r/Purdue • u/MilitaryUnicorn • Apr 28 '26
Academics✏️ Why do people hate school
I’ve noticed a lot of negativity around campus and on this sub lately, and I’m trying to understand it. I genuinely enjoy learning and find most of my classes interesting. I know Purdue is tough, but it feels like a lot of people are completely miserable here. For those who are feeling that way, what’s driving it? Is it burnout, the pressure, your specific major, or something else? I just feel like if you’re going to invest the time and money to be here, there should be some joy in it. Also why enroll in your hard majors if you don’t like the hard work. I just don’t understand it.
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u/TheSteampunkFerret Apr 28 '26
Hard to explain unless you are in a hard major yourself. Way too many possible answers.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
I’m in actuarial science. Not science hard. But math hard
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u/HomeFlame949261 Apr 29 '26
Too funny! I am too and I think about this all the time! Love this major and school!
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u/DeadInHell Apr 29 '26
It must be so difficult for you to be a victim of your privilege.
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Apr 29 '26
Yeah, I remember seeing some of OP's previous posts. One that I always found a bit odd was the one where he was asking what rent costs because he was going to rent out some rooms in his house. Guy is a freshman.
Makes sense now, though. I've known a few people like that.. parents did the math and realized it made more financial sense to buy a house for their kids when they went away to college, kids live in it for 4 years while the parents pay the mortgage (if they didn't just buy outright with cash 🙄), and then when they graduate the parents just use it as passive rental income. It's such a great financial decision, actually, that you'd be stupid not to do it.
Or, you know, most people don't do that because you have to be rich to make those sorts of "great financial decisions."
OP is ridiculously out of touch, and this post just drives that home. I'm sure it's easy to just "have fun learning" when you have that much of a safety net.
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u/DidjaSeeItKid Apr 29 '26
If you don't enjoy your major, you are in the wrong major and you will be miserable in the job it leads you into. It's not about "privilege." It's about realizing this is your chance to set yourself up for a life you'll want to live, not one you feel you just have to survive.
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u/Busy_Peace May 04 '26
bullshit. This implies that jobs are things that people actually want to do out of their own free will. There are some jobs like that but theyre very rare and often unattainable. If you can tolerate it, you should optimize for the best opportunities that the market provides
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u/supermuncher60 Apr 28 '26
It's near the end of the semester and people get stressed.
I know that I was always exhausted and hating the material I was learning at this point in engineering.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
Why tho. And stress is a part of it but it’s not like people come here expecting it to be easy right. However stress makes sense
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u/cauliflowertomato Apr 28 '26
Your comment history and this post are all ragebait. “Why enroll in hard majors if you don’t like hard work”
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
I promise you I’m not rage baiting. I do ask questions in a way to generate responses and to get at people. But the reasoning is good. I am genuinely asking why because I am wondering. And it is insulting because I mean it that way. However I assure you I am not just during to anger people, and want a genuine discussion. We are at a school after all, and discussions help me learn and understand.
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u/cauliflowertomato Apr 28 '26
To answer your question, I think most people in difficult majors do like school. They genuinely enjoy engineering or cs or accounting etc. However, they are stressed and overwhelmed, perhaps with a financial burden in addition, and so they come to Reddit to vent. To me, that doesn’t translate to “hating school” rather “hating stress.” And yes when you sign up for a hard major you sign up for stress, but unfortunately that’s often the price you have to pay to get a good return on your investment in education. Not everyone can afford to major in something they both enjoy AND are not stressed by
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u/DidjaSeeItKid Apr 29 '26
If you can't handle the stress of school, you will eventually collapse from the stress of the work your schooling is training you to do.
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u/Wiley_Burner Purdue Apr 28 '26
Nobody likes “hard work.” You don’t enroll in a hard major because you’re a masochist, you do it because it’s something you find interesting/a good investment.
You can want to be a doctor or engineer, but hate pulling all nighters…
You’re also going against a very competitive group, especially compared to highschool, especially for the domestic students… if you’re drowning gradeswise, you can’t enjoy what you’re learning, as you’re stressed, not curious.
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u/carvalj CompE & MAHO 2028 Apr 28 '26
I get your point, but youd be shocked how "finding something interestjng" smoothly transitions into doing something in a way others would count as "hard work". Math majors will easily admit to spending hours (including unrelated time) twisting and turning some problem in their head. This is very much hard work, but quite enjoyable.
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u/Wiley_Burner Purdue Apr 28 '26
Yeah, but you can’t do that when stressed & burnt out. I will 100% do hard work, but it only feels like hard work when your progression and future is riding on it.
