The Undergraduate Economy

The Undergraduate Economy

I am an undergraduate.

Way back in high school, I had high dreams for myself. I always took pride in my hopes of becoming the Philippines’ next top doctor or lawyer. My family saw me as the one to finish in an Ivy League-ish school and get the best jobs readily available for me.

However, things didn’t exactly go the way I wanted them to. When I got to my second year, my grandmother died and I was utterly devastated. I was depressed and acted stupid. There were subjects that I’d go to, but won’t listen to anything, until mid-sem came and I didn’t attend all my classes. I busied myself with my org and drank most of the time. When I’m bored, I’d accompany my friends to their classes, not mine.

I was like that for the rest of the semester. After the sem-break, I vowed to go back to form, but was only able to register two classes. Disappointed, I concentrated in one class and dropped the other. Although I got a 1.0 in my Span class, that was predictable already because I’ve studied the language for two sems.

Months after that, another tragedy came. My lolo had an accident and steel had to be inserted in his upper leg bone. Still not over my granny’s death, I was trying to be strong this time; but emotions got the best of me. At that time, the College of Science dropped me and I was studying at Instituto Cervantes. Since we had to take care of our lolo, I stopped again and became a full time aid at home.

Finances weren’t really good for me, because my mom and dad had their own families, so I decided to work. I promised myself I could maybe work for a year and then save a lot of money to help out at home then study on the side. But like all my other plans, that didn’t push thru. I was so into work and earning my own money that I forgot the important stuff.

Fast forward to today, I am jobless. My writing has been so bad I’ve stopped writing my blogs. I didn’t save any money, I don’t have a degree, I can’t ask money from my parents, I’m in a rut.

This may be something they call a quarter life crisis but what I have is self-imposed. I’ve always said that I won’t be one of those typical Filipino bums who work early, stops getting some education and depend on family members from abroad. So far, I’m not yet like that. Thank God.

Luckily though, I’ve had a good working experience. When not active in PDI, there’s one industry that is so dependable for my kind: call centers.

Though it’s good that I have something to look forward to for the meantime, I must admit that the call center lifestyle is not good for my health. I became more and more addicted to caffeine and yosi during my 4-year stint there. Adding up to the damage is the shifting schedules and type of bullcrap we had to go to just so we could “satisfy” customers who most of the time lie and curse as if words could kill me.

For undergrads like me, this is the easiest way to earn money. Just armed with confidence and a good vocab, I could walk in one morning and have a job in the afternoon. Sadly though, even those with poor English are accepted, which totally ruins the reputation we had when call centers were just putting up businesses here in the islands. I have nothing against those who aren’t fluent in English, but I’ve been very much around the business that I know some are accepted to fill spots to achieve hiring targets and get big bonuses. This is so, so sad. The demand has been so high, that quality doesn’t matter anymore. What’s worse is, because it is the “in” thing nowadays, anyone can believe that this is a good job to stay in, and I know people who literally put a stop to studying because of pressure from families and difficulty in money matters. The problem is, if Democrats win the next US election, call centers may be pulled out to employ US citizens.

I remember the time when the DH generation popped up. Pinays from the provinces, as young as 17, would travel to a foreign land and end up serving cruel employers. It didn’t matter whether they were able to step into college, as long as they knew how to do the laundry or clean houses, they’re in. There was much apprehension for a lot though when the Sarah Balabagan and Flor Contemplacion news broke out. And now, some countries have stopped accepting non-degree holders. Even Japan, where a lot of Filipinos are actually doing well, has shifted their demand for Pinoys from entertainers to caregivers. I tell you, nursing students are grabbing this chance and applying ASAP. No need for a degree, just finish a few sems and eligibility is no problem.

One more dark phase in our time is when billiards was so sensationalized that almost all boys from our school wanted to be the next Efren “Bata” Reyes. Like the precedent mushrooming of internet cafes, pool houses were everywhere. Kids cut class and don’t eat at all because they spend their baon on pustahan (betting) and hours worth of table rent. All in the name of their dreams of becoming a world renowned poolmaster. Where are they now though? Working at SM I guess.

There were much ballyhoo when the world knew that Bill Gates is an undergraduate. I remember reading that article here years ago. Imagine, you’re on top of your game even though a diploma is missing from your wall postings.

That’s the problem. Bill Gates was very much equipped when it came to computers. What people did was ride on the passing fad. Computer Science became the “it” course and schools like AMA and STI sprung everywhere. What the student’s interests weren’t important. Like the old saying goes, if somebody can, then why can’t you? That’s one big bull.

Conflict arises when one is pushed too much to do something his/her heart is not into. And believe me, the rate of college drop outs is also partly due to incompatibility with the course students are taking.

The government isn’t also too keen on making education sound as important as it should be. All we hear is the economy is good, but most of the jobs offered are contractual and don’t even offer competent compensation packages. C’mon Gloria, employment rate may be up, but I know that these won’t be the types of jobs to support one person thru his lifetime.

Just weeks ago, my Uncle was here and told me he’ll support me if, and only if I took up nursing; which is a terrible idea. I am not the Nursing-kind. I don’t even wear white. Had I realized my true love for hospitals, I may have just pursued my Chemistry course; but I didn’t.

My mom is telling me to go back to school and at least finish something. Maybe I will, maybe I won’t. But right now, I recognize the importance of having a degree. It is easier to get a job, because a degree manifests a person’s drive to achieve the graduate-status. That says a lot. I’m dead serious in completing my levels in Instituto Cervantes, not because it’s an “in” thing, but it’s something I’m passionate about. In a month I’ll be 24, and I’m challenging myself to get that diploma before I hit the big 3-0.

I don’t want to write about the same problem in the future. Nor do I want this to happen to others. I had dreams, big dreams. But I was swayed by my lack of concentration. I let one problem after another affect my disposition on things. As cliché as it sounds, I will change a lot if I was given the chance to go back in time. Now I understand why diplomas gather the walls of Filipino families. It’s a sign of being able to achieve a lot despite circumstances surprising us like thieves in the night. It is not just a piece of paper, but a symbol of pain-staking years of studying to be at least good enough to get that dream job. Jobs that pay the rent, bring the food to the table, and finance our pension plans. One day I’ll be able to hang that diploma on our wall. And smile because I finally got what I needed the most. Education.