Book Review: Chucking College

     I picked this book up because I believe that college is not necessarily the answer to higher education. I believe that its possible to get a good education without going to college and use the money that you may have spent for classes on building your own business. I was hoping that this book might give me some tools and answer some questions on just how a girl like me might go about doing that.
     Lets just say I did not want to finish this book. The first 3 chapters are all a big rant on how awful colleges are. Chapter 4 has some good things to say and then she starts the rant up again for the next 2 1/2 chapters. The author takes her experience and applies it to all colleges. I got the idea that the author herself did not do enough research before setting off for college and so, by default, had a bad experience while there. (If you don't do your research what do you expect?)
     At first I just wrote down questions because I like to give the author a chance to redeem themselves before I just start thinking negatively about what they have to say.
     I asked:
     Is the author being fair in making overarching statements about all colleges? Is it possible that there are good colleges out there and the author was just very hurt by one college and sought evidence to justify her position? Is this chapter just one big rant that just happens to have some truth to what she is saying but is not necessarily true everywhere?
   
     Ok so the last question may have been a little judgmental. (One out of 3 isn't bad.) I was kind of getting annoyed with the rehashing of the same topic only in different words by that point anyway.
     I thought that the testimonies sprinkled throughout the book were helpful and came from people who were just saying that college didn't work for them so they went another rout or that this is what they did instead of going to college and getting a degree. (In some cases they were more helpful and more insightful than the chapter that they were placed in).
     Chapter 4 was pretty good except for one statement that Melanie makes which I found to be a little pharisaical on her part. She says:

     "Imagine if you had $50,000-$100,000 cash and could invest it in a way that would establish a solid foundation and launching pad for your adult life. Would you choose to spend it on attending required classes based on someone else's agenda for your life, on studying under liberal professors, on living with an arbitrarily assigned person, and on having your innocence and purity robbed?" (Emphasis mine)

     Are any of us truly innocent? I mean really? Does college suddenly cause us to have a sin nature? This is not the first time in the book that she has said something like this I just was so mad that she seemed to be ranting about how "evil" college was once again. OK I get it Melanie, can we just move on now?
     Now I do agree with her that spending tons of money on something that may or may not work out is not a wise choice which is the main thrust of this chapter. So other than that it was a good chapter to read.
     Later she talks about this 24 year old named Jen Keeton who was expelled from Augusta State University because she believed that homosexuality was a behavioral choice rather than a state of being. She was a Christian and stood by her Christian values and I applaud her for it. We should expect to get this sort of treatment from the world because the world hates God and anything or anyone that smacks of Him or who stands for truth no matter how small that truth may seem.
      From how the author writes it sounds like there are no Christian colleges out there with men and women of faith on campus. I have friends who have been to colleges where they met godly young women and men and they do exist! Just because the author did not experience it does not mean that this scenario does not exist anywhere!
    In the context of talking about Psalm 1:1 she states:

    "College offers the counsel of wicked professors, who earnestly desire students to adhere to their liberal teaching; the unavoidable necessity of standing in the way of immoral acquaintances - sinners really....."

     She says all of this saying that you will come across these things at college but you come across these things at home too. I believe that the young college bound student that doesn't do their homework and research their college carefully may indeed have to take classes from wicked professors but someone who values their education should really be diligent about researching the college before committing to it.
     The last statement is particularly odious to me:

     "standing in the way of immoral acquaintances - sinners really."

 You can't find this at home? You don't find yourself spending time with sinners? I found these statements to be a bit judgmental. Yes, there are people who go to college to party and to live the "college life." We are called to love them and not be the one to "cast the first stone" so to speak.
     She ends chapter 5 with this:

   "Culture changing does not happen effectively by integrating with the culture. Think of the righteous man who feels called to witness in a bar, and take note of his strategy. He goes in there, "engages the culture" with the gospel, and then gets out as soon as his mission is accomplished. Hanging out in the place of temptation will not accomplish any more good; in fact, doing so has been proven to cause weaker "missionaries" to become desensitized and worn down by constant pressure to join the crowd."

     I have to ask, what did Jesus do? He was known for hanging out with tax collectors and sinners. If someone feels called to witness in a bar then it's better to obey that calling and reap the harvest than to ignore it and walk away because its "beneath" you to go there which is kind of the feeling I got towards the end of this chapter.
     We must remember to rely on Christ's strength instead of trying to stand on our own. Christ will give us the strength to stand against temptation.
     From how Melanie writes you would think that you could lose your salvation but the Bible teaches that "the Lord will keep you from all evil he will keep your life (Psalm 121:7)". If we are truly saved there is nothing that can take us away from God.
     In chapter 6 Melanie complains about not being able to get people to agree not to drink while they were in Europe for a college tour. I'm sorry honey but you can't be everyone's parent and sometimes it's best to just be kind to people and pray for them.
     She also makes some more comments about how "evil" college is. It's really too bad that she takes college to this extreme. You can find good colleges out there and people do get good experiences there. Like I've been saying, you need to do your research to find these colleges but they do exist!
     In chapter 7 she goes into some of the things that you (in her opinion) shouldn't be studying in college: Greek mythology, Philosophy, Evolution, and Religion Studies. I totally disagree. I believe that you can study these things in order to have an understanding of what others believe so that we might be better equipped to give a defense of our faith. True we do not necessarily need to know what other people believe but it behooves us to know so that we can better understand where they are coming from. I don't think that studying these things will make us any less a Christian.
     Once you get through the rant bit of the book (the first 7 chapters minus chapter 4) then the rest is more of the kinds of information that I wanted to begin with. She gives helpful suggestions on how to build a better resume, hints on what you can do to start up your own business, tips on what you can claim on your taxes, and encouragement to keep on learning even though you are not in school.
     Melanie is just trying to be helpful but in the process she ends up being very judgmental of all colleges. I do not believe that all colleges are bad there are just fewer colleges out there that are good (including good Christian colleges).
     Will I step foot in a college classroom myself? I don't know. This world is changing and with so many options and things available it can be overwhelming. I may have to go to college to get a degree or take a few classes if I feel The Lord calling me to a particular field of study and that is ok. But while I wait I am going to explore the world around me and gain skills and knowledge in areas where I want to have skills and knowledge in.