Wake up. Go to school. Come home. Do homework. Sleep and repeat. Day in and day out, for 13 years, the cycle can feel a bit repetitive. Like there isn’t an end in sight. But there is, only… it’s usually through more years of education following high school.

It sounds insane, and it’s natural to wonder if completing your education is even worth it — especially with all the tales of people finding major success without a complete and traditional education. You’ve seen the Addison Rae’s and David Dobrik’s of the world drop out of college or skip it all together and rise to influencer fame. Even Mark Zuckerberg dropped out of Harvard, for goodness sake.

But sometimes questioning the value of education isn’t about the dream of becoming an influencer and creating 30-second dances for the world to see. Maybe it’s the cost of school holding you back. Maybe it’s the time commitment. Maybe it’s the endless stories of student debt. Maybe it’s just that classic question so many kids have asked during trigonometry or biology class: “When are we going to need this in the real world?”

Well, while it would be easy to write off the value of education... don’t. 

In this article, we’re going to cover 10 major reasons education is the true key to success in all facets of life. Ultimately, a diploma is so much more than a framed piece of card stock. It can open doors that you couldn’t open before. It fosters growth both inside the classroom and in your mind. It has the potential to provide you with a prosperous future. And that all sounds pretty worthwhile, right? Let’s get into the reasons receiving an education is vital.

10 Reasons an Education Is So Important to a Successful Life

Education is the path to independence

High school is a time to discover who you are, where you want to be, and more often than not, how to get out of your parents’ house. Getting your high school diploma is the first step to cultivating a new you:  A you who has the knowledge and skills to get a job, make money, move out, become your own independent person.

There’s more to independence than just the financial side, too — there’s the independence that comes with free, well-informed, and complex thought processes as well. Your education is yours and yours alone. No one can take it from you. The more you learn, the less you’ll have to rely on others and the better life decisions you can make..

Education creates more career opportunities

However, the rest of your life does. Take it from us old, wise folks, your experience in high school is just a drop in the bucket. If you can make it through four years of high school, you have the key that opens so many doors. In most cases, a high school diploma is required to get a job in fields that tend to pay higher wages. In fact, a Northeastern University study found simply completing a high school education can increase your expected income by more than $8,000 compared to not earning a high school diploma. Of course, the more education you receive, the more money you could make.

Plus, education doesn’t end when school ends. You’ll learn things at your first job, your second job, and your last job. It’s helpful to develop your skills when it comes to learning, processing information, and applying it to whatever you do.

Education helps combat poverty

They say that money can’t buy happiness, but it does buy the necessities — food, water, toilet paper, ya know, everything you could ever need to survive. Your education is a reliable tool to help you get you a job, and to keep you out of the cycle of poverty. Simply having basic skills like reading and math go a long way.

Education’s role in combatting poverty isn’t just applicable on an individual level. A lot of schools across the U.S. offer free breakfast and lunch programs for students. This means that children who might not otherwise eat get access to food during the school year — an invaluable resource for those children and their families.

Education continues (or kicks off) a virtuous generational cycle

Education isn’t solely the domain of schools; parents play a major role in their children’s education as well. Whether your parents teach you academic topics or life skills, they’re educating you. Whether it was learning how to ride a bike, do a cartwheel, memorize your multiplication tables or teaching you how to read, it’s probably left an impact on you.Your parents are teaching you everything they know.

And it’s kind of up to you to teach your children — and others around you. This creates its own domino effect. The more you learn, the more you can pass on to those around you. There’s more to education than cracking open the spine of a textbook or contextualizing a classic. Learning doesn’t just come from a book, and teaching doesn’t just happen inside the classroom. Use your education to educate others. 

Education keeps you out of trouble

The best way to stay out of trouble is to stay in school. You've heard it from your parents, you’ve heard it from your educators, now hear it from us. Luckily, school offers programs, clubs, sports, and other activities that can keep you busy. And when you’re busy, you’re way less likely to get into trouble.

