Missed on college? Here are 5 alternative routes to become more employable


When you graduate high school, an entirely new realm of possibility is opened to you: welcome to adulthood and a flourishing number of new beginnings. During your high school career (or anywhere), you were probably told that college was the only route you could go down to succeed in life. However, the possibilities are truly endless and you can easily achieve success in any of these five paths. 

Go to trade school

Job industries that will never truly be replaced by technology are those involving an in-person need for repair or construction, which is what trade school essentially trains you for. Trade school, or vocational school, is a postgraduate educational institution where students are trained hands-on with their chosen career path in mind. Unlike college, your classes are specifically guiding you towards what you will be doing in your career and helping you build the skills required. There are no credit courses focused on subjects you didn’t really want to take in the first place, with a shorter time in school so you can quickly start making money. 

Missed on college? Here are 5 alternative routes to become more employable

Take online classes

Is the need to wake up at a certain time is pushing you to stay away from college and choose another career path? Consider taking online classes, where the schedule is flexible and you can wake up as late or as early as you’d like. More and more online universities are popping up. They are accessible from anywhere in the world at significantly lower prices, and they allow you to learn new skills at your own pace. 

Travel the world

In college abroad programs, you are limited to an experience that the school has chosen for you. However, with your expenses and imagination, you can go anywhere. If you have a strong urge to go across the world and find your calling, the period after high school is an incredible time. Depending on what you did during your high school years, there are a variety of freelance jobs you can do from anywhere and make steady income. Were you an amature journalist? Did you go to the yearbook clubs? Find a freelance writing or journalism job. Did you get along with people well and work in retail? Consider customer service. As long as you have a working device and access to WiFi, you could make enough money to fuel your journey around the globe while building a career for yourself.

Missed on college? Here are 5 alternative routes to become more employable

Take a gap year

Do you feel like college is in the cards, just not now? Consider taking a gap year. You can take a break to save up money with a full-time job so that the expenses for college are significantly smaller. During this gap year, you can work and enter your educational framework of choice with experience, something that will make you a much more competitive candidate in job searches and leadership positions. 

Join the military

If it’s available where you live, joining the military is a great option: you can serve your country as well as find your purpose, explore plenty of benefits that you wouldn’t have otherwise when it comes to job and education services, and make lasting connections with your peers. This provides a unique learning environment for those who do not wish to attend college or upper education while pursuing something that will give you a lifetime job opportunity.

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