The university you attend

Sometimes, I wonder what it would be like for me to be at a different university. I think about things like the activities I would be involved in, the friends I would have, and the things I would be learning. Since it's something I would never know, it makes me curious. Would my life look different than what it looks like now?

 

I don't mean this in a negative way. I'm happy with how things turned out, and I'm grateful. However, given my personality, there's always the lingering thought of what it would have been like had I went to a "better" school.

 

I think the closest comparison I have is my twin brother, who goes to an Ivy League school. We were on the phone a few days ago, and since we’re both graduating soon, we started talking about what people around us were doing after college. He went first, and when it was my turn, I realized there wasn’t much for me to say. A lot of the people he mentioned—–friends and even people he barely knew––were going on to things that sounded both simple and impressive, and it stuck with me longer than I expected.

 

After the call, I found myself thinking through everyone I knew at my university––not in a judgmental way, but just to make sure I didn't miss anyone. As I did this, it made me think less about individual people and more about the environment I was in.

 

I can't lie, the motivation I typically receive for wanting to do ambitious things has never come from anyone I knew at my university. The motivation often came from watching successful people on social media, reading books, talking with my family, and hearing my brother's stories. And I can't help but feel that this would've definitely been different if I, too, went to an Ivy League (or something similar).

 

Going back to the call with my brother, it didn't necessarily make me feel jealous or bitter––just aware. Aware of how different our environments were, and how much that shapes what feels possible or expected.

 

Regardless of what other people say, I think the school you go to matters a lot; both externally and internally. Where you went to school isn't something that will be a huge limiting factor in tech, but it does create some sort of initial perception of you, no matter how small. And internally, you will feel different things. Going to a more prestigious school might make you more stressed and pressured because of the competition, but stress can also be healthy. The competitive environment, if looked positively, can be motivating and a key driver of ambition. The students who embrace this, I'd argue, are more likely to thrive in those environments and have successful outcomes.

 

I'm not saying that my school is less prestigious than my brother's school (even though it is). What I'm trying to say is that there are just fundamental differences between the two; my brother's school has a lot more resources, goal-driven students, and a concentrated network. For example, when I go to my university, I feel like many people are there to just study and prepare for exams. But there's more to college than that, right? There's a whole other world of internships, startups, gap semesters, study abroads, and independent ventures. (Yes, these exist at my school too but it's just less common.) As someone who wasn't able to experience what my brother had access to, it's one of the key reasons why I sought motivation outside of campus grounds.

 

And I think this argument can, and should be, applied beyond university. After graduating, I think it's super important to be located in an environment that pushes you to grow and see what's possible. The way I see it, your environment is like a multiplying factor to your productivity. For me, I really hope that's something I can experience.