Reply #57: One of the very best things about college was being around people

[Rabrrrrrr]

who were asking similar questions.

So much of what I learned was in the casual chats/arguments/debates in the cafeteria, or in the common area after a class, or over late night beers.

That's one thing I really miss about the college and grad school environment: being around people who are thinking about the same stuff, asking questions, and who desperately want to understand more. Bouncing ideas off other students and discussing them - that was worth the entire cost of the education right there. I learned far more from fellow students than from the classes (though the classes were not without value: the classes were what gave me the ability and insight and depth of knowledge to see where I was ignorant and, therefore, to ask the questions).