Who is the Smart One, Really?

Courtney Avila

When someone is described as smart, many people assume that person does very well in school. They probably know all about the subjects of the classes they are taking, they don’t have anxiety when they are about to take an exam, they mostly get all A’s on their report cards and have a high GPA. In my eyes, those characteristics describe someone who is educated. But if a person knows the concepts and definitions inside in their textbooks, will it be easier for them to live in the real world once they graduate?

I have always been an average student though I give a lot of time and effort into school. Test taking is extremely difficult for me and is one of the scariest things in the world because I feel like the outcome of it will define other people’s opinions of me. Even though these things are true, others consider me a smart person. I have a lot of common sense, I know about current events, I know how connect with people I meet and I am a hard worker. Basically I would call myself street smart rather than book smart; and that to me is a success.

Though I do agree that education is extremely important, I believe that there is too much of an emphasis what your GPA is. Just because you got an A on your last accounting test doesn’t mean you can participate in an intelligent conversation about current events going on in the world with business associates and land the account you have been working on. School takes up a big chunk of your life, but it doesn’t define your life’s success. I believe that having experience, having life skills, and knowing how to communicate are important for success.

The pressure to be successful in school is taking away from being a successful person. Learning to study well and ace a test is important to pass classes in college, but I won’t need the information that I memorized for my science class to be able to make good life decisions and be a good person with depth. I want to be hired based on the person I am and because I’m capable of doing the job well and that I will be an asset, not because of what my college GPA was.