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u/DidjaSeeItKid Apr 29 '26
Oh, wow. Wait till you find out your future is ALWAYS riding on something.
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u/Wiley_Burner Purdue Apr 29 '26
Yeah, and you typically don’t have to enjoy those things lmao. OP wants everyone to have a hard on for school.
Nobody is like “YIPPEE! I have to present to the board! This is the best!!!”
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
It’s not hard when you love it
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u/Wiley_Burner Purdue Apr 28 '26 edited Apr 28 '26
That’s a toxic relationship if you love it & it’s killing you.
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u/carvalj CompE & MAHO 2028 Apr 28 '26
I personally disagree w/ the idea all hard school work is killing you, but I see your point.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
You improve through struggle
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u/Wiley_Burner Purdue Apr 28 '26 edited Apr 28 '26
Twin I and many others developed depression & suicidal tendencies from the workload we have & the stress it causes…
There’s a point where there’s a struggle, there’s a point where it harms you.
This is either ragebait or sheer stupidity.
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u/DidjaSeeItKid Apr 29 '26
If your major is making you depressed and suicidal CHANGE YOUR MAJOR. I am 64 and I can count on one hand the number of people I went to school with who graduated their first degree in the major they started with. This is the time to figure out what you actually want to do with the rest of your life, not what you're expected to want to do.
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u/le_noob_man imaginary engineering 2027 😹👅 Apr 29 '26
i’m not wileyburner, but i agree with what he’s saying.
some of us just love our work and what we do, even if it’s hard. it’s not really about enjoying the “struggle,” since nobody does, but mostly reaping the rewards and learning cool stuff that you’d like to work on in the future.
i do think OP is a bit out of touch, though.
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u/OrdnanceOkami Apr 28 '26
You’re in computer engineering how are the classes?
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u/carvalj CompE & MAHO 2028 Apr 28 '26
I personally have enjoyed all my core classes with some caveats
ECE 20875 = Braindead and boring ECE 29401 is a clownshow
Most of FYE was boring and slop (131/132 specifically)
Everything else was fine: I really do like what I do and I find the material intriguing. I also really like how it plays of my second major MAHO (Math Honors), using mathematical methods to solve ECE problems can be quite interesting. One especially surprising comnection i didnt expect was contour intwgration (MA 425) showing up in ECE 20002 (both classes im in this semester) and that was quite nice to see.
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u/Old_Parsnip7329 Apr 28 '26
Bro no one likes the hard work. Did you forget the reason why people do hard work is to get into a high paying job? Theres always going to be a tradeoff and you’ll never fully enjoy every aspect of what you do.
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u/DidjaSeeItKid Apr 29 '26
If you're doing hard work to get a high-paying job, you're going to be unhappy when you find out a high-paying job just means MORE hard work. If you don't enjoy it, don't shackle yourself to it.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
No I love hard work. And high paying jobs like quant require hard work. Like surgeon and doctor require hard work. Nursing requires hard work. People do hard work because hard work is required for either 1. Enjoyment or 2. Betterment of society.
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u/Old_Parsnip7329 Apr 28 '26
Ok that’s fine that you enjoy what you’re studying, but no one enjoys hard work. Sure it may be fun for the first few weeks of the semester but once all that studying takes over your whole life it isn’t fun anymore. If hard work was fun then anyone would be able to do it. It seems fun because it aligns with your interests more than anything else. Just like how mechanical engineering is more fun to me than psychology or business.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
It doesn’t take over my whole life I have hobbies. Hard work isn’t easy but it can be fun
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u/OrdnanceOkami Apr 28 '26
The teachers suck at teaching math you go to office hours, they don’t help, you spend 4hrs a day studying that doesn’t help, you talk to the TA that doesn’t help, it’s insanity I just did my Calc 1-3 online and let me tell you 110% better than anything Purdue had to offer.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
Wdym I’m in CALC 2 and love my TA. And he’s stupid compared to all the other talent at the MRR. I love going to the MRR or office hours and asking for help. And I ask them to teach me the concepts too. I don’t understand why the hate and my studying is effective
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u/sonsuka Apr 28 '26
When I was there, honestly, the campus is in a bad location if you don't have a car.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
Very valid reason. I understand why dorming without transport can make you feel trapped and tired of the environment. And roommates too!
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u/DidjaSeeItKid Apr 29 '26
You can't walk? Purdue is an easy campus to walk. I grew up here and we didn't even have a car while I was growing up. I didn't really drive until I moved off campus with my husband and (then) two kids.
