I know a ton, plenty that work in government, some at the U.S. 14 or 15 level. A number became legal secretaries. Some more blue collar types. Others got jobs through parents and are doing well, not millionaires but have nice homes in DC area, nice cars, kids, etc. Interesting, I've met some successful realities without degrees too.

my brother flunked out of columbia. came back home and attended the local commuter school. got his act together, majored in math and is now a very succesful consultant. he was always "smart but scattered" and just needed to mature.

My brother did a few years at community college, was accepted at UMD but never bothered to go. My parents were furious. He went on to become a master carpenter. Now he serves as a general contractor building $5 to $10 million vacation homes for Wall Street types. Although there were definitely lean years as he was learning his trade, he's now making bank.

I failed out of a two year college. It was like I left high school, and then it was as if there were 10 years of learning I didn't get and THEN my college. I was completely lost. I remember in my biology class there were lectures and labs, and I went to the lab and all these kids from my lecture were scarring around and I thought "How do they know what to do?" and I was so completely overwhelmed and embarrassed that I didn't even know how to say to my teacher "I don't know how to begin." She might as well have been talking in Japanese - that's how NOTHING I understood.

I remember walking up the library stairs thinking "Don't cry yet, don't cry yet, shit you share a room you can't cry there where can I cry, where the hell do I go to cry?" and I literally walked into the woods to have privacy to cry. Every class felt like that. In my English class I would attempt to write the essays we'd get assigned and the teacher would tell me I missed the subject it was supposed to be about. So I'd scrap it and try again and that would be wrong too. I'd go to office hours and write down what she said to do, think I did that, and still get it wrong.

I was not someone who partied. I have never been drunk or high in my life. Just totally lost. By the second day of classes I thought "I think this is going to be a problem." By two weeks in I knew I was going to fail out.

Went home, took a year off, worked, then went to the local community college never taking more than three classes at once (and that was 1.5 too many). My parents literally went through the course catalog and picked the major for me that they thought would be easiest for me to get through that would get me a job I could support myself on. There was no talk of "what do you WANT to be when you grow up?" but it was "What CAN you muddle your way through?"

It took me five years to get an associates degree going part time. I got D's in several classes, and they waived some requirements for me. Before I graduated I had a job as a legal secretary. I am much better at working than learning. But for years I would have to walk out of my office to stand outside and cry hysterically because I didn't know how to do what I'd been told to do. I got fired a lot. I cried before, during and after office trainings for new programs.

23 years after starting work in this field I probably only cry two or three times a year. But I support myself. I have no debt. And a lot of people are shocked that I don't have a bachelor's degree because I come across as smart, competent and confident.

I went to high school in the south and a bunch of my peers didn’t attend college. They went into a trade or the military for the most part. All have families that they support through their hard work and contribution to society.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My husband’s cofounder is a college dropout. He’s worth about 60 million, I believe.

Wow. Can I ask what field he's in?

Tech. Several successful startups acquired by large companies.

My brother (48) did a year of community college part time and then dropped out because he thought it was a waste of time when he was making good money working as a programmer. He's had a good career in IT and now is one of the top people in IT at his company. Makes a great salary, lives in a big house, SIL is a SAHM.

Many of my relatives did not go to college but did apprenticeships as electricians and make a good living that way.

In DH's family, most do not go to college. BIL is a mechanic for the city, doesn't make much money. His three kids didn't go to college -- one is also a mechanic and has his own business, one works in construction, one is in claims at an insurance company (they are good about training/promoting from within). They live in a much more affordable city than DC so they are doing OK.

My brother failed out of a large state university. He has an IQ in the top 2% but probably has ADHD but he sent diagnosed back then. He happened upon a job in a niche area and learned by watching others. He has been employed in this area since he dropped out of college after his first year.

Anonymous wrote:My husband’s cofounder is a college dropout. He’s worth about 60 million, I believe.

Wow. Can I ask what field he's in?

An older friend of mine dropped out of college in NYC after the first year. He went into television and is still a successful producer now. At one point he co-owned a production company which he sold off.

I know lots of people who didn’t go to college. Many got government or government contracting jobs after HS. All have pursued additional training, and some got degrees later in life. Most are doing well. I also know people in the arts and people with varied job histories and balanced lives that bring them satisfaction.

My husband’s cofounder is a college dropout. He’s worth about 60 million, I believe.

My husband. He started his first business right out of high school. He's had several businesses over the years doing all kinds of things (he is a natural problem solver). Even through COVID he has started 2 new businesses. We live very well, he is an naturally optimistic person and is a happy and likeable guy.

My gifted nephew with medical and mental health issues. Stopped attending classes, lived with his father, and now takes just the classes and summer programs he wants, paid for by his father, and has a "plan". We'll see. He's a great kid, but he has issues.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You realize that well over half of Americans do not possess a bachelor’s degree, right?

OP. I know. I also don't personally know many people who fall in that category, so was just curious.

I don't think most people I know are aware that I haven't finished college. A lot of of people just assume I did.