Like anything, school has its ups and downs. You’ll have your own list of downs, and they’re all real and important to you. But there’s a secret that the roughnecks at the back of the bus aren’t letting you in on: if you play correct there’s a lot that you can take from your time at school.

Not taking advantage of what’s on offer is a bit like being a bank robber who stands around moaning about “all this boring paper and stuff” when he should be stuffing his bag.

To get the most out of education, you have to be smart. Not smart as in A*, but smart as in not a doofus. See the opportunities in front of you and make them work for you.

Learn techniques to help you deal with those things you don’t like – the irritating Geography teacher, those kids in the year above, PE, whatever – and take advantage of the things that are going to make you successful, attractive, rich and unspeakably powerful* in years to come.

That’s what school has to offer you, if you want it. You do want it, don’t you?

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Still not sure about school?

Have a look at where education can take you - browse through all of the different jobs in the job centre section of this site or play the career matcher game to see what job might suit you.

It's also worth having a read through these true stories of how education made all the difference for these care leavers.