Dropping out of high school

[elec]

I'm 14 at the moment and am planning on dropping out of high school when I'm 16. By then I'll be in fifth year. I've never felt motivated to go to school or go to college and I'm growing more and more unmotivated every day. I find school pointless and boring, nothing they teach me is going to help me in real life or with the career I pursue. I find it impossible to learn anything in a typical school environment and I feel I could use the time better learning things that will actually help me in life, most of which is not thought in school. I've heard all the typical arguments about why education is important and you should finish high school and all that but that just motivates me further to drop out. I also often hear about other alternatives to dropping out such as transferring schools or talking to a guidance councillor but I really don't think they'll solve my issues with school.
Anyway if I decide later in life I want an education I can always get and GED or equivalent and then go to college and get a degree etc. I know that's not the standard way but I think I would be much more happy and would be the overall better option for me. I have a plan for what I will do once I leave school.
Anyway to the point. Do you have any advise for someone in my situation? And please if you can offer different advice to the standard "don't be stupid" advice I am use to receiving.

[Kate*]

If you're dead set on this and no one is going to change your mind, then develop a plan for how you're going to make a living (without a diploma or GED, it might be harder than you think), and then pursue it. I think dropping out isn't the best idea, but I also have to agree that it doesn't prepare you for life. Find out what you need to do what you want to do and focus on getting that. You may also need your parent's permission to drop out before you're 18.

Also, if you're dealing with a general lack of motivation, not just with school, it could be something more serious like depression and you might want to consider talking to a doctor or mental health professional. You don't have to make any major decisions right now. Use the next 2 years to really think seriously about what you want and whether you can drop out of school and still do all of those things.

[.Brittany.]

Hi Abbey,

I have had friends and family members drop out of high school when they were 16. Some of them were unable to find jobs as about 99.9% of jobs require a high school diploma at minimum. Some of the ones who weren't able to get jobs ended up on the streets. Back when I was 19, a couple of them stayed at my house (I didn't want my friends living on the streets). They eventually realized that they weren't going to get anywhere without a high school diploma or a GED.

They got their GED and now they have jobs. They work at McDonald's, which is better than nothing.

Point of my story. I highly recommend that you either stay and graduate high school or get your GED. I fear you will regret your decision if you don't. You could also look around for jobs in your area and see if any of them don't require minimum of a high school diploma.

Good luck
Brittany

[NeuroBeautiful]

Is it possible you can transfer to an online-based school or other form of school or homeschool? Because while it is nice to be told to transfer, if you trasfer to another traditional school, that's probably not going to make a huge difference. Maybe you can look into schools with alternative teaching styles, non-mainstream philosophies or if it comes down to it, you can do online school which is in the category of home-school, if your parents cant or wont homeschool you directly. Also, instead of dropping out when you're 16, there may be a way to legally claim yourself as your own homeschool teacher or something like that, as long as you fulfill the educational requirements. Again, I am not sure where you live, but here in the USA, homeschooling is legal in all 50 states with differing degrees of regulations but still do-able. Like any other educational option, there are pros and cons to homeschooling, I am not telling you it will be 100% a perfect match but just trying to open up unexplored avenues that has potential to work well. Especially from what I'm hearing about the particular lack of motivation you're having, towards the way education is run. Although I do agree with previous posters that maybe it is worth having a talk with your doctor about possibly having depression or another mental health concern.

[PlasmaHam]

It would be very dumb of you to drop out of high-school. 99% of all jobs require at-least a high-school diploma or GED, it would be extremely difficult for you to find work. Certain states and areas also have regulations seriously restricting kids who drop out of school under 18. Try to deal with it or look into transferring to a different kinda school. Dropping out right now would be a serious and possibly irrecoverable hit to your life.

[Lizzie]

There are plenty of times in high school I took courses that I had no interest in. In fact most courses I had no interest in. But even more irksome, I took courses in college that I had no interest in because they were mandated. So not only did I not like the course, but I was paying to be there.

And this is what I have learned about taking classes that are boring or seem to have no relevance to my life. They teach you patience. They teach you that sometimes you have to work through something you don't want to, to achieve a better goal. They teach you that in life there are always hoops you have to jump through. You can't just quit when things start to get boring, or seem not relevant. There are ALWAYS things to learn in life, they just might not be obvious.

Dropping out will only make your life harder. Your job options will be highly limited with no room for promotion. And there is a reason for this. When you sit down for a job interview and tell your interviewer you have not completed high school or your GED your potential employer has no proof that you can stick to something. They have no proof that you know what it means to be committed to something or that you understand responsibility or hard work. And while you can try to explain the best that you can that you will be an asset to their company, the proof of that will be lacking. And that will be your downfall. Why hire someone who appears that they can't commit to a couple more years of school over someone who proved that they can commit? The job market is highly competitive and you need every advantage you can get over someone else. And an employer will take a high school grad over a non high school grad any day.

I know it seems cumbersome. I have been there, I have questioned what the purpose of it all is. And when you finish school and look back all you will be is grateful that you stuck it out. And that I can promise you.

[Eternal]

When I was in high school I almost dropped out my senior year to finish school online. However, when I went to talk to a counselor about it, she told me I would be much less likely to get into college if I do that. I know school can be boring and hard to get through, but it is important. It shows colleges and employers that you are able to finish what you start, can handle a workload, that you have time management skills, etc. High school will be over sooner than you think. And besides, it sounds like you just started. Give it more time and really think about that decision. High school may not teach life skills, but it does teach standard information that is useful later in life. Sure, I don't need to do math problems since I own a calculator, but many information and skills you learn can translate over to jobs.