The poster revealed that despite his parents paying for a junior-high entrance exam cram school and Kumon lessons, and despite going on to a six-year integrated school with a hensachi (deviation score, a common gauge of academic difficulty in Japan) of around 65 and then enrolling in the humanities department of a top regional “former imperial” university, he is now in his late twenties and unemployed. He says he’s currently seeing a psychiatrist and a counselor, and that he still feels weighed down by his grandmother once telling him she wanted him to become a university professor. The thread was split over whether this points to a possible developmental disorder, how his parents handled their investment in his education, or whether he’s simply making excuses — with plenty of other highly educated posters chiming in to admit they’re struggling too.
My parents poured a ton of money into my education and this is what came of it
Elementary school was Kumon and a junior-high entrance exam cram school
It's a six-year integrated school, but I'll keep it vague so I don't get identified.
Back then it had a hensachi of about 65 on the Yotsuya Otsuka mock exam (a major prep-school benchmark)
Tsukuba University Komaba
Kaisei
Shibuya Kyoiku Gakuen Shibuya
Tsukuba University Attached
Hiroo Gakuen
Waseda
Kaijo
Komaba Toho
Hongo
Musashi
Azabu
Is it one of these six-year schools?
Same boat as me then
Props for actually holding down a job, though
I'm finally clearing 10 million yen a year as a researcher now, but my postdoc years were hell
Guess we're not really in the same boat lol
That's actually a solid job
So jealous
Didn't you just say you don't have a great job?
There isn't really one
Getting his parents' approval is basically OP's whole life goal
I always thought people who make video games were cool
I wanted to do creative work like that
My parents are already at retirement