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College/University and self education...

Illmatic

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can someone who self educates themselves gain the same knowledge as someone who learns by themselves with no professors or any of that?

I was planning on doing criminology but then if i do that, i can't do psychology..i was hoping that i can learn psychology by myself in my free time by reading books and such......can i be as knowledgeable as a college grad?
 

ceecee

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You can be but you will have no proof of that education. I think obtaining employment would be next to impossible, not to mention you would need some sort of licensing. Why can't you do psychology too?
 

Nicodemus

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can someone who self educates themselves gain the same knowledge as someone who learns by themselves with no professors or any of that?
Can an autodidact learn as much as... an autodidact? Yes, certainly.

I was planning on doing criminology but then if i do that, i can't do psychology..i was hoping that i can learn psychology by myself in my free time by reading books and such......can i be as knowledgeable as a college grad?
Yes, today more than ever. You can ask which books are read at Harvard and read the same, you can ask questions and talk to like-minded people on the internet. It just takes more determination to do it by yourself than to sit down and just listen.
 

Coriolis

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@ the OP: Yes, you can probably learn as much, but as ceecee points out, you will have no official credentials. With the increasing emphasis on certification over qualification, you may be stuck trying to apply your knowledge outside of your personal life.
 

Mole

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The Intellectual Life and the Spiritual Life

The intellectual life has a life of its own. It has its own excitement, even its own intoxication.

It's not about being knowledgable, it is about pursuing the unknown.

Very few of us want to pursue the unknown, rather we prefer to manipulate and control the known.

And of course the institutions take advantage of us and sell us knowledge.

And unfortunately the selling of knowledge, like the selling of the spiritual, is called the sin of simony.

And indeed the intellectual life is like the spiritual life in that it requires an inner impulse, discipline and a sense of wonder.
 

mmhmm

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can someone who self educates themselves gain the same knowledge as someone who learns by themselves with no professors or any of that?

I was planning on doing criminology but then if i do that, i can't do psychology..i was hoping that i can learn psychology by myself in my free time by reading books and such......can i be as knowledgeable as a college grad?

yes you can and a lot of people do it.

and if money (around $3000) isn't a problem check out: http://www.londoninternational.ac.uk/
it's an excellent programme offered by world class schools (LSE, SOAS etc.,)

Can an autodidact learn as much as... an autodidact? Yes, certainly.

Yes, today more than ever. You can ask which books are read at Harvard and read the same, you can ask questions and talk to like-minded people on the internet. It just takes more determination to do it by yourself than to sit down and just listen.

course outlines are a plenty on the internet
even lectures are available online
checkout itunes u: http://www.apple.com/education/itunes-u/
harvard, stanford, yale -- they're all there on itunes u

i'm always listening in to lectures.
they're wonderful. some of the teachers are just so fantastic.

and i looooove MIT's opencourses: http://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm
 

Mole

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Knowledge Capital

Of course we may want to be knowledge capitalists. So then it is wise to attend a college of knowledge, and there each course will increase our knowledge capital until finally it can be converted into a convertable currency called a degree.

But still we are dealing with sin. The sin of lending money for interest is called usury, and the sin of selling the spriritual is called simony. And the sin of selling knowledge is a combination of the sins of usury and simony.

But with very few exceptions the selling of knowledge is a ponzi scheme, a pyramid scheme - it only works if new buyers can be brought in continuely at the bottom of the pyramid.

And that is what the education system is for - it is to bring in new recuits at the bottom of the pyramid of knowledge. For education is free, secular and compulsory. Yes, we are compelled by State Law to attend this ponzi scheme of knowledge. And notice the hook - it's 'free' - and how we love anything free.

But whereas it is useful to have primary schools to teach us to read and write, all the rest are unnecessary, for today we learn to use the telephone, television, the radio, the computer and the ipod, all without any compulsion, and all without going to school.

The truth is knowledge capitalism is experiencing diminishing returns, graduates are finding themselves unemployed across the Middle East, throughout Europe and increasingly in the United States.

And today we see them out on the streets demanding change. Or are they just demanding more of the same? Have we become addicted to the accumulation of knowledge capital?
 

