You Don’t Need a College Degree to Be a Genius

“You wasted $150,000 on an education you coulda got for $1.50 in late fees at the public library.”

― Matt Damon, Good Will Hunting

Good Will Hunting

Good Will Hunting is a brilliant 1998 movie starring Matt Damon and Robin Williams.

In it, Matt Damon plays the role of Will Hunting, a lower-class kid who works as a janitor at the MIT and loves to learn; He is a self-taught genius.

All along the movie, Will proves his intellect in different situations. Like in this famous scene:

This scene is the best abstract possible for this article: At first, it shows an undergrad student trying to put down a blue-collar worker to feel smart, while not articulating an original idea, then it shows how it is more important to master a subject, analyze it, and then reach a conclusion by oneself. The end of the video could be basic diplomacy, but it would not be correct in a debate.

The Problem With College

There is a common misconception of needing to attend college to develop yourself, to gain the knowledge needed for success. And that doing that automatically puts you over the rest of the people.

This is because decades ago, only the kids from rich families could afford it, and because there weren’t many college graduates they also earned a substantial income. So, when the working-class families had the chance, they sent their children to college, in the hope they would have a better life, just to owe loads of money in student loans.

However, the most successful thinkers and entrepreneurs did not attend college, they did not need it, because college centers itself just on memorization of the subjects.

Memory is a tremendous tool, it makes us remember useful pieces of data, but it lacks the capability of solving unusual problems. Intelligence is not just about memorizing things, to develop it, we must first develop our own ideas.

When we develop our own ideas, we are using our rationalization, and not just memory.

And because this story is about unconventional learning, the best way to illustrate it will be by talking about some geniuses who never graduated from college.

Famous People With Fewer Diplomas Than Anyone

“They did not know it was impossible, so they did it”

― Mark Twain

Our teachers never told us this, but most of the most successful inventors and entrepreneurs never earned a diploma. They just relied on the knowledge they had gained through their own study.

The Wright Brothers Reached New Heights Without a College Degree

Neither Orville nor Wilbur ever attended college, they did never receive their high school diplomas, but they made the first plane flight ever with their Wright Flyer in 1903.

What made the especial was their genius and their curiosity. They worked as bicycle mechanics to fund their passion for flight; they were self-taught engineers, and while every other designer tried to achieve flight through bigger engines, they improved aerodynamics, reducing the power their plane needed for take-off.

And thanks to them, humanity reached new heights.

Michael Faraday Will Shock You

Michael was a nobody. He was born poor, and he did not have any chance to get an education. So he took the most obvious path: To work in a library and read as many books as he could. He then developed an interest in electricity and attended free lectures.

Michael Faraday had never gotten a college degree. Instead, he educated himself, took advantage of his curiosity, and seized every chance he had to learn. We can say that he was the original Will Hunting.

The world wouldn’t have been the same without Faraday, as he inspired generations of scientists to come, inspiring them to feel his passion for science and sparking their interest in electricity.

Steve Jobs Became Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs attended college for six months before he quit. He did not do it because it was hard, or because he lacked interest, but because he felt it was too expensive for the things it could teach him.

So he dropped out and started attending the classes he really wanted to attend. He studied at college, but outside the college system. And as he stated in his famous speech at Stanford University; If he hadn’t done that, modern computers would not have different typographies, as he came with the idea thanks to a calligraphy class that he voluntarily took in Reed College.

And he also founded Apple and Pixar, which were two of the most influential companies in the world until his death.

All of that without spending thousands of dollars in a degree.

Although all the above geniuses were brilliant and educated, they never had a college diploma. They focused on their passion, on what they exactly wanted to learn. And so, they gained the abilities required for their tasks and excelled in them.

In a Nutshell

A college education is an excellent asset, but it can’t replace a natural interest in learning and a willingness to look for resources to do so. Passion fuels the flame of knowledge better than a student loan and will take you further. Having access to education is easier than just attending college, and intelligence is more than memorization.