It's midterms season which means stress levels are high on college campuses. You'll see people having breakdowns, stress eating, and looking worn out because they've been living off of coffee for the week.
You'll also hear them occasionally say, "I'm dropping out." Honestly, I've said, "I'm dropping out," more times than I can count. Although many of us say it a lot, we never actually mean it. It really just means we're stressed out, and we're tired of doing work.
This past week has been rough in terms of workload and the number of exams for most of us on campus. A lot of us are struggling and really just want a break, but our busy schedule isn't allowing it. Dropping out seems like a viable option since it would allow us to have that break and give us a chance for our brains to stop working harder than they should be.
It may seem like a viable option, but for me personally, it isn't. Like most students, I'm using loans for pay for college which means I need to get a job after college to pay them off. If I dropped out, I'd have no way to pay it off right away, and that really isn't okay. Plus, I only have two semesters left, so why wouldn't I just finish it? I've made it this far already.
When we say we're dropping out, it is a joke. We don't actually want to drop out because as I've said before, we have some bills to pay off and we are motivated enough to finish school to get a degree. College can be difficult, but that's what makes it so rewarding.
It definitely has its ups and downs, but getting a good grade on an exam or a paper makes you realize how hard you actually worked for it. Maybe you stayed up all night studying or you spent way too much time in the library working on a project, but it was worth it. That grade is satisfying because you worked for it.
Dropping out wouldn't give you that same satisfaction. You would spend all this time working for something and have nothing to show for it except a bunch of money that you need to pay back. It would feel almost like a waste of time, and it would cause more stress since you'd then have to figure out a new plan and create more goals for your life.
So the next time you hear a college kid say they're going to drop out, don't believe them. They're not actually being serious (unless they start emphasizing they're dropping out because that may actually be real). Instead, ask them what they need.
Ask if you can help them with anything or if they just need your support and a nudge in the right direction. College can be hard and having someone to help you through it can provide the little push they need.