Do you think education is a key to success? (essay) - Czy myślisz, że edukacja jest kluczem do sukcesu? (esej)

According to a popular saying, education is the key to power. Since we were children, our parents and other adult relatives have repeated the same phrase. Thanks to rhymes it is easy to remember and therefore, although in some cases many years have passed since we last heard it, we could recite it without any mistakes even now. We can all agree that in our parents’ times this might have been true – education was of great importance and one’s status often depended on their degree. However, our times seem to be different. Graduating from a university is quite common nowadays. As a result, a degree does not mark you out anymore. What about education then? Is it really necessary to achieve success in life? Do young people still regard it as an essential part of their lives?

In order to answer these questions, it would be useful, if we defined the word 'success'. As we all know, it may mean different things for particular persons. However, considering the matter of education in terms of possible success, we can deduce that leading a happy family life is not what should be the subject of my deliberation. I will focus on career opportunities then.

All the researches show that not educated people experience serious difficulties while looking for a job. In their case, the rule that we have been thought may sound like true – education does matter. According to other researches, in turn, those who graduated from a university can expect the best earnings. Thus, there are at least two arguments for the necessity of education. 

For sure, this is not the end. There are other factors, because of which education may be regarded as attractive. Unless you graduate from a university, you will not be able to enter some professions. A degree is essential if you want to work as a doctor or a lawyer. These are undoubtedly well-paid jobs and people who are experts on medicine or legal regulations are widely considered to be successful.

If you would like to be a famous singer or play the violin in the orchestra, you also need special training, which is available only in special academies. Beyond any doubt there are more examples of professions, in which education is vital or at least extremely helpful. However, our recent experience, connected with joining the European Union, shows that in some cases not becoming a student does not have to be a reckless choice.

At this point we should mention that there are various studies and having finished some of them, you may find it really difficult to get any job, let alone the one of your dreams. Honestly speaking, regardless of studies you graduated from, it will not be easy to become employed. Employers complain that students are not being taught anything apart from theory and, as a result, their knowledge is useless. That is not all, though – they stress that students lack some skills, which are vital at work. Therefore, many employers are reluctant to hire graduates.

Meanwhile, resourceful individuals, who have never tried to study, can achieve success and earn much more than their well-educated friends. For instance, it refers to carpenters, electricians or welders, not to mention those, who run their own businesses.

Taking all this into consideration, I cannot state that education is the key to success. It may be of help, sometimes enables you to get a better job, but there are examples, which clearly demonstrate that it is not one of the things you cannot deal without. Even if we finally agree that education is the key to success, we would have to add that sometimes it may not fit and that there are some spare ones as well.