So I Just Quit My University Studies (For Now)...Ever Made A Similar Desicion?

[Mimic]

Yes I did. I was studying an Illustation degree and it wasn't all it was made out to be and I wasn't happy with the course. I stayed until Christmas of the first year and then transfered to a local college and a slightly different degree (Fine Art). However that didn't work out either and I dropped out in April.

I have returned to university since then as a mature student and got a degree in a different subject altogether. It was stressful and I rmemeber being afraid that I would quit like I had done in the past but got through it and did very well too.

Sometimes we find out the subject we thought was right for us at the time no longer appeals and then we are stuck in the dilemma of whether we should quit or not. It's not an easy decision to make and I felt a bit of a failure when I originally quit but luckily it can work out for the best.

 

[Beffudled Sheep_v1legacy]

I dropped out of my studies too OP.
I didn't actually want to do what I was studying for (I was pushed into it), I was under a lot of stress from going to school full time and working full time (I went to school in the mornings and worked nights, wasn't a good combo), I have severe anxiety issues and I'm bipolar so those were fucking me up too.
Oh, and I've simply hated being in an education environment since my very first day of school when I was 5 or 6.
So I dropped out with no back-up plan and I've never been happier.

No idea what I'm going to do with my life, but I didn't know when I was miserable in class either.
I think I'll be going back and trying for a different field but for now I'm enjoying my time away from that garbage and trying to get my mental and emotional state sorted.

 

[MysticSlayer]

I switched from Environmental Science and Policy to Computer Science. My initial plans were to switch to Civil Engineering with a focus on Environmental Engineering, but once I learned what type of courses I would take along that major, I decided it was better to go for Computer Science. It was either that or Mathematics, but considering my career interests at the time, CS seemed better. Oddly enough, most of those career interests are gone now and replaced with things that could have been easily gone for with a Math degree (and I even have one friend who took that route), though some of them would still be easier to pursue with a CS degree.

Either way, it has turned out well. I've enjoyed my classes for the most part, and have definitely preferred them to the ESP classes I was taking. I guess it is also good that I'm currently worried about whether or not I can figure out the electives I want to take because there are too many for the time I have left. In ESP, I was more worried about electives because I would run out of interesting ones before I got to the end of it and would still have grad school to look forward to. Oh yeah, and I might also be able to dodge grad school for a little bit while still getting a decent paying job, something I would have struggled with in ESP even with a Master's degree. There's other things, but I simply can't list all the positives of the change. All in all, I couldn't be happier with the change.

 

[persephone]

I really wanted to drop out of my studies when I had a year left, but I took a long hard look at myself and concluded that I wouldn't ever go back to college if I stopped, even just for a break. So I stuck it out. Then the recession hit and I slowly realized that my psych degree was useless. Granted, I'd originally planned on a masters, but by the time I even came close to my bachelor's I knew I was done with school for good.

My brother did drop out, and I think it was right for him. He tried going back a few times, but he could never stay at it. School isn't for everyone. He's not dumb or lazy; he's actually very smart, and the kind of person you'd consider "college material." It just wasn't for him, it wasn't how he learned or functioned. He's doing just fine as a bank teller now.

I think culturally we have this idea that you have to go to college cause it'll get you a job, but you don't and it won't (always). I went to college because it was expected of me, and it never occurred to me to examine those expectations until later. Looking back, I didn't know myself, what I wanted, or what I should do, so I got a bachelor's cause my parents told me to. (Though to be fair, they paid for it, so I really can't complain there.)

Mine is an odd case, though, cause it turns out I had several undiagnosed autoimmune problems that basically blew up like a bomb shortly after I graduated. I don't know what I would've done with myself had I been healthy, but nowadays most of my life consists of going, "Dammit, I would like to stop being incredibly sick. Can I be just a little sick so I can get some work done? Please?"

It's funny, cause in my initial years of recovery, when I had this expectation I was going to get better and I was sort of killing time waiting for a mythical recovery that would never come, I filled my days by learning to run roleplaying games and tinkering with game design for fun. Now I'm trying to game design for realsies, to actually build a system and setting I can sell and that are fun to use and play with. So you could say that having my health blow up in my face caused me to finally discover what I loved and was passionate about and wanted to do with my life. Looking back, I sometimes wish I'd known this was what I wanted when I was 17, so I could've studied game design in school.

I hope the OP is happy with their new studies! I don't think you should regret changing course if you're not happy, cause if you're not happy doing something, you can't really be good at it. Follow your heart, and hopefully it'll fill your wallet, too.

 

[FirstNameLastName]

Funny you should make such a thread, because I'm in a similar situation now. After doing so well for my first one and a half years of IT, everything fell apart around the end of the second year. I've now failed enough units to simply postpone my studies until later this year, but I'm not entirely sure whether I'm going to simply cut my losses and render all the money a waste, or take the additional expenses and keep going.

Drugs, not even once...

