Looking back on when I was younger and I thought about my older cousins going to college, I thought their life was the best. I thought the ability to go out into the real world and earn money was so easy and the idea that I could go out and party all the time with all your friends was the dream. At that time, there were only so many things that could compare to that at all. Their stories from their time in school left me daydreaming about college and how it would be for me when my time came. What they never talked about, however, was that college wouldn’t be the same for me as it was for them.

Almost religiously throughout my time in high school, my previous misconceptions about college were challenged by my guidance counselors. They talked about paying for SAT’s and ACT’s, paying for AP Tests and for AP Subject Tests that maybe would improve our chances of going to the school we wanted. We had to worry about application fees, student loans, and scholarships if we wanted the chance to even think about a school we wanted to go to. In-State schools were highly recommended because of their lower costs, and I saw so many of my peer’s dreams of leaving my little area of New York crushed. College is more expensive than ever, and even a 4-year bachelor’s degree can’t guarantee that you get the job and the salary you wanted to earn.

When I asked my friends about if the amount of money you want to make in the future affected your choice of major, all 5 of them said yes. One stated that “Unless you’re the best in what you wanna in a non-popular major, you won’t make enough money.” Another said, “It doesn’t even matter what you choose, it’s going to be a struggle either way.” I then asked if a bachelor’s degree will be enough to make the salary you want in life and all five said no. One of my better friends quoted “I am just one of the millions with the same degree and nothing is gonna make me different unless I get a masters”.

I know this might sound sad and discouraging, but we all know there are positives to going to school. The experiences you go through and the relationships you make are just as valuable as the degree you work towards, but it is hard to ignore the stress our generation of college students has about being able to live the lives we want to.