The most successful students become university professors

Published: Sunday, 01 March 2009

When kids are in diapers, their parents enroll them into primary school. If all goes right, the right primary school could mean the right high school.

No room for error though, so the kids are put in piano, Japanese, speech and drama, voice, painting, soccer, violin, tennis, dancing and deportment classes.

 

They got in? Great job!

 

Right, high school time. Marching band, United Nations community-building initiatives, maths club, speaking competitions, official school photographer, Physics Olympiads preparations, cheerleading, science fairs, bake fairs, school plays, volunteer work, president of the Student Representatives, school magazine editor and as many competitions as you can enter. Study a couple of hours each day. Graduate valedictorian. Have they done enough to get into a good university??

 

They got in? Great job!

 

…

 

Childhood is now a protracted process of university entrance. The most successful undergrads go on and do their masters. The most successful masters students go on to do their PhD. The most successful PhD students go on to become university professors.

About Me

Marita ChengForbes named me a world's top 50 woman in tech & 30 Under 30. I founded Robogals and Aipoly and was Young Australian of the Year 2012. Currently working on robotics company Aubot. I'm the youngest Member of the Order of Australia (AM) and I give speeches around the world.

I tweet @maritacheng and I'm on Facebook.

Subscribe

Enter your email address to receive my latest blog posts: 

 

Random Articles

  • No amount of hoping and praying can substitute hard work

    Want to do something but you don't feel like it? Want to start a company but you feel the first step is too high and too hard?  Want to get fit but...

  • Don’t forget your notebook

    They’re cheap.  They don’t always look very pretty.  You can even get some with a yellow hue!  (And even if you don’t, but you leave them for too long,...

  • YouthActionNet Global Fellowship Day 4: Meeting an alumni's project

    We had the chance to visit one of the previous YAN Fellow's projects in Mexico. I chose to visit "Deport-es para Compartir" (or "Sports to Share")...

  • A Summer at Engineers Australia

    I saw on Facebook that Engineers Australia Victoria were moving into new premises.  I saw the national CEO Steve Durkin at an event.  He said I was...

  • Jevaroo’s neck

    Jevaroo’s neck is my favorite part of the robot. Jevaroo’s neck has a movement range of 25cm, allowing Jevaroo to reach for objects up to 170cm high...

  • 1 day = 2

    When I was planning the first UK SINE, for about a month, I split each day into two.  I would get up in the morning, and do all the actions needed to...

  • What's in it for them?

    What's in it for the other person? If you look at everything from this perspective, you can get anything you want in life.

  • The most important thing

    … isn’t the car you drive, whether you earn more money than your neighbour, who you know, or what you know;  it is your health.  Without your health, you...

  • giddy, giddy, giddy

    Why create linear goals when life isn't linear? Don't create goals that are 1 -> 2 -> 3 Create goals that make leaps ad bounds, like 6 -> 14 -> 28...

  • Remembering Bob Paterson

    I flew from Cairns FNQ to Melbourne (a 3.5-hour flight!) for university. I didn’t have enough money to go to university. But I had faith in myself,...