FDG

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The real problems are:

1) time: if you work full-time, there might be relatively little energy left for erudition. You might still become quite good and knowledgeable, but it's hard to catch up with real experts that are able to devote hours and hours a day to the matter at hand.
2) interaction: sometimes your understanding might be missing something crucial, that's easy to spot when you can argue with someone about the issue, but not so easy if you're completely self-taugth.

Said that, even if other people have a starting advantage, a combination of intellect and passion can easily surmont problem 1). For problem 2), well, internet forums might be a useful tool.
 

Orangey

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Learning by yourself is almost always better than learning in the classroom. The sense of intrigue and, as [MENTION=3325]Victor[/MENTION] says, wonder at finding out new things drives you both to learn and retain more than if you simply subjected yourself to the tutelage of other people. It's active v.s. passive learning. Free v.s. coerced.

The need to have a ribbon showing that you've studied something at a university (for prestige, to be taken seriously, to be employed) is one of the worst kinds of coercion. And coercion has a tendency to kill intellectual curiosity.
 

Renn

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I have the same plans actually. I want to take up my master's degree in engineering but I am not contented with what I am learning in my college so I am planning to spend most of my free time in the libraries studying subjects that interest me. I am just going to have my masters in engineering because I don't have enough financial resources to support my studies and it is easier to obtain a scholarship in the engineering field. But I love studying psychology, finance, philosophy and history.

I think knowledge in every field is very important even if it would not benefit us financially in the short term basis. If our goal is to get a good job with high salary, the best option is to focus on our respective fields. But if we really want to make a difference in the long run, knowledge in every field is essential.
 

FDG

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Learning by yourself is almost always better than learning in the classroom. The sense of intrigue and, as [MENTION=3325]Victor[/MENTION] says, wonder at finding out new things drives you both to learn and retain more than if you simply subjected yourself to the tutelage of other people. It's active v.s. passive learning. Free v.s. coerced.

The need to have a ribbon showing that you've studied something at a university (for prestige, to be taken seriously, to be employed) is one of the worst kinds of coercion. And coercion has a tendency to kill intellectual curiosity.

What about the human interaction element? Perhaps it's more significant for extraverts, don't know...
 

Orangey

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What about the human interaction element? Perhaps it's more significant for extraverts, don't know...

I just mean learning in a self-directed way, not necessarily learning alone. Of course, other people are one of the benefits of class structure (though not always, especially when the vast majority of other students just want the credits/grade and don't give a shit about the subject), but that can be remedied by a sufficiently motivated self-learner. It's more difficult, though, so you're right in that respect.
 

Green_Pine

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That depends on how you define education.

On one hand, with have the job education that a university provides in most degrees.

On the other hand, we have the philosophical and worldly education that must be self sought.

While general education and breath requirements do offer a tiny amount of broad education,
they are more or less a springboard for personal interest to arise in different areas of the world.

Now, in relation to a job, that depends on the career/job path. Some jobs require a degree/government stamped certification, some don't.

Some jobs have a status quo for needing a degree, and for most employers they may require it.
 

Such Irony

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Yes, I think so. I've always been rather self-directed in my learning so this would be no problem for me. Actually it would be preferable to going to classes. I like being able to learn at my own pace. In some cases, I think it wouldn't work as well. If you are doing something more practical and hands-on, its helpful to have an instructor who can watch you and give you feedback as to whether you are doing the techniques right. I know I'm kind of retarded at the physical hands-on stuff, so I would definitely appreciate in-person feedback. But for subject areas that are more reading and thinking focused, I would much prefer to do it on my own.

Then you have the reality that you have to get a degree to be able to do many jobs. So you do have to take the courses under a professor, whether or not that's your preference. I wish that degrees didn't always carry so much weight. If a person has the knowledge and skills to do a job that should matter more than a piece of paper. But that's for another thread.
 
S

Sniffles

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I was planning on doing criminology but then if i do that, i can't do psychology..i was hoping that i can learn psychology by myself in my free time by reading books and such......can i be as knowledgeable as a college grad?
I don't see why you can't study both, since both fields interrelate to one another. At the very least a Criminology degree would require taking psychology courses.
 
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