Bill Gates Shares What He Would Study If He Was in College Today

Bill Gates took to Twitter to explain what he'd pursue if he was coming out of college in 2017, and he revealed several regrets he had about life.

Bill Gates
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Image via Getty/Ida Mae Astute

Bill Gates

If you're looking to someone to use as a model for success, you could do a lot worse than Bill Gates. Becoming the world's richest man is a pretty high bar to clear for young people, but you might as well aim high before adulthood strips your dreams and ambitions away like paint thinner.

In a Twitter thread he shared Monday, Gates expanded on a question he tends to get from people just starting out in their professional careers: what would you do if you were just starting out today? Microsoft's co-founder said he would choose to study artificial intelligence, energy, or bioscience, and then launched into a discussion of what he wished he knew back in the day.

1/ New college grads often ask me for career advice. At the risk of sounding like this guy…https://t.co/C68mjJ5g44
2/ AI, energy, and biosciences are promising fields where you can make a huge impact. It's what I would do if starting out today.
3/ Looking back on when I left college, there are some things I wish I had known.
4/ E.g. Intelligence takes many different forms. It is not one-dimensional. And not as important as I used to think.
5/ I also have one big regret: When I left school, I knew little about the world’s worst inequities. Took me decades to learn.
6/ You know more than I did when I was your age. You can start fighting inequity, whether down the street or around the world, sooner.
7/ Meanwhile, surround yourself with people who challenge you, teach you, and push you to be your best self. As @MelindaGates does for me.

Even if you don't plan on studying artificial intelligence or pursuing a career in bioscience—and the average person reading this probably isn't—the overarching advice is something anyone can take to heart, young or old. If someone of Gates' stature can recognize systemic barriers holding back people all over the world, so can the average person living alongside those fighting uphill battles. 

Gates' point about intelligence is also a worthwhile distinction. Lots of people carry themselves with an air of superiority either because they go to college at all or find themselves in a "prestigious major," but what you study and the way you process the world around you is not a true measure of your intelligence. There are artists and mechanics and professionals of all sorts who might not grade out the highest on a traditional intelligence test, but are capable of a different sort of mastery in their fields.

At the end of it all, Gates closed with a fitting note.

.@melindagates @WarrenBuffett @sapinker 14/ This is an amazing time to be alive. I hope you make the most of it.

That's a sentiment anyone can get behind.  

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