Is Education Really Necessary?🤓 🤔 😎
Boris Markarian
84 replies
Hey Product Hunters! 👋
I had a small talk with my friend this morning and we were discussing - is education really necessary for everyone, or are real-world skills more important? 🤔
I mean, for entrepreneurs, it seems like having practical, hands-on experience can be a game-changer. You don't really need a degree to launch a startup or manage a business, right?🧑💻
Skills like networking, negotiation, and even a bit of hustle might take you further than a stack of textbooks. 😎
But then, what about professions like doctors or teachers?👩⚕️ 👨🏫
I definitely don't want my surgeon learning on the job.🥹
For these careers, a solid educational foundation is non-negotiable. They need the rigorous training and knowledge that only a structured educational program can provide. 📚
Maybe, both groups actually need a bit of both – education and real skills? 🤷♂️
So, what do you all think? Is traditional education still the way to go, or is it time we rethink its importance in today's world?
Let's discuss! 👇
Best,
BorisMoris
Replies
Elaine Lu@elaineluyi
Vozo AI
Education is crucial as it broadens our perspectives and equips us with essential skills to navigate life. However, its necessity can vary depending on individual goals and the ever-changing job market.
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@elaineluyi Sometimes, when talking to business people who have never heard of classical literature or don't know basic historical facts, I begin to think that a classical education is essential.
The Action Tracker - Life Planner
Education is really necessary but not the degrees :)
But there is also a limit of education especially as an entrepreneur. Some of the most important decisions that an entrepreneur can take is by listening to the voice from within.
when the mind is silent, we receive the real education to make the right decisions. :)
Memberply
Both are important even for entrepreneurs. Can get you your first job where you can learn about that industry and find problems to solve.
ApyHub : The All in one API Platform
For entrepreneurs, real-world skills like networking and negotiation can be more important than a degree. Many successful entrepreneurs succeed without traditional education by learning through experience.
But for doctors and teachers, formal education is essential. They need the rigorous training that only structured education can provide to ensure they do their jobs well.
Maybe the best approach is a mix of both education and real-world skills🤔
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@gabriella_anjani Thanks for your comment, Gabriella. Yes, I agree with the last statement, the mix of both is the perfect answer
Slash Space Go!
If you do not know what to do, take up general education, if you know what to do but do not know enough then take specialized education and if you know what to do and how to do it, then go ahead and do it.
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@kavilrawat Wow, sounds like good motivation speech! Actually, I think that you are right, but how do you know what to do and how to do at 18 y.o. without real experience?
Hubflo
Great discussion, Boris! I think a balance of education and real-world skills is key. Some careers definitely need formal education, while others thrive on hands-on experience.
WebCurate
In my opinion, as long as it's helpful in your future career and work life, yes. Otherwise, it'll just be as waste of precious years of life.
In my opinion, it depends on your business necessity. It is just impossible to run a fintech startup without academic knowledge in economics.
I particularly believe that education is fundamental no matter what. Maybe 1% of the population won't need it to succeed, but most will. We can't let exceptions define the rule.
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@vitor_seabra Wow, what a good point, Vitor. I absolutely agree that exceptions can't define the rule. Besides, all entrepreneurs say that education helped them a lot, even those who dropped out of university. It's a bit like start ups industry, we only hear about the success stories and we can't even imagine the number of failures. Here we have the same, 10 unicorn owners suspended (not stopped) their education and we talk about them, but I don't think that all top managers and other founders and etc. don't have an education.
IXORD
If you need to work in a certain field, then of course you must study in this field in order to be in demand in the market.
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IXORD
@boris_moris44 Here you need the experience of other people, if you are in such a community, then you also learn in your own way.
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It's, it gives you a direction especially if you're someone who isn't sure about what they wanna do
I would agree that for entrepreneurs it is not about prof education, but more about the idea, the number of attempts, networking, pitching skills. Of course, hard and soft skills basis as well as IQ and EQ should definitely be a plus, but e.g.,MBA might become a waste of time and money.
And sure it is another story for doctors, technicians..
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@natalie_ermishina That's a good point. I think education is more like a foundation for our future development, even for a good businessman it could be a very good advantage.
The Fittest
I believe both are important. And I think we have started criticizing education based on the flaws in our education system and the results it is producing. Rather than asking if education is important we should ask why this education system has failed to bring people who are good in both aspects.
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@rayyan_maqsood Wow, that's actually a very good point. Maybe we need to look at the problem from a different angle?
Survicate
IMO you need education in order to have the confidence to start getting real-world skills :) Can't have one without the other.
PS We're launching today, would love your support :)
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@paulinahryniewicz True, university gave me a lot of confidence actually! Cool product, I'll support it with great pleasure!
CopyFrog.AI
in my opinion, It feels that having higher eduction is essential self-development step. However , always depends on your goals.
Depends on your goals
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@vladimir_tambovtsev Thats true, I think that for programmers it's not so important actually. Real skills are better in this case.
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Nowadays I think it makes no big difference that only for some technical or medical sciences it is important, but for entrepreneurship or business the most important thing is the feeling or experience. Notice how many entrepreneurs or creators of big unicorn projects have dropped out of university, plus there is a huge amount of self-education materials available now. In the age of artificial intelligence, we have a personal teacher-guide for any science. It's a matter of interest and immersion. I also believe that MBA is an overrated type of education. Only if it's done for the sake of a badge.
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@sugar_free_app I agree at a lot of points with you, but still I see that not all of the founders have dropped university. Especially technical one are graduated in a lot of cases. I agree about MBA and I think it's more about for Top managers, rather than founders and businessmen.
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@boris_moris44 Sure, i mean the same. As for technical or application specialists, they definitely need a university degree. But for economists, in my opinion, very different qualities are important.
LinkedCRM AI
I think basic quality education is very necessary. Not everyone has self-motivation and a clear direction. Many people only know what kind of person they want to be and choose the direction they strive for after receiving basic education.
Probably a cliché, but I think both are needed. For example, entrepreneurs, of course, learn the most by working in startups or building their own, but your degree helps with the foundations, early users, early investors, basics for handling/delegating any task, and so on. These things open a lot of critical doors at the start, which can be the difference between success & failure.
The benefits of education are often more passive, while the work experience teaches you the real skills of the trade, which are visible, but at the end of the day, both are complementary, in my opinion.
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@kshitij11 It's not a cliché, It's la Verita! I think balance is the response to all our questions.Education and real skills together can give amazing results!
prompteasy.ai
there are certain skills which are just harder to be learned outside of university. Think of aerospace or mechanical engineering, while you can do it on your own, universities give you many resources and people you wouldn’t normally get access to.
If by education you mean an mba, then it’s a waste of time.
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@mariusmanolachi I agree with the first part, but why do you think that MBA is a waste of time?
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@boris_moris44 because you have many ways in which you can get that same knowledge in the real world, faster. I had a mentor who went to Oxford to learn business and administration and he still believes it was a total waste of time, he learned much more from launching and scaling successful startups.
And I don’t want to build my entire argument around a single case study. Look around you, and you’ll see that most people who run the most influential companies are engineers and not business people. Every solo-founder was an engineer first and then learned how to do business.
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@mariusmanolachi That's a really good point about engineers. That's why we need education, and yes, agree, business is more about experience than education.
What I believe is general education is important as it teaches you the basic tools needed to survive. It teaches you how to think, approach problems and come up with resolutions. This can be applied to various areas in your life.