Why I believe attending college is important! by Andrew

Why I believe attending college is important! by Andrew - April 2020 Scholarship Essay

I believe for me, attending college is very important. I truly enjoy learning and feel it would be a waste of my intellect and hunger for knowledge not to go to college. Only one of my parents attended college and I see the difference in their career choices and overall happiness with work and life. My mom spent six years going to college part-time, her degree is in Accounting. Even though she does not work in the accounting field, she was able to get a very good paying job and only have to work 5 days a week, Monday thru Friday. My moms job has some very nice perks which include, flexible work hours, working from home, and a clean people friendly work environment. During this COVID-19 Pandemic, my mom is able to work from home and do her job very well which allows her to stay away from potential health risks at her place of employment. My dad on the other hand chose not to go to college. He works full time in a factory which often times includes working a lot of weekends and even some holidays. He has been at this same factory for 39 years and is very miserable with the job and the hours he has to work. Summer is the busiest time for my dads work which does not allow him to have time off on weekends to do things with our family. He has had to miss out on some vacations, sports activities and summer outings because he did not attend college, get a degree that would allow him to have better work hours and a happier life. Attending college in most cases allows a person who is willing to put the time, work, and effort into it, a productive and rewarding career, as well as a meaningful life helping others.
Other reasons why I believe attending college is important include getting out into the world and learning about different aspects of life, meeting new people and experiencing new things in an environment outside of the small area I have lived in all my life. There will be many opportunities such as traveling abroad, joining clubs that help the college and surrounding community , and meeting people outside of the small world I have grown up in. I plan to major in Pharmacy, so the opportunities that this career can open up for me are endless. With the COVID-19 Pandemic going on in our world today, the field of pharmacy and research would allow me to work with people developing the vaccines that cure these new viruses.
We do need people in the trades as well and attending college for a trade is also very worthwhile and satisfying. My brother attended college for two years and is an HVAC technician for both residential and commercial type of work. It is a very satisfying field for him because he likes to be hands on and take equipment apart , fix it, and put it back together. Not everyone wants to or is cut off for a four or six+ degree but those that go to college for the trades will find very satisfying well paying positions in the working world. In the end, I believe, attending college is very important it allows a person many more opportunities, better pay and working conditions, and an overall happier life from what I have seen.