why study

so one semester in NUS have already been over and my first holiday in NUS is about half gone. i remember at the start of my journey in NUS, i have asked myself countless times..

why study?

i guess it is pretty natural back then to actually feel this way. after more than two years of not using the brain for academic purposes, getting back into the game can be difficult. i remembered asking myself that question and trying to seek numerous motivations to study. so i shall tell you what i have figure out.

the most superficial and obvious reason would be the fact that an A levels certificate cannot bring me anywhere. let’s face it, if your highest education paper is an A levels, you cannot survive out their in the workplace for long. even one with diploma will thrive over you since with a diploma it shows you are proficient in a certain skill with a certain level. with A levels, you tell others you are studying in general and not specialising in anything in particular. getting my ass into NUS allows me to specialise in what i love.. statistics. throughout the past many years in studying, i generally study anything and everything. after all that’s what the imperfect system required of students. finally i get to have the freedom to choose what i want to learn and hopefully excel in.

next would be passion. slightly related to the previous point, the passion here obviously not the passion of mugging like a dog or being a no-life nerd. yeah, while at times mugging like crazy is inevitable. the passion i am talking about here is what i want to learn more about and see how that can apply to my future job and what not. yeah, there are always people saying what you major in might not be really linked or related to what you are going to work as. well, i would like to beg to differ. i find knowing exactly what you what to major and study in would really help you in the workforce in the future. you would know roughly what kind of line of jobs you want. you would know what you might dislike or like to do when you start working. so all in all, it isn’t completely not related or not helpful in your job hunting after graduation.

prior to the start of semester, i had to settle financial issues. knowing the financial status of my family and looking at the cost of studying in university, i realise i ought to keep in mind who are actually support at least half of the school fees. yes, my parents. raising a kid and feeding a kid to this level is never easy.. i’ve obviously never been a parent but i am not dumb to not know that raising someone like me is one hell of a job. years after years, besides birthdays and what not, how often one would show thanks to them? well, i guess studying hard and doing well now and later in life would be a way to show thanks to them too. i want to let them know those years of blood and tears and resources poured into me from them are not going to waste. i want them to feel proud of themselves for parenting right. parenting doesn’t come with a guide book, you know. 

yeah guess these are the main things that really drive me to study. honestly, if i could stop study and go out to get a stable and high-paying job, i would stop. too bad the world do not work exactly that way for everyone. hence, i have to press on with these motivations in mind. hope no matter what you all are doing, just remember to single out motivations to drive you. i think such skill is one of the useful skills i picked from NS so yeah, all the best.