Rajat Suri, co-founder of Lyft (via Zimride) and Presto, has caught social media’s attention after stating that his children should not perhaps go to college. An alumnus of the University of Waterloo, Suri dropped out of a fully funded PhD/MBA program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2008 to pursue his entrepreneurial path.
Rajat Suri, Lyft co-founder and an MIT dropout, said he didn’t want his children to go to college.
He argued that practical work terms across six companies provided more value than classroom learning, questioning college for his children amid AI’s teaching capabilities. “Most of what I learned at school was at my work terms at Waterloo. In most cases, I’ve felt the social benefit to college, especially if able to live independently, has as much benefit as the academics.”
I worked at 6 different companies there, experienced vastly different work cultures, management styles, team dynamics and business models,” said Suri. Some 17-year-olds have the maturity of a teenager. Others are 30-year-olds trapped in 17-year-old bodies.
“I went to MIT for a PhD/MBA after graduating with two degrees at Waterloo, and yet I’m thinking that my kids probably shouldn’t go to college,” said Suri. “This will be so popular among Bay Area parents!” said one user, while another added: “It feels like it depends on the kid.
