Editor:
“What university did you get into?”
This is probably the first question I receive at a family reunion, and it is the most frequent question I overhear in the halls as a Grade 12 student.
There seems to be a hierarchy imposed upon students based on which universities or colleges they are accepted into. If it’s a well-known university, you are perceived as “successful.” If it’s community college, you are deemed a “failure.”
The reality is some courses are unique to certain colleges and, in many cases, such institutions are significantly cheaper than universities. In addition, many people decide to take a “gap year,” where they take a year to work, travel, and think about what they want to study.
For some, post-secondary education isn’t even something they want to pursue as they just want to enter the work force immediately, and society shouldn’t judge them.
Not needing to take a P.E. class again should not be the only perk of graduating from high school; it should include the feeling of independence and the idea of finally taking control of one’s own destiny.
As for me, I was accepted into the university of my choice. However, taking a year off and travelling through the Serengeti and volunteering for an NGO sounds really appealing, too.
Regardless of what I decide to do, it shouldn’t matter to anyone else but me.
Leon Chen, Surrey