When Did College Start Feeling Like a Performance Instead of an Education?

[gwalters]

I’m a junior at a state university in Ohio, and lately it feels as if I’m constantly performing instead of actually learning. Between LinkedIn updates, internships, side hustles, and trying to sound impressive in every class discussion, I barely recognize why I came here in the first place. Even professors mention “branding yourself.” Was college always this transactional, or are we just the first generation that feels this pressure 24/7? How do you stay grounded when everything seems tied to future income?

[wandaorta]

I graduated from UCLA in 2016, and I remember sitting in a lecture hall where Steve Jobs was quoted more than the actual textbook. That was the moment I realized college had shifted. Tuition had passed 30k a year for many of us, and when you’re staring at that number, education starts to feel like an investment portfolio. During my sophomore year I seriously considered paying someone to do my homework because I was juggling two jobs. I watched friends quietly pay for assignments in usa when deadlines piled up. One roommate even hired a professional admission essay writer for grad school because she felt her whole future hinged on one document. I’m not proud of how close I got to outsourcing my stress, but what grounded me was finding one professor who cared about ideas more than resumes. The system pushes performance, sure, but you can still carve out spaces where learning feels real. It takes intention, and sometimes saying no to the constant hustle.