortitude ahead of them earned the right to, and in turn, the degree they completed held meaning and worth.
Those not as high achieving knew their place. They didn’t have the aura of entitlement that is too common in today’s society. Work, travel or gaining experience are some of the paths they considered.
As the years have passed, not only has virtually every school leaver become ‘entitled’ to university entrance, but now that entitlement has, thanks to the recent announcement by our president, extended to also wanting to obtain such studies completely free of charge.
If ever free education was an option, the burning of the universities set the country back such an amount that this dream is moved so far into the future that its near non-existent.
A rude awakening lies ahead for those who received their ‘university entrance’ passes last week, but who know all too well that they scraped and battled their way through high school, despising every minute of it. The free pass ends here. Don’t take up a position at university where it gets much tougher very quickly.
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Look to the road less travelled, whether that be working immediately, short courses, internships, travel or working abroad – gain as much experience as you possibly can.
This era of self-entitlement is a breeding ground for laziness, with many graduates unable to get jobs because their shining degree is a mere dime a dozen.
Put in the hard work, get the experience and I assure you, you’ll go further than any degree – of which there are ten thousand identical ones – will take you.
A DEGREE WISER
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