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The environment that surrounds you during your studies has a large impact not just on how well you study, but how much you learn. Going to school is not only about learning from books, it is about learning from new experiences, new people, and new places. For these reasons, I think that studying in cities enables people to get the most out of their education.
Cities are the meeting point of politics, culture, capital, technology, ideas, and people. Cities are hubs through which everything passes, abstract or concrete. No matter what we choose to study, from biology to politics to poetry to business, we can study it in an urban setting. But cities are diverse not just because cultures, for instance, meet other cultures, but because they meet politics, which meets people, which meets business, which meets art, which meets architecture, etc. The city is a wonderful, confounding flurry of activity that calls for the mind to be just as active. Going to school in such an environment can only help you engage with your studies and get the most out of them, not just in terms of grades but in terms of learning and growing as a person.
In the city you will find yourself challenged by new cultural, political, scientific, economic, business, technological, creative, and moral, ideas. It will likely be frightening at times, but it will also force you to reconsider your position on a number of topics. Reconsidering and reflecting upon what we think to be solidified knowledge and norms is one of the best skills education can give us. It is also one of the best ways to stay successful in business and in life. Studying and living in the city allows us this opportunity.
Are there downsides to living in the city? Of course, and they are many. Among the downsides to living in cities are that you have less space to live in, less peace and quiet (this is often the price of activity), potentially higher rates of illness due to closer proximity, more expensive housing, lower-paying jobs, a kind of paradoxical lonesomeness depending on the neighbourhood you live in, and potentially higher crime.
But even if a person does not want to live in a city for the entirety of their life, that does not mean they cannot study in a city for a short portion of their life. Studying in cities provides great opportunities for growth and experience (both personal and professional) which should not be passed up. If you can study in a city, you should.
The information contained in this post is considered true and accurate as of the publication date. However, the accuracy of this information may be impacted by changes in circumstances that occur after the time of publication. Ashton College assumes no liability for any error or omissions in the information contained in this post or any other post in our blog.
