What Uni Teaches You vs What Travelling Teaches You

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What Uni Teaches You vs What Travelling Teaches You

After High School I studied International and Global Studies at uni. I know what you’re thinking and you’re right, I am one of those guys who was frivolous with your tax dollars and lazy with my time by studying something that I probably wouldn’t use because I found it “interesting”. Well guess what, the world is going to end soon at the tiny hands of The Donald, and all of your prudent choices and hasty entrance into the world of the adults is going to be worth naught. What do I get? I get a bunch of institutionalised experiences that I might never use, but that I can compare to some free lessons I’ve picked up from the university of life, man.

Networking

Uni: It’s important to be proactive about your impending enslavement to the corporate world. I’m not great at this, but one of my friends is an endearingly arrogant dick, and ended up with an internship at one of Australia’s biggest advertising firms by telling industry reps he “was just there to get out of the rain”. Another guy I know ended up in Newtown smoking something funny with an “industry rep” but never got a job out of it. So take from that what you want.

Backpacking: Well, that French guy who bummed a cigarette from you shared his joint, and who cares that he smelled like piss (you try not pissing yourself after a joint and several bottles of €2 wine), if that’s not successful networking I don’t know what is…

Politics

Uni: We go to uni for three years and learn about how screwed the world is. Just kidding (sort of). We learn about the different ‘theories’ (liberalism, realism, Marxism etc.), which explain why the world is screwed up, and they all suggest different solutions. You’d think that reading this stuff would make it easier to understand everything but I’ve come away just as confused as before… Group projects teach you the art of compromise (and if you get a shit group you might also get an insight into why people hate each other and go to war).

Backpacking: Brokering a peace deal between the belligerent Russian and the arrogant German over Friday night drinks may not seem like high-end diplomacy, but we’d argue that it’s more difficult than what goes down in the General Assembly. Is the Russian Ambassador to the UN indignant because the Germans cock blocked his chances of brokering a peace (pleasure?) deal with their sexy French counterpart? Fuck no, but in the wee hours, around a Hossegor campfire, backpacker diplomacy will take us to realms that would have Henry Kissinger pissingering his pantalones.

Money

Uni: If you don’t get swindled at the bookstore you’ve been studying way too much (i.e. you read the books enough that they were worth the $600 price tag). Also being a student prepares you for being a backpacker far better than it does for being a diplomat, so you’ll be glad of all those tricks you learnt to save money.

Backpacking: We all know that backpacking leaves your bank account in the sort of state  America’s will be in only seconds after Mr Trump is sworn in as President (toupees are expensive), but unlike electing Trump – it’s worth it! You might not be building a wall, but you learn which kebabs to buy, how to snake toiletries from the hostel bathroom, and how to survive off of scraps (which may prove useful if some crazy dude with a combover starts WWIII).