More from our hipster designer friend, this time expressing how different educational paradigms should be used based on the learner’s personality:
You see, the main differences between being self taught and studying are not so much in learning the hard skills. It’s more about what kind of person you are, and how well you respond to your social environment.
The social component of going to a university provides you with mentor ship, emotional support and a little kick in the ass here when you need it. On the down side, you follow established patterns that might be destructive to your personality. University is a shoe that fits many, but might not fit you.
University puts you in a group of 20-30 other students & like minded people. All are as lost, or as focused as you are. You share the good and the bad with everyone else. You’re never alone.
Being part of a group with the same interest makes you feel part of something bigger than yourself. It’s motivating.Being self taught means you, alone in your room. There is no set agenda, no format, no other people. Unless you craft your own environment, it’s just you by yourself.
Studying introduces you to a great network of teachers & mentors from the beginning. These people will serve as role models and important first business connections. Or they piss you off so much that you will find energy & motivation in just proving them wrong. (by doing so, you learn and grow) This is ultimately what you pay for, unless you’re studying in Europe for free.
Being self taught is the opposite. While you have great freedom and no one telling you what do to, you also have to put yourself out there and make connections. Compared to your colleagues at university you start with little connections in the industry. Unless you start networking on the side, you will always be one step behind.
At university, you get introduced to a range of different topics, especially in your first year. This is fantastic, because it helps you to pick the things you like and ignore the ones you don’t. It’s a buffet of delicious food, all served up in front of you.
While being self taught, things are a little different. Theoretically, you have access to the same buffet, but you have to put it together yourself. No one tells you about the deep field of Typography, until you research it yourself and dive into it.
This is a good starting point for a structured way to describe when p2p is useful and when it’s not.
The university vs self-taught categories could be widened though, to include peer to peer, apprenticeship, online vs in person, self-curated vs structured, etc.