Poll: Students not prepared for life

If a recent survey is to be believed, only a slim majority of University students could survive today outside the Princeton bubble.

On a Point poll this Tuesday, students were asked, "Are you prepared for the real world (taxes, insurance, food, etc.)?"

Forty-four percent of the 836 students polled replied "Possibly," while 37 percent answered "Absolutely Not." Fourteen percent confidently replied "Absolutely," while five percent were unsure, choosing a response of "Never really thought about it."

Several freshmen agreed that they would not be able to survive outside of campus if they graduated today.

"I don't have any life skills. It's actually very sad," Maria Salciccioli '09 said. "I need a life manager."

"I need a life skills class," T.J. Klein '09 said.

Others were more specific as to which "life skills" they needed.

"I'm lucky if I can do my own laundry!" Aimee Gasior '09 explained.

"When I graduate, I'll be prepared academically," she added, but "I learned more life skills in middle school than I do here."

Sophomores were more skeptical about the necessity of "life skills" classes.

"This isn't home-[economics]. The point of Princeton is to secure a career and understand the importance of maturity," Amy Maletz '08 said.

Maletz agreed, however, that she does not yet have the skills to survive on her own. "I just feel that if I were to step out into the real world today, I'd probably need a personal assistant to actually be functional," she said.

Eleni Azarias '08 argued otherwise. "Although we are babied to a certain extent, it's a step [towards adulthood]. Over the summer I lived by myself for a month, and I was fine, but I would run into some trouble with taxes," she said.

On the other hand, juniors and seniors seemed more confident about their chances of survival in terms of networking, filing taxes and other "life skills." Some jokingly stated that Princeton had taught them to do laundry, while others cited Princeton as the source of their maturity.

"I cook my own food, do my taxes and laundry," Carl Boettiger '07 said. "I wouldn't say [Princeton] has failed me by holding my hand too much, but it has not gone out of its way to teach you life skills."

"I think studying abroad definitely helped. That made me a lot more independent," Sonia Lee '06, who studied last year at University College London, said.

"I feel like [Princeton has] helped me figure out who I am, how I deal with people, what my strengths and weaknesses are," Lee added. "[People here] may not have learned skills other than schmoozing and networking, but it's something that initiates you. Call it the four-year transition period."

Certain Princeton traditions — especially the thesis — have provided students with worthwhile skills for the occupational world. "The thesis taught me how to plan a longterm project," Eric Remijan '06 said, while Maureen O'Hern '06 noted that precepts taught her to be more articulate.

In general, Erica Lee '06 said, "Princeton has taught me how to think, how to write."

For those students motivated enough to pursue them, there are opportunities to learn about tax returns and other mundane skills.

"A lot of student organizations have panels," Jackie Ng '06 said. "It's never things that the University does, so you have to be in certain organizations. If you email alumni, they are good at responding."

Meanwhile, other seniors attribute their "life skills" to activities they've done outside of the University.

"I usually do my own taxes," Stephanie Chen '06 said. "I took a year off before Princeton. I worked in a lab full time for half of it and went to Australia for the other half. I was sort of financially independent. It's not that hard, so I did it."

To become fully self-sufficient, however, some seniors said classes could be helpful.

"Cooking classes would be good." Remijan said.

"I think some post-graduation things would be helpful, like how to find an apartment, where are good places to live, particular areas you can look into," Ng said.

But most seniors agreed that it was not Princeton's responsibility to teach them practical everyday skills.

"The stuff I learn at Princeton is less 'real-world' skills," Chen said. "I feel like it's more about preparing us after college in less of an everyday sense. It's more about book-smarts."

"Princeton doesn't practically train you for those everyday sorts of things," Remijan noted. "You have to figure out things for yourself."