so..my friends around me are all entering college/unis right now.Everyone is walking the "common" path.I wanted to try something different from the crowd.

I got a choice to stay and work in my current place and take up an australian self study/distance learning program,or enter college/uni like the rest.I did some thinking lately,and decided to stay and work and study at the same time.The bad thing is,if i do this,i'll had a hard time making new friends,my friends will be the same old ones from my high school,and little time or limited time to enjoy my youth life.But if everything goes well,i managed to pass the exam and stuff.The chances of me getting a job out there is easier compared to degree holders,and i MAY had an easier time applying for a PR in foreign countries.My parents highly recommend me to choose this path,but they did not force me to do so,i'm the one who makes the decision.

so..is it worth it?
knowledge and a possible bright future,but sacrificing social life?

where are you working now? malaysia or some other foriegn country?

can you tell me more about your study/work path?

You yourself gave the title of the topic as "Road not taken". So I'm pretty sure you know about the poem.

It's really up to yourself.

go for it man. go for an established future 1st. when you are successful, you do not have to worry about not having a social life. it will automatically come to you.

from what you have type, I assume you're in Australia right now,right?
Well, study and work at the same time ain't that difficult,IF you know how to divide your time properly for study and work. I can say it is not an easy task .
Well, it depends on you if you can take the changes. No one are forcing you. So go ahead with what you do. But everything you do, please have a backup plan. We could never know if we are getting tired of doing it, perhaps you might also think to either stop working/studies. Who knows?What I could advise you is, if you have made the choice, please don't stop at middle of the road. Life is also about making friends. You surely don't want to stuck with a circle of your friend right? I know the bond between you and them is close, I used to have them too, but everyone is out of around me right now,yet still survive. Making new friends too does make you some good.

Well, all comes to an end. It depends on you at the last finishing line. It is you that will make the choice and the path of your road. Sometime, you need to open yourself to a new environment and getting merge with it.

well...i'm taking up a certificate course on Futures Market Fundamentals and later move on to professional papers.I'm currently working at a brokerage firm as an assistant

nope..i'm still in malaysia.The course i'm taking up right now is based in australia,but they had a distance learning/self study choice for international students,that means they deliver the study material to me,and i study myself.If i could finish both of it,i could directly apply for unis in australia,without entering local ones.

Theres no turning back now,i'm already in the first 1/3 of the road,and i'll continue it no matter how hard it is.

if me, i will choose to study first, concentrate on one thing, later on then working. Previously when I study at local U while take course at outside, I think i can divide my time and study properly, but at the end i have to give up the outside course because it is not easy to do.

Wow mobius!! That's cool !
I won't give much advise on that but just want to let you know that whatever you choose, you should never regret!!!
One thing I need to question you, if you think you can handle both study and work well, then go for it!

well...actually my "work" isnt really that stressful or require a lot of energy,i just sit there and monitor the stock's price,and in the mean time go surf other sites like LYN and moar.If there is no movement in the market,i could get a pillow and sleep there lol.

i think i could study in my office.

how old are you btw?

18 this year...why?

well I am working and studying as well
hehehehe
took the road less taken


its kinda true that its hard to mix with friends.


taking law

friend is not a big deal laaa. serious.

look at it this way:

let's say ur working with a company, and starts long distance self-study or whatever. u might end up studying longer than most of other people of ur age. people graduate by 22, u probably graduate by 24 (if u're taking part-time degree). but what's the catch?

by the time u graduate, u already have 6 years working experience!



and 24 is not too old to make friends! come on, u're not 40!

for whatever relevance it might be:

mean age of marriage for malay men - 28.1 yrs old
mean age of marriage for chinese men - 31.1 yrs old

mean age of marriage for malay women - 24.5 yrs old
mean age of marriage for chinese women - 27 yrs old

source: a talk given by a MARA officer in London.

Eh? My feel change all of sudden after i read this post~ How come suddenly it related to marriage?

Anyway, i want to ask u a question which me myself also cant answer it:
Will u regret for what u choose?

i do have second thoughts about it,but i wanted to try something different

But what I am really concerned is how recognised these "remote courses" are. I mean we see them advertised on the web but some of them are not really recognized even in their own countries.

is your self-study course a pre-u program of the actual degree? and which uni offered the course? i'd say it all depends on the uni offering the course, whether its recognized or not etc but dont put too much hope on getting a pr right after u grad if u havent studied in aus for more than 2 yrs.

no..the course is offered by a famous organization,not some ayam brand.It is accepted in all commonwealth countries,that includes australia and NZ.

MobiusOne,

I think you have taken a good path even if down the road, you found that financial field is not where you want to be. The problem with most people nowaday is that they are commited to 3 to 5 years degree program with no idea on what they actually will be working on and whether they will like it as a career. By the time that they are graduated and they find out that they made a mistake, it is too late for them to change since they have no more time and/or money. So, they are stucked for the rest of their life. It is good to find out early and try it out on what you actually want to do in early part of your life.

It is no that hard if your part-time study and your job are on the same related field. This is the situation that you are in now. And, you could study on the job when you are on the slack time of your job.

In my case, I was a full-time student with two part-time jobs. It was very tough but the experience was worthwhile since I can relate what I study with my job. I know why I was learning something and how to use it. This was a great motivator for me as opposed to someone that was taking classes just to get a degree.

I wish you best of luck.

Dreamer

lol...

actually what i'm getting at was, people always have this impression that college/university is where u explore urself romantically. most of these explorations ended in marriage (in malaysia lah).

so mobiusone's concern of "not being able to make new friends" is a valid argument, and i'm just reinforcing his concerns...

too far off topic eh? sorry ler... hahaha

Good Luck to you
I am also going to walk the road not taken as all my common path dont work in my way anymore .
but at the end of the day; walking in road not taken is greater in personal exprience as you learn urself away from common path. that is all i can say.

Not able to find new friends??

You still in M'sia rite?? Your office no friendly persons arr?? It's good to mixed around with older ppl than you...can make your thinking mature quickly

You don't go for clubbing, sports activities, recreational activities or volunteering for something?? Im sure you can make a lot of friends there...

Im working a.k.a studying also...but i still have time to play football, surf, clubbing, read books surf ,lyn and study...it's really up to you on how you divide your time..

wat ever u had choose..just work hard for it..walk a deifferent from others is hard..but is more successful than others..but it needs a lot of hardworks n barve..so if u just different from others..dun think so much..just work hard for it..all the best...