And that was way before you could get somebody else to do your grocery shopping.
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u/sonsuka Apr 29 '26
That didnt even answer what I states besides trying sound like a smart ass. Good luck trying to walk to the movie theater and other places unless bus is nearby. (Yes im aware of wabash shopping center)?Yah you could ride bus to walmart if u want and haul it across to purdue village in freshman year and then grit it out for rest. Yah its easy campus to walk to classes, but doing anything off campus is a pain in the ass. Not exactly lot variety especially for someone that grew up close to the city.
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u/h0wdy777 Apr 28 '26
i’m probably one of the people you saw complaining,. I love learning and,contrary to popular belief, love math. it’s mostly cause people like to know it’s not just them struggling
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u/AggressiveAd8587 Apr 28 '26
I just dont like academia and school. I’m only here to do my 4 years and leave to get a job I want.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
So you’re spending all this money to be an employee? You could just do trades and within 4-5 years your salary would be comparable. Like do you not like learning? Is improvement of oneself just not something you want to do?
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u/TheBreathingMan1 Apr 28 '26
the ceiling for that salary is much lower. there is a reason thousands of people who don’t like school go to college every year.
edit: people are also allowed to like learning and not like school.
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u/henare Apr 28 '26
you know the wrong people. the plumbers I know have three houses (all in HCOL areas).
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u/RichInPitt Apr 28 '26
As of April 2026, the median annual salary for plumbers in the US is approximately $58,600 to $63,000
Entry-level (<1 year) earn an average of $47,096, while those with 10+ years experience earn roughly $68,325 annually.
Pretty sure Engineering and CS grads average more than $47K entry level and $60K throughout a career.
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u/DidjaSeeItKid Apr 29 '26
Not lately.
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u/le_noob_man imaginary engineering 2027 😹👅 Apr 29 '26
this is empirically false, even in a recession/down-hiring period the earning ceiling for white-collar work is infinitely higher than blue-collar professionals.
not to mention less healthcare costs over time and keeping your body (mostly) intact
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u/Foreign_Suggestion89 Apr 30 '26
Yes, but huge opportunity for people starting in trades to own their own business. They can switch to having white collar on a blue shirt.
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u/TheBreathingMan1 Apr 29 '26
yeah i guess if you own a company its a bit of a different story isn’t it.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
Correct, but to me school is about learning. I just associate going to school with learning therefore enjoying learning = school. I guess friends make it fun too but you can have friends anywhere. And greed is too a big part of it. People are greedy and want materiel items. I have never had to struggle with any sort of finances ever and have tbh never had to think about a purchase so I couldn’t relate in that area.
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u/TheBreathingMan1 Apr 28 '26
there are different types of learning. some do not enjoy the type of learning school provides. “learning=school” is true but only for a specific type of learning.
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u/cauliflowertomato Apr 29 '26
From now on before making anymore stupid comments or posts, remember that you have never had to struggle with finances. Most people do. I can tell from your attitude that you have never worked a fast food job. Working that McDonald’s window will give you a wisdom that Purdue actuarial science could never provide
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 29 '26
I have worked fast food. Have I had to struggle? No cause my parents worked hard. But does that mean I don’t understand? No! I do understand the struggle and I posted this to learn and understand and see others experiences with learning.
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Apr 29 '26
I can't help but think of the clip of Victoria Beckham pretending she can relate to the working class, and being reminded by her husband that she absolutely can't, because she grew up rich.
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u/cauliflowertomato Apr 29 '26
I believe that you understand the struggle. I think you have trouble thinking of reasons why people might be in situations they don’t like. Like I believe you think that if someone is struggling, it’s their fault for not changing their situation or improving it by seeking resources. It sounds like you have solved your struggle with school stress by focusing on the joy you gain from learning. That’s really good! Other people can’t do that. Can you think of any reasons why other people might not handle stress the same way as you? Maybe it’s because they’re not you and have grown up differently than you and have different health than you and different DNA than you…. That’s just my hypothesis tho
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u/iamfdsa Apr 29 '26
You can't seem to comprehend that people like different things than you. To me, college education was a means to an end, getting a better job. I like my job, but I hated school. I will never go back for a masters or anything like that.
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u/SelfRedeemedBoiler EAPS 2025.5 May 02 '26
“So you’re spending all this money to be an employee?”
