Yesterday was on Facebook and I saw some young people signing out of the university. They were pretty happy and the photos they posted showed that they were truly happy to graduate from school. At some point while seeing those photos, it dawned on me that lots of them do not know what is awaiting them. Life after school. Hence my entry for this week's prompt.
Permit me to share my little experience
Years ago, while in university, I heard many people say that life after school is never a bed of roses. Many platforms kept advising us that life will be harder and tougher after school. It still didn't make sense to me. People kept on emphasising that there are no jobs for the teaming graduates, hence I should plan my life before leaving school. All this admonition didn't make any sense to me. All that was resounding in my head was that after school, I would get a nice job and enjoy myself. Notwithstanding, when people say that a lot of graduates are unemployed I was always saying that my case is different. However, eight years down the line, my case is not different. How I wish I could pull back that hand of time, I probably would have taken that advice as if my life depended on it.
In my country, everyone wants to go to university. As nice as education is, the mindset carried about by many people going to school is erroneous. Yearly, thousands of people are out of school, and the mindset of these graduates is nothing but to get a job and live a better life. In my country, there are no jobs and the few available ones are hijacked by people who are in high places. As a result, these young people who left school with the intention of getting better jobs are frustrated. Many of them get themselves into crimes just to survive. Many graduates have been unemployed for more than two decades, and our school system is churning out thousands of graduates into the labour market, making education a caricature and an utter waste of time.
In my country, likely successful people are those who haven't been to school, those who are into one business or the other, and those who have a skill. These are people who are making a positive impact, employing those who have been to school. Many people who spent their time and resources on school, if they had used the money and time to learn a skill and begin a business, probably would have done better in life. But having spent all they had, expecting a better life in future, which ended up not happening is enough to cause depression and subsequent suicide.
The way forward
The way out of this mess is very simple. It's for school leavers as well as those in school to adhere to my advice. People who are still in school have to plan their lives after school while still in school. Learning a skill will stand you out. Starting a business will also stand you out. There are no jobs currently in the country, so do not think that your case will be different.
Moreover, it is high time people who go to school do so with the intention of having knowledge and to be different from those who have not been to school in character and modus operandi. This is the only way one can take his/herself out of pressure.