“Hey what classes are you taking next year?

“AP Bio and-”

” You’re taking AP Bio? Do you want to be a doctor?”

“No not really I hate medicine and science. I want to be a historian.”

“So why are you taking AP Bio?”

“Because I need another AP class.”

Many students tend to focus on grade point average instead of what they actually feel passionate about. However this is not entirely their fault, there is a popular idea that how students look on paper holds more importance than what they actually care about. Students exemplify the victim of circumstance in this situation, and it puts them at a loss later in life.

Historically, schools sought to teach children simplistic concepts such as addition and multiplication and they finished school around the age of 13. Now school, and high school especially, makes or breaks getting into good colleges and college makes or breaks whatever job you choose to pursue. Under all of this pressure our society lost the main point of going to school in the first place: to study in order to better one’s life.

Because colleges focus so much on grade point average and similar aptitude numbers, students cheat themselves and decide to take classes they know won’t benefit them later on. Sure they might still get an A, but it will be ten times harder to get an A in that class as opposed to a class that can actually help them prepare for their future career or interest.

Right Management ran an online survey  April 16 -May 15 in the US and Canada. Only 19%  said they were satisfied with their jobs. Another 16% said they were “somewhat satisfied.” But almost two-thirds of the responders, admitted they were unhappy at work. People in these types of situations most likely did not gain the knowledge that they needed in order to pursue a career of interest. The background knowledge that high school courses, which address a field of interest, can help students learn and excel in their passion. Starting to get educated about a career that is fascinating early on can help one gain much more experience and knowledge in that field.

Students are not defined by a paper, they have interests, hobbies and loves, therefore they should be taking classes in school that will allow them to succeed in these areas. Work life will be much more rewarding if students would allow themselves to be educated in what they enjoy. So next time you are picking classes for your schedule decide what’s more important to you: paper, or passion.