Staying in school is too cool
By Anoushka Valodya/Editor

I strongly encourage graduating students to pursue a bachelor’s degree, instead of getting a full-time job with an associate’s.

This is what I did and I regret it, although I was glad to have been receiving a steady income which was enough to afford my own apartment in Los Angeles.

However, I should have continued my education, so that just two years later, I would have been making much more money than just as a production assistant. Working for an international company, I met a lot people of differing educational levels, and I learned that a lot of entrance-level positions were being held by graduates with bachelor’s.

This made me realize that an associate’s is almost equivalent to a high school diploma. Therefore, it’s important to climb the educational ladder as high as possible, especially when young.

I think working at a job that resembles TV’s “The Office,” wasn’t the right environment for an early-twenties, independent woman. During those years, I found it too harsh to feel the high pressure of corporate demands, working nearly 12 hours a day, with only limited time for lunch.

The office had no windows, so it was difficult to know when there was still daylight. Co-workers in the next cubicles would play their music, and didn’t care if the music wasn’t enjoyed by others.

The part I looked most forward to in the day was clocking out.

It felt like I was in jail, compared to the freedom I experienced at college. I couldn’t just get up and leave my work like in class. I couldn’t say I didn’t have time to complete the assignment. These are grounds for termination. Another frustrating factor dealt with complicated procedures.

There were no professors or tutors to sit down with me to explain the steps and reasons. People didn’t have time to teach, only to make money.

Although surrounded by hundreds of employees, I usually felt alone and insecure. I then realized how much I missed going to school. It seemed like paradise, compared to my job.

I understand that this kind of working environment will prevail when I graduate with a master’s, but at least I’ll be more mature and confident enough to, perhaps, have my own business or work in a department with windows and no music being played from the neighboring cubicle.