At 14, I chose a high school based on my interests at the time. I regretted it for years.
Courtesy of Nicole Benedettini.
- In San Marino, students must choose which high school path they will follow around age 14.
- I went against the suggestions of my junior high teachers and decided to pursue my own interests.
- For years, I was worried that I had made the wrong choice.
"The scientific lyceum would be the perfect fit for you," my math teacher said. My Italian teacher disagreed. She noticed I was interested in writing, so she suggested the classical lyceum. Nevertheless, subjects like Latin and Greek, at the core of the classical lyceum, were anything but appealing to me. I felt confused and pulled in two different directions.
I grew up in San Marino, the third-smallest country in Europe, landlocked by Italy. I had the option to attend high school in San Marino or Italy. In both countries, at around age 14 you have to pick a high school with fixed subjects, which would set you up for your later studies. At that time, I barely knew which dance style I wanted to learn that year, yet alone what I possibly wanted to do for the rest of my life.
The choice wasn't easy
There are three categories of high schools: lyceums, technical institutes, and professional institutes. Lyceums prepare students for a wider university choice, while the main goal of technical and professional institutes is giving students a more practical education.
If you choose a lyceum, picking the perfect one can be burdensome. While the scientific and the classical lyceums are deemed as the best ones in preparing students for the toughest university degrees, you can choose something more specific, as I ended up doing.
My parents let me choose freely, pointing out that if I realized I had made the wrong choice, it would be quite easy to change schools during the first year.
After much consideration, I chose the high school of human sciences, following my own interests instead of my teachers' recommendations.
In addition to the core subjects of Italian, English, and math, there were also courses in theater, Spanish, political economy, law, and social sciences for me to take. As a bonus, this high school didn't have lessons on Saturdays, as many others did, so my choice was finalized.
My high school allowed me to pursue artistic interests
For me, high school was easy compared to junior high. I was able to maintain high grades while cultivating artistic interests like playing the guitar and singing. While I enjoyed this, it did make me worry a bit about my future studies. When I was ready for college, would I be properly prepared if I wanted to pursue, say, a scientific degree? I wasn't sure.
At some point, I realized that my focus on escaping the scientific versus classical dichotomy made me neglect considering other choices. As someone passionate about foreign languages and visiting new places, maybe the linguistic lyceum could have been the perfect place for me.
Socially, I was concerned about my choice as well. As a shy person in a small school, I made a few friends, but I was the complete opposite of popular. I pondered if going to a bigger school would have meant more opportunities to find people with the same artistic and cultural passions.
As you can see, my mind was all over the place and I was anxious about the decision I had made for a long time.
After years of doubt, I have made peace with my choice
In the end, I stayed at the high school I chose. I later attended University to get my bachelor's degree in information, media and advertising and later a master's in communication and information sciences. Today I am a writer, with a background in copywriting and social media planning. My high school prepared me adequately for my life and I'm at peace with the choice I had to make as a 14-year-old.
It took me a long time to completely shake off the feeling that I could have made a different choice. Therapy was helpful to reaffirm that choosing at such a young age is challenging and I made the best choice for me at the time.
Nowadays, I am proud of sticking to my guns and being guided by my interests and not what other people thought I should do.