What's in a degree???

Last night, I was sitting next to a friend of mine at church and I asked him "So, are you doing now after SPM?". The reply "I am working at a bakery" did not shock me as it is common for ppl to work part time or full time for a short period while waiting for results or during long holidays.

Then, the next question came "What are you going to do now that you have your results?" and he said, "continue working lar...". Now this shocked me... "Are you not going to Form 6? or college?""What about university?" i quickly blurted, to which he replied "I'm going to try going to singapore to work later on, a baker's (not banker, BAKER) pay there is not too bad."

Of course, this exchange did not just end there, but the rest has nothign to do with what i'm trying to blog... What i'm trying to say is that, for a guy like me who is all set to enter uni after my IB exams (which are like NOW!!!), this was something unthinkable...

but then again, it was not so in the not so distant past... i remember being brought up with stories of how the great and wealthy chinese tycoons like Yeap Chor Ee and Loh Boon Siew were relatively uneducated and poor when they came to Penang where they made their fortune... heck, even my mom truned downt the opportunity to got o uni when my grandad offered to send her...

on the other hand, there is much hype about how evena bachelor's degree will not be enough education for a person int he not so distant future because they are becoming more common and that you will need at least a masters degree or a PHD (or permanent hea damage) to succeed...

I guess that after having thought about my friend and his choice, and me and my choice...i have come to the conclusion that it is all up to the individual, that it is still possible to succeed in life without a tertiary education...it all depends on what the term "succeed in life" means to him/her. It all depends on what your dreams are, what you have planned for your life. I mean it would be pointless to for someone who does not need one to pursue one, for example, a janitor. But then again, it would be essential for lets say a lawyer to have a degree in law...

What is life? What is the purpose of it? What do we propose to do with it? What does success in life mean? How can it be achieved?