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Seattle Time Lapse (Empty America) - Thrash Lab

Published on Oct 22, 2012

This particular video by thrash lab ignited a rare emotion in me. I understand that their sole purpose is to generate awareness, get the public talking about topics few feel comfortable or the need to discuss. My objection is it was done in poor taste. Saying Higher education is bullshit, just ticked me off.

And, Mr. Kutcher, I would have loved to leave my comments on the youtube channel, but that is restricted by 140 characters. So, I choose this platform. 

http://youtu.be/42BxpXRTm64

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My response: 

Education is the only asset that’s all mine. Nobody else  controls it, no one can take it away from me. How much I use it or misuse it or worst case scenario, don’t use it, depends on me and me alone.

A very wise man once told me, the deeper you go into a subject the more vast it becomes. The only rate limiting factor in the progress of your personal development is ‘you’.

Following is my understanding of higher education :

A high school diploma is similar to the foundation of a building or a house. If your foundation is weak you have two choices : Fix it or Quit.

If you quit, it’s your loss. The good property is going to go to waste. You take a few extra classes and decide to build up on it. Once you have a solid foundation, you move onto the construction of your first level (basement) ~ Bachelor’s Degree. Once you’ve completed the basement you can add as many levels as you like. No one’s stopping you. It’s your property, asset after all.

A bachelor’s degree forces and trains you to explore all the options that are out there - be it science, arts, history, philosophy, engineering, medicine. And then you chose whatever it is that peaks your interest. That makes you get up in the morning and learn more. That is what you should specialize in.

The main issue with higher education is students, not the education system (most definitely not in N.America). They don’t want to put in that extra effort to explore different avenues of life

Students today are more concerned about their social standing in life and online. Very few students put in the extra effort to go that extra mile. Bachelor’s degree trains you to push yourself more, gain more knowledge, process it, and retain it for future use. 

Master’s degree trains you to go deeper into the subject, question the very existence of the being, theorem, idea, particle, mood, emotion in science, arts & humanity, physics etc. A PhD helps you develop an analytic troubleshooting mindset

There are several different scholarships available to students of all genres. But all of them have one common eligibility criteria : You have to tell the scholarship committee why you deserve it. How their investment will pay off. 

Saying higher education is bullshit, is well, Bullshit; if you ask me. 

Higher education is not bullshit. Sure, it’s a rough journey. No one said life is easy. Life is cruel. It has been like this since the very first time an organism survived on this planet. 

I’m currently pursuing a doctoral degree in biochemical engineering. I started off as Bachelor in Computer Application (BCA). Did that for about 4 months, was even elected to be a member of the university’s student council at the time. Withing months of enrolling in BCA, I was offered to study Computer Engineering at (VJTI) one of the premier institutes in my country. But something inside me kept nudging me towards biology, forensic science, gene engineering. And so I patiently waited for the day I’d be offered to study Pharmaceutical sciences at the #1 institute in the country (ICT). Until then, I continued to learn all I could about computer application. In the process, I made new friends, learned a bit of finance and business administration and developed inter-personal skills and leadership qualities.

I switched another school of pharmacy before I got the oppurtunity to enroll at ICT. 4 years later I was a Pharmacy graduate eager to switch into biotechnology, because I did not want to be a pharmacist at a drug store. But I wanted to see what the industry had to offer, so I worked as Technical Marketing Executive for 6 months before I realized this just wasn’t  my cup of tea. I enjoyed working in the lab far more than I enjoyed traveling for business. I did my master’s in biotechnology and currently I’m pursuing my PhD in chemical engineering. I have 1 patent, 5 peer-reviewed publications and 13 conference presentations under my belt and I haven’t even finished my PhD, yet. And all this while enjoying life : socializing, playing sports (national level field hockey and state level basketball), making life-long friendships and relationships. 

It was possible because of education. Because I had the best teachers and have the best family any one can hope for; parents whose unconditional love for each other and their kids continues to grow with each passing day and brother who although younger in years than me is much wiser and mature than I am, who is also one of the strongest pillar of support in my life. 

But above all else, I have never considered my self to be a genius. I know I have to work hard to achieve what I want.

I am not afraid to ask Why? What? Who? How? When? 

If I make a mistake I am not ashamed to admit it. 

But I do my level best to make sure I don’t repeat my mistakes.

I am not afraid of falling down or failure. 

I am and will always be a student of life. 

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