Plus, joining a club helps you learn about things you wouldn’t normally learn in school and that pique your interests. Take Spanish Club for example. In Spanish class, you learn about culture and conjugations. In Spanish Club, you get to dive deeper into the way Spanish-speaking countries operate. You get to try new foods or test out your skills outside the classroom. And you get to meet like minded individuals who are eager to learn more, too.

Doing the bare minimum in school may work for some people, but a Health Care Resource Center article found that boredom is linked to early alcohol and drug abuse, as well as anxiety and depression. Kids are already doing enough to keep their heads above water in school. There’s no need to make things harder.   

Education helps you develop interpersonal skills

Insight. Understanding. Social awareness. These are interpersonal skills that you won’t just learn in school. You’ll use these skills long after your formal education is completed. And these are things your teachers will teach you. Not in an “insight” class. Rather, these are things that you pick up in class. You learn cooperation, teamwork, empathy, and verbal and non-verbal communication in the classroom. These skills you pick up in the classroom can be used everywhere in life, whether it’s a job interview, a date, or even when trying to get a customer service rep to give you a refund. 

Education widens your social circle

We’re about to say something a little controversial: School is about more than just learning. It’s also about stepping out of your comfort zone, meeting new people, doing new things, and above all else, cultivating relationships. This goes hand-in-hand with those interpersonal skills we were just talking about. An education gives you the skills you need to work well both in the classroom and outside of it.

Share what you learned with others. Bond over your favorite subjects with classmates or family. Go to events that focus on your favorite subjects. This could connect you with people in the field you want to get into — whether it’s for networking purposes or just for friendship. Socializing with people over your favorite book or the eventual migration to Mars could put you in contact with a mentor or potential employer — or maybe even a future best friend or spouse.

Education builds confidence

The more you know about something, the easier it is to talk about. Being educated can elevate how you act in social settings. The more you learn, the more confident you’ll feel on any given subject. This wealth of knowledge gives you the opportunity to communicate with an air of intelligence.

When you know what you’re talking about, people will want to listen to what you have to say. It doesn’t matter if it’s quantum physics or why Hermione Granger actually should have been a Slytherin in Harry Potter; there’s always someone willing to listen, willing to connect with what you have to say. But you can’t get to that point if you give up on learning.

Education increases your passion for learning

One of the best parts about going to school is honing your skills. In both high school and beyond, you’re able to figure out what subjects don’t sit right with you and which ones click. Not every class is going to tickle your fancy. Maybe English is where you thrive, or perhaps you’re a sponge ready to soak up dates and wars and iconic events in history class.

When you find something you’re passionate about, it makes it a lot easier to learn. After high school, you’ll have the chance to take classes that focus on these subjects. The more you know about a certain topic, the easier it will be to figure out what you want to do after you’ve completed school. And technology makes that even easier; there are so many online courses you can take or trade schools you can attend if a traditional college isn’t right for you. 

Education can make your dreams come true

Just because you’ve never tried something doesn’t mean you won’t succeed. When you were little, did you have dreams of writing the next Great American Novel or curing cancer or even something as simple as moving closer to a beach? It’s hard to imagine making any of those happen without a formal and/or informal education.

Fortunately, we’re not saying that you have to get your doctorate in order to succeed. Education comes in many forms but, as we’ve discussed, whichever form you choose has many benefits. It increases social skills, boosts confidence, breaks the cycle of poverty, and widens avenues for what’s to come. There’s an old saying that goes: your dreams won’t work unless you do. So… ready to get to work? 

Buying Guide

Check out Teachable, an online community where you can create courses and coaching services. Transform your experience and know-how into a thriving knowledge business.

When that big day finally comes and you graduate from high school, trade school or college, Jostens is a great brand to help you celebrate these milestone moments.

Looking for a job is easy. It’s finding the right career path for you that can get tricky. FlexJobs is a job-searching website that also offers resume refining and career coaching.

Getting an education doesn’t need to cost thousands of dollars. Sites like Khan Academy offer lessons for students from kindergarten through early college.

If you’re in school, there’s a 99.99999999999% chance you’ll have to write a research paper at some point or another. If English isn’t your strong suit (and even if it is), might we recommend you try Grammarly to help perfect your paper?