Life experience vs. classroom education

Any evaluation of the type of knowledge received through "life experience" compared with that of traditional methods of learning, such as completion of college courses, must take into account what type of life experience is being considered, but almost every type of job experience can provide profound and lasting benefits for an individual. For instance, a 6-month stint as a burger jockey may not appear to be particularly valuable life experience, but any type of job - even a minimum wage job - will help young people learn a number of valuable skills and traits that will help them succeed later in life, both professionally and academically.

Some of these specific benefits that are derived from experiential learning that are not, generally, gained from traditional course work include learning how to get along with co-workers, how to get to work on time, how to take...
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