High school is a one-time experience for teenagers. It has been said that high school is the peak of childhood for they are the prime years of development as an individual and filled with memories.

In recent years, this situation has not been the case as high school students are not feeling enjoyment in school. The pressure to decide what the long term plan of an entire college career starts as soon as the end of sophomore year. High school has a set timeline and if one does not follow it, students are seen as a disappointment or the “odd one out” for not preparing for a four year college experience immediately following high school.  However, high school isn’t for everyone and four years to complete all the requirements doesn’t meet everyone’s needs.

High school is a time when you figure out who you are, why you are and who you want to be, it should not have a set timeline for when that all happens. According to https://www.dosomething.org, about 25% of high school freshmen fail to graduate from high school on time. The United States had some of the highest graduation rates of any developed country, now ranks 22nd out of 27 developed countries and every year, over 1.2 million students drop out of high school in the U.S. alone.

The set time of four years to finish high school should not apply to everyone. Everyone learns at different speeds, has different strengths and weaknesses, and have different learning capacities. Some students need more than four years and other students can finish quicker.

In recent years, society has convinced teenagers and families that high school and college is a MUST. The truth is, it isn’t. Part of the reason why so many students are dropping out is because they are too stressed with the timeline. High school should be as long as it needs to be, not necessarily four years.

According to the New York Times, each year, nearly one in four American teenagers drop out of high school. Twenty other countries now have higher high-school graduation rates. If each student made their own timeline fit specifically to their needs and priorities, as well as fitting in the set classes required for graduation,  it would decrease the rate of high school dropouts. Students should not be ashamed if they need more time than four years to finish or if they decide to not attend college. Teachers preach in the school community that we should be striving to prepare all students for success in college—if not a four-year degree. This not only makes students more insecure but pressured to follow that plan. Not attending a university is okay. Attending community college is still an accomplishment and leads many to a successful future.

Sometimes school isn’t for everyone and all we can do is help students become successful in finding their way toward independence. If you want to graduate high school and not attend college, do it. If you want to go to a four-year university, do it. There are many jobs that require a different skill set than one earns at a four year university. If trade school or an internship or journeyman’s program is for you, follow your heart and never let anyone pressure you into changing your future.