Skilled or Not = Success by Rachel

Skilled or Not = Success by Rachel - March 2015 Scholarship Essay

Leadership(noun): 1. the power or ability to lead other people 2. capacity to lead.

I led once. Then I realized no one was following me. Leadership is not wholly dependent on the person leading or attempting to lead; leaders require followers. In this world you can either be a leader or a follower. You can't have one without the other. To say that college success is determined by or necessitates leadership skills is absurd. That would mean only leaders can have a successful higher education. I do not believe that leadership skills are necessary for college albeit they maybe helpful in the student's triumph in post-secondary school.

Let's break that down and assume that success in college, at the least, means graduation with a degree. To graduate one must attend class and do the assigned requirements and receive a passing grade. Does a person need leadership skills for that? When a person sits in on a class they are essentially a follower, listening to and learning from an instructor or leader. All that is required to attend a class is presence which is not influenced by someone's capacity to lead. Moving on, to attain a passing grade in school a student must pay attention and diligently apply his/herself to whatever the subject may be through reading, experimenting, writing, etc,. Neither does this ask for leading ability unless it is the ability to lead oneself in application and discipline to get the appointed work done. At the most rudimentary level, college success, defined as college graduation, is more a follower's task than a leader's task.

I understand that leadership skills can be learned and developed as a person moves through life. Leadership books and classes are common things and easy to acquire. But the fact is, some people are born with natural ability to lead where some are just not. And those who do not come into this world so blessed may never reach a natural-born leader's talent and ease even with much study. It is not encouraging or fair to say that how someone is born ascertains his/her future in college.

An example of learning without leadership is high school. Studies show that a human's brain is not fully matured until age 21 which would include basic skills like leadership. Some mature leadership skills in most people are not yet at fruition among students in a high school setting. Despite that, most still graduate and learn from the experience. Why would that not correlate to college which is simply a more advanced and mature schooling? I believe it does. If students can graduate high school without leadership skills than so can a college student.

Beyond saying that leadership skills are not necessary for success in college, leadership is actually developed at college/university. A student learns to live without the immediate support of family, makes decisions, and steps into adulthood. A student learns to assert his/her self in order to adequately fulfill a job. Any leadership skills the student possesses before entering an institution is assistive in a student's adjustment to this radical transition. Since leadership is a skill eruditely obtained in college it is naturally helpful to already have conquered these abilities. In adult life leadership is an attracting force and useful and essential in dealing with people and running a business. But to say that it is indispensable to college prosperity is bit beyond believability.

Therefore, I believe that although leadership may help a student's adjustment to college life, it is not a necessity to success. College success is defined by graduation determined by grades which demonstrates more traits of a follower than a leader. Some people are born with it and some are not. Non-leaders have successfully graduated in the past just the same as leaders. Leadership skills are not a prerequisite but are, in fact, developed at a college. Good news for kids like me who are still working on such skills.