 

[Guy_of_wonder]

I have always done well in school, but when i went to university two years ago, I was an average to below average student (studying Computer science). It got to the point a year ago that i completely ignored a class one semester because going to the class made me feel stupid (i don't learn by studying or lecturing well). I left university because i felt like i was wasting my parent's money, my time, and i had to take so many classes that had nothing to do with computer science (my fundamental problem with university). I am now at a community college and don't really know what i am going to do now.

I am tired of school and I don't really want to continue. I have been thinking of what to do for months; go to a tech school, go to a culinary school, get a job, or slog through university until i get a bachelor's degree.

 

[Remus]

I dropped my 2 year college course after 2 1/2 years in which the location was under remodelling/new construction, in which half the courses that I should have had on my curriculum were swapped out, and the ones that weren't were so out of date that they had become completely irrelevant and the professors were trying to convince students, myself included, that all the local work requires the obsolete training. I disagreed so I walked out.

 

[Bernzz]

I quit university after my first year. I'd changed my mind about it and it was getting beyond me.
Haven't gone back, haven't looked back. I'm working now, with an unclear future.

Certainly better than feeling like shit about doing uni!

 

[devotedsniper]

I failed my first year of uni doing a Software Engineering course just because my heart wasn't in it to listen to another lecturer bang on about pointers. Three extra years later and I had completed my Computing Science degree with most of my modules being in forensics (data recovery, biometrics and hacking) and database development/admin.

Funny thing is I've actually been a professional developer for nearly 2 years now (in June), more specifically a Backend Web Developer specialised in C#, MVC, SQL and KnockoutJS (not to be confused with the Frontend css, sass sort), writing customers huge complex web based software such as MOT checking and questionnaire reporting software.

Truth be told while I loved the forensics stuff and the people I met, I didn't really enjoy university. If it wasn't for my carrier I probably would never have gone to university, I was actually pressured into it by my college lecturers (to which in the end I am grateful).

It's just a shame no one is really willing to give someone without a degree a chance in my line of work, although this is a growing trend in most industries now a days.

 

[Queen Michael]

I quit my university studies when I realized I wouldn't be able to handle the tests.

 

[lacktheknack]

I was prepared to go back to post-secondary (AGAIN) after I realized I didn't like the subject I got a diploma in... but then I up and went to Asia instead.

Does that count?

 

[TravelerSF]

It makes me feel so incredibly reliefed to read that other people are in the same, miserable position as I am.

I'm planning on quitting university this spring, the sooner the better. And that thought feels goddamn terrifying. I've always I've had a clear idea of what I'll do with my life: Work hard at school, go to high school and keep studying whatever subject has peaked my interest the most. That happened to be biology, but when I applied to university the only thing in the biological field was biomedical laboratory sciences. I didn't want to risk not having anything to study after I'd finished my mandatory military service, so I picked that, hoping it would work out.

It didn't. Not only am i frustrated with the focus on practical work instead of research, the teachers have been a pain in the ass sometimes. It's not uncommon for them to drop a new assignment on us that'll be due on 2 weeks, despite the fact that the month is already crammed full with assignments and exams. There's a ton of courses which require us to cram our head with ridiculous of amounts of medical terms in a short period of time, despite never really needing to use them in our work. What made my decision final though was the slow realization that my mental health can not handle the stress that comes with working in the healthcare business.

So as of now I'm looking for a job so I can officially drop out. I might try to study biology to become a teacher, but honestly I'm not that sure about that either. I don't really know what to do with my life. For the first time ever I'm utterly clueless on what direction I should take. All I know for sure is that I want to finally finish writing my book, that's about the only thing I'm somewhat good at. I'm not stupid enough to imagine that I'll make a career out of it, I just want to get it out of my system.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

No, not really. Closest thing to it was making the decision to never do maths again after Secondary School, despite others telling me that it's a very useful subject.

I've no doubt that it is, I just don't like it. That and it barely aligns with what I want to do later in life.

 

[wooty]

Yeah, I quit Uni in the second attempt at my second year. Main reason, it bored the ever loving shot out of me and the people I was with on the course were too pretentious. Anyone who doesn't want to go out into a little rain because it might stain their jacket or mess up their shitty one direction haircut isn't worth my time.

I only ever really stayed there because of my girlfriend at the time and my posting in the artillery. The rest of it was just a boring waste of time and money. I remember more from those 3 years of Premier League and Champions League than I do from my actual course.

 

[Hagi]

Studied AI first for just over a year, while also doing competitive rowing ( 6 times a week for 3 hours each ). Completely and totally overtrained myself out to the point I was sleeping 20 hours a day or I'd simply collapse and pass out.

Tried again, this time studying IT for almost two years. Did achieve some results but also failed enough that with mounting student loans I was starting to worry. Luckily I found an IT company willing to take me and train me.

So I quit my studies and now two years later I'm the lead programmer at the place (small company though) so that worked out fairly well.

We had some tough financial times though, seeming to be recovering now, but I do worry somewhat as to what'll happen if shit does hit the fan, applying for another job is significantly harder without the right papers.

 

[taylorton147]

i am really glad this thread exists, it has put me at ease with how much I'm struggling with uni with both grades and mentally. thanks guys