Was uni really the best thing for me?

Lately it seems I spend a lot of time thinking about how much I dislike my degree and how I've made a terrible decision that has landed me thousands of pounds in debt. Have I really wasted the past three years of my life? What is even the point? Shortly after starting my geology degree I realised that I do not want to work within the industry and that a lot of the material covered does not really interest me much as I don't consider maths, physics or chemistry to be fun.

A big part of disliking my degree is due to the fact that because I am not particularly good at it I am starting to feel a bit worthless and I doubt myself a lot. My course does not help me build on the skills I have that I am actually good at or those that I think might actually lead to a career that I would enjoy.

I realise this is totally my own fault. Nobody forced me to choose this degree and nobody has made me stick at it. I have stubbornly refused to give it up because I don't want to quit. Particularly now I am 2 and a half years in.

The amount of fieldwork I have to do sucks, as it has totally ruined my competitive career in my chosen sport this year and it also means I have to give up large parts of my holidays. Then theres the fact that I really do not enjoy the field trips so spend a lot of the time wishing I was anywhere else.

So what stops me just jacking it all in? Apart from the time and energy already invested in it I have great friends on my course who I would really miss if I quit. Also there are parts of the course I really like (palaeontology for example) and I actively look forward to them. But the main reason I took the degree in the first place is due to the variety of career paths is can lead to.

I realise not a few paragraphs up I stated I am not keen on working in the industry but by that I mean the sort of jobs the uni is pushing for me to be interested in (working in oil, mineral exploration etc). A geology degree is widely recognised by employers and I am hoping it is going to enable me to get a job that involves working a little more with people and a little less traipsing around a muddy field in the middle of nowhere.

Now I love the countryside, I love going walking and exploring but I like to do it for my own pleasure. I have been to some incredible places during the course of my degree but I would have preferred to go there for fun rather than to do work. I do not want it tarnished with geology. I cannot even look at a view/beach/cliff/road cutting anymore without wondering how the it formed and what processes caused it to look like that.

All this causes me to feel very low about myself and that if I am not good at my degree I must be worthless. But I do have skills, just perhaps not ones that my lecturers focus on. I am great at talking to people and I am more confident at walking up and introducing myself to new people than I ever give myself credit for. I am a good public speaker and previously addressed conferences of thousands of people. I am also highly organized and good at getting things done. All of these things are valuable skills and part of the reason I started this blog was to prove to myself I should do what I am good at.

University has taught me incredibly valuable life skills. I have had to learn all about boring adult things like bills, TV licenses, annoying landlords, budgeting etc etc. Its all quite dull at times but it's crucial to being able to be a fully functioning adult.

Also I have changed vastly during my time here. I am more confident, more sure of myself and give less of a shit what people think about me. I am also a much better cook haha.  

In future I am going to try not to be so negative about myself and continue to develop the skills that I enjoy (while slogging on with the geology degree, I'm no quitter). To my lecturers that may read this, see this as a sign of me recognizing there is more than one path to success and that it is ok to be different to your peers. I'm not sure what the future holds but I am going to do my best to make sure it is full of things that make me happy.