Uh yeah, duh man! That’s the whole point of college. But it doesn’t change the fact that it’s overpriced because colleges are just another greedy business.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn May 02 '26
No man I spend all this money to learn so I can live. I can learn about all the wonders of the world. Generate value to generate wealth and explore and live. I don’t live to work, I work to live.
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u/Busy_Peace May 04 '26
do you really fucking believe that SCHOOL is the best way for you to learn. Maybe 100 years ago when resources were limited, but right now there are so many resources that if you truly want to learn about the world then school is simply slowing you down. You really think standardized tests are the best way to learn.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn May 04 '26
Yes, I can learn mathematics and statistics and whatnot through school and testing. Can’t learn maths on yt videos. Gotta study it for years. Notice how the world’s greatest talent goes to university. Yea, there’s a reason. The richest people send their kids to college
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u/Busy_Peace May 04 '26
I'm sorry but thats bullshit. Did you see that 23 year old who solved some 60 year unsolved math proof with chatgpt. You seem like the type of person who would discard using AI as real "learning" but thats just the state of the world. If you have things that you are set on learning, and a motivation, then college will slow you down 100x and thats just a fact.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn May 04 '26
I use AI all the time. And that guy solved an irrelevant erdos problem. Solve a millennium problem with AI if you dare. Also don’t forget who trains AI. Whose knowledge it’s built on etc. AI is an amazing tool I use everyday but it can’t do everything.
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u/Busy_Peace May 04 '26
Anyways i'm not tryna argue but i think its ridiculous to say that school and the way classes are set up is optimized for learning. I'm speaking from an undergraduate perspective, can't say anything about research/masters. School is just getting through hurdles of assignments and shoving information into your brain to memorize for tests. It doesn't really support a lot of true learning and exploration in most cases, but thats just my opinion (and i'm sure a common one). I will say school is pretty useful for forcing you to learn how to learn things, which is a skill that will last you a lifetime
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u/MilitaryUnicorn May 04 '26
If you study to learn for the exam. Then you are not studying for yourself. You are studying for the exam. Maybe I think this way cause I’m fairly wealthy. I have stopped valuing materiel things. I don’t care what I score, how much money I make. I have always been taught that if I work hard and try the wealth and happiness will come to me.
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u/SelfRedeemedBoiler EAPS 2025.5 May 02 '26
If you are working, you are by definition an employee. Cold, hard fact. It’s up to you whether you want to be a disgruntled employee or a happy employee.
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u/DidjaSeeItKid Apr 29 '26
Employers really dislike people who only want to "do their time." They want people who can convince them they are interested in, even excited by, the work they'll be asked to do.
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u/Prior_Appointment969 Apr 28 '26
I’ve just spent 7 hours working on a lab project and I barely got it half done.
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u/Nezo18 Apr 28 '26
I'm going to be coming in the fall for a major in security, which I like and am passionate about, however I have never liked math nor have I been particularly great at it in the past. I'm sure most people have a class they like, but going into college you also are required to take classes like math, which I dislike. I want to be good at math, but I don't have the interest in the actual doing of it, so I know I'm going to loath it and it can't be helped.
Also I suspect that there are two types of students that post on here. (not exclusively 2, I just can't word this well) There are those intrigued by their major and want to do it as a job, but ended up with a coarse load that they don't enjoy and then there's those who are doing it for good job security and a promising future.(There is also willful parents)
Personally I think my degree choice is risky, but Its a mix on what I'm passionate about and what should have a career behind it. I would love to major in Psychology, but I don't foresee a great future behind that, so I didn't and suspect many others have made this compromise. (also this is a rigorous stem school, we as people naturally dislike difficulty, so disliking difficult classes without crazy passion is natural)
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u/A55628B44C4 Apr 29 '26
I felt that way about work. I felt like I had to put up with that till I could retire. But school was a choice for me so it did not bother me as much.
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u/diamonwarrior Apr 29 '26
The best way to describe my Purdue experience right now is that it doesn’t feel like they are actually teaching me and I’m learning. It feels like they tell me how to theoretically swim and just throw me into the pool and have me figure it out myself. And the classes that don’t do that, have horrible course structures and blindside you on exams with things that you had no way to practice for because they didn’t give you enough practice material or the exam is formatted differently than the rest of the course.
It doesn’t feel like I’m learning properly, that they are just making things difficult for the sake of difficulty and that adversity is what shapes you. Which to be fair is an effective way to get people to learn, but it’s not surprising that I hate that’s the way they go about it because it’s more painful than a proper learning experience.
