I go to school, I study and I sleep. This repetitious loop races on every day of my life. I say to myself that tomorrow is going to be a new day. Is it ever? Not since I’ve been at UCSD.

I often hear complaints of the lack of time that we as students have to do something meaningful in our lives. “”I’m too busy studying”” or “”I have so much to do”” are some of the phrases we say to legitimize not having the extra time to go out and make a difference not only in our lives, but also in our society. There is no problem with working and studying constantly, but by doing so, we deprive ourselves of what is rightfully ours — our lives. I know this much from going to this beacon of “”higher learning”” that we call UCSD.

As at many top universities, we are trained to study so that we can excel and succeed later in our professional lives. Mark Twain said, “”I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.”” Today, we have confused our schooling with our education, in scholastic aptitude and in our daily existence. It’s too bad they don’t teach anything important about life.

We are so wrapped up in our academic success that it takes a toll on our emotional well-being. It’s a sprint not only to graduate soon, but also to finish the race on top by a wide margin. In the process, we miss all the stuff that makes life grand. Nobody seems interested in the actual learning, but rather the grade at the end of the quarter. There is such an obsession with studying that all our emotions are blown away by the wind. Educating, tranquility and gratification are all replaced by schooling, necessity and competition.

I’m not saying that organic chemistry or econometrics isn’t going to help us in the future, but I do see the fact that we are schooled not to become enlightened thinkers, but rather synonymous robots. We have become a society that values performance in class over actually learning what is being taught. When a student receives a graded midterm, there are only two things in his mind: The first is, “”what’s my grade?”” and the second is, “”what’s the average?”” We fight for every single point so that our grades can be a fraction higher. Grades are important, but knowledge is even more so.

Does it really matter what another person gets? Performance should be measured by one standard. Who cares if the class did better or worse? It ultimately comes down to one person: you. Nevertheless, in a university where we are not taught to be our own thinkers, it is a necessity that we do better than the person sitting next to us. Your neighbor is your enemy; you must do better than him if you want to do well in a course. But does it really matter 20 years from now what you got on your second midterm in your bio class?

We measure one’s intelligence based on how well he studies or crams. In my years at UCSD, I do not look back upon the great wonders of writing, reading, calculus, chemistry nor anything related to academia. All I remember is a constant feeling of having made certain that I was above the average and that my grade was good. We live in a competitive arena that makes learning no longer a passion, but rather, a blood sport, a sport in which only the strongest survive and everyone else must die. This competitiveness is not only evident in class, but everywhere in our daily lives.

Once we graduate, grades are no longer the main objective in our lives. We aim for a higher and nobler purpose: money. This train of thought from college to work hard to be better than anyone else now appears in the workplace. We all think that money is the great equalizer, as if it was the single force in our lives that can fix all our problems and all our miseries. It is as if cash can burn away all our troubles the way it can burn so quickly from our accounts. Having that new luxury car may be nice, but is it justifiable to work night and day for the rest of your life without rest. We know money is a problem, yet we continue to find new ways to have more of it.

Money is similar to grades as it defines how successful you are in your endeavors. In a way, it really has no mark on who you are as an individual. Society is not judged by its happiness, but rather its wealth, fame and fortune. Money and grades just state how well you work or study. They have no inherent value except for enabling the purchase of mass quantities of goods.

Yet, we continue every day of our lives trying to be better than everyone else. We say that by sacrificing some of our time now, we will receive the benefits later in life. If we are not going to live our life now, when are we? Sixty-five sounds a little too old for me to party all night long. No amount of money can ever replace the years spent at college. College is more than just a time to study and learn, it is an opportunity for understanding, growth and freedom.

A wise man by the name of Ferris Bueller once said, “”Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss it.”” Our lives are becoming increasingly complicated and hurried without an end in sight. College, unfortunately, makes us race through every day of our existence. If you were to ask me where I’d be in such a race, you won’t see me sprinting along with everyone else. I’ll just be moseying along and enjoying the view.