Extended Adolescence Meets Academic Inflation

I was originally going to post this as two separate topics, but after some musing I've decided that though different, they are related enough that it warrants putting them together.

I was first introduced to the concept of an extended adolescence in one of my psychology courses. I remember my professor commenting about an increasing trend in the newer generations where individuals remain in a prolonged period of adolescence; not physically of course, but in terms of personal development. When one thinks of adolescence, one usually thinks of individuals in their early to late teens; individuals who are still largely dependent on their parents and who have yet to establish an autonomous lifestyle (i.e. moving out, having a full-time job, etc.). However, this period of dependence is increasingly being stretched out into one's early to mid twenties. Many young adults today are living with their parents (myself included), and even those that manage to move out have a higher chance of moving back in than in previous generations. Many people today are also marrying and having children (a cultural sign of adulthood) later in life than their own parents. These and other factors support the view that adolescence, or at least the transition from adolescence to 'full-blown' adulthood, has become a longer process for contemporary generations. However, I believe that the most telling sign that the process has lengthened is that people now remain in the realm of academia longer than ever before; a phenomenon that educationalist Sir Ken Robinson dubs 'academic inflation'.

There are many factors that contribute to academic inflation; some of the more prominent ones include technological growth, population growth, and growth of knowledge. The way I see it, each of these three factors reinforce and encourage the growth of the other two, resulting in a self-perpetuating cycle. New technologies give rise to new ideas and new knowledge, which leads to further technological advancements. These all lead to a more comfortable environment for individuals to live in and to populate while reducing mortality rates. This in turn allows for more minds to discover new knowledge and to improve/invent new technologies. Of course, this is just my own personal, extremely simplified theory, but I think it sounds rather plausible. In any case, I think we can all agree that these three factors contribute greatly to the rise of academic inflation. Graduating from high school used to mark the end of formal education for most, and only the exceptional (and financially well off) went on to receive post-secondary education and diplomas. With each passing generation, more and more people were able to attend colleges, universities, and other post-secondary institutions. Even so, it used to be case that having a bachelor's degree almost guaranteed employment, and having a master's or higher meant you would never be out of a job. But fast forward to present day, and a bachelor's degree no longer holds as much significance as it used to. It has now become necessary, but not necessarily sufficient, for a career. People graduating with a BA is now as commonplace as people graduating from high school in generations past, and today's master's degree is near equivalent to the bachelor's of the past. All this inflation of degrees means that people have to stay in school longer to get the required degree for their desired profession, or just for a better chance at getting the job.

It's not too hard to see why today's youths experience an extended adolescence compared to say, their parents. By remaining in an academic setting for a longer period of time, those extra years serve as an extra buffer or cocoon for the individual against the responsibilities of getting a job, finding their own place of residence, and everything else that comes with being a fully matured, independent adult. Here I must stress that I am in no way trying to criticize this trend, and to be honest I'm still quite on the fence about it, seeing as how I'm living the process myself. I'm merely trying to point out that perhaps it's true that today's youths are less prepared and less certain of themselves than the older generations, not because they're less competent, but because they've been given a few extra years of academic safety from the real world.

Certain of Uncertainty

Today marks my final final exam of this semester, and (fingers crossed) of my undergraduate career as well. That's right folks, I will be graduating from university come June, if all goes well. I don't think it comes off as too surprising when I say that I've both longed for and dreaded this moment, since most if not all undergraduates harbor such feelings (at least that's my understanding of it). What is surprising, at least to me, is how detached I feel from the whole thing. Maybe it's because I barely got 5 hours of sleep last night, or maybe it's because I've all but busted my brain for the exam (more likely both), but it feels like a strange sense of calmness has come over me. Don't worry though, I'm sure it'll all hit me soon enough. That's the one thing I am certain of right now: all the uncertainties, doubts, and worries I have for the future will follow this calm before the storm.

Looking back, I really can't believe it's been almost 5 years since I graduated from high school. Back then, it was already hard to believe that it's been 5 years since elementary school. Many things have changed then, and many things have changed now. Some for better, some for worse; but all were invaluable to my life experience and personal development...My god, where has the time gone?

Now as in back then I say again: But I don't want to grow up...
If you ask me what I've learned from my time in university, I can tell you I don't remember half the stuff that was taught by my courses. And really, there is no one specific lesson that has stood out for me over these years, but somehow the little bits of wisdom I picked up here and there all apparently added up to shape me into a (hopefully) better person. By now everyone close to me is wondering what's going to happen to me from this point on; my parents especially are worried sick about my future. And to be honest, I don't really have a definite, reassuring answer for them. Heck, I don't even know what I'll be doing 6 months from now. I'm a philosophy major with an interest in writing, so my immediate plans for the future is to look for work as a freelance writer. The industry's not exactly booming right now, but with a little bit of luck, hopefully I'll have my metaphorical foot in the door before long. This is all obviously wishing thinking on my part of course, but one can hope. Like I said, I don't want to grow up just yet, namely because I don't feel like I'm ready for the real world, but I've come to realize that there won't come a point in time when I'll ever truly be ready. The best I can do is go out there and give it my all, and hope it's enough. I still don't want to grow up...but I'm glad it's happening.

First Publication!!

Hello everyone. It is with great pride and joy that I share with you here my first published article! Though it is only a publication for my school paper, I'd still like to consider it as my first "official" piece and, hopefully, as a precursor to bigger and better things to come!

The article itself is basically a summary of sorts of what I've been talking about concerning introverts. Don't worry, I promise this will be the last one (at least for a while)!

And now, for your reading pleasure...http://www.the-peak.ca/2014/04/take-it-easy-on-introverts/

Any feedback would be most welcome!