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u/FungiGames Entomology 2027 Apr 28 '26
I also really love school. It took me a long time to get to Purdue because of various things. I began here at 25 years old and am so proud to be here. I work so hard to be able to afford my education. I put my all into every class I’m in even if I don’t like the class and it doesn’t apply to my major. I just genuinely have a passion for learning and I’m so grateful to be getting a good education. I can understand why it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. It’s all a rude awakening for many people coming straight out of high school that now you’re in charge of your life and it’s not easy.
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u/MilitaryUnicorn Apr 28 '26
You had to work for it. That makes the journey worth living. When things are given to us we aren’t grateful
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u/FungiGames Entomology 2027 Apr 28 '26
You can see a clear difference in people that are at this university to get a degree and people who are here because they are passionate about something and want to make it a career.
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u/AdventurousAd1361 Apr 29 '26
Why do people hate their lives sometimes? 1000 possible answers. I've noticed a lot of negativity around America and on every sub lately, I would say, and everyone's trying to understand it. I also genuinely enjoy learning and have found my crowd and had the best sushi I've ever had this week, and my mom's birthday is this weekend, and we're celebrating it together. So we're kind of in the same boat except I don't really go online and compare myself to the people who hate their lives for whatever reason I, apparently, have massive troubles wrapping my head around instead of just letting it go n be at peace with ambiguities. Wonder if the sparrows are hungry tomorrow and make a thread about that?
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u/AshamedAd349 Apr 29 '26
Because Purdue is soooo engineering directed, that everyone seems too nerdy and humanistic elements are hard to find around
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u/LionIcy6813 Apr 29 '26
For me, it's because I'm constantly told to quit college just because I have chronic illness and mental health issues that I get barely any accommodation for. Also some profs I've had will try to argue against my accommodations. I would switch to online, but my major is not offered online. Burnout in general too. Joined a sorority, was bullied out of it. Haven't felt welcomed in any club, but probably because I have a rbf and shy at first. Idk for me I've just felt like there's a general lack of empathy here, but I think it's just my mindset and unluckyness lmao.
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u/Dragon_Den_ Apr 30 '26
how the engineering is set up is that it is almost impossible to transfer to a different school without starting over and most of the classes are set up as weed outs and a lot of professors just do not care, but at that point you basically are just stuck
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u/anxiousdepressedcat Apr 30 '26
Depression and chronic illness and betrayal. Add in pressure and stress and not being good enough...even with the little connections I do have, the negativity is stronger than the positives.
Also add in some ptsd and bad memories...not good combo.
Got a little better with my esa here, probably only reason I not done did something stupid to make it all stop if I beefing honest.
But, know I will be miserable at home as well,in some ways more so, it will be different. Different, filled with the state of something missing... granted I have that here...less so.. but there I dont have to worry about grades and deadlines, or getting to class without passing out.
Moral of the story life has ups and downs, and some people just have a lot of downs back to back...and finally get an up to just get the biggest downs ever yet again. And adding on work, stress,exams, possible social isolation, and expectations....well makes the situation worst.
But on the brightside...I at least have 1 class that brings me some sense of not utter failure...and my hot water started working and at least now have ants in the dorm instead of cockroaches.
Plus found a nice pencil. So not all bad.
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u/Duckie_Man May 04 '26
Most are studying Engineering and Tech bc they like to design and build new stuff, but most of their degree teaches them the hard and theoretical fundamentals that are required to get to the fun stuff. On the other hand, something like actuarial science is much closer to what you wanted to study.
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u/DeadInHell Apr 29 '26
Lots of students are only here because their parents made them and are paying their way. They just want to sit on the couch and scroll TikTok all day and they hold a personal grudge against anyone who asks them to do anything else.
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u/Commercial-Arm-9259 Apr 29 '26
the school kills all social life, allows no bars, bans all frats, has no concerts, no parks, doesn’t allow anyone to have any actual social outings and doesn’t care about mental health and covers up all suicides and bad things that happen.
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u/DidjaSeeItKid Apr 29 '26
Nonsense. There's plenty of social life here, much more than most non-college towns. You have a huge variety of entertainment available, lots of bars, concerts, plays, art exhibitions, parties, etc. Every club and many classes have social outings, especially at the start and end of semesters. If you can't find something to do, you just aren't looking.
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u/Intrepid-Owl694 Apr 28 '26
Weak minded people
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u/Plane-Clue-4940 CIT ‘30 Apr 28 '26
didn’t know we had david goggins here to tell us about being weak
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u/Decrypted13 Ph.D. Student, Mathematics Apr 28 '26
Survivorship bias; no one posts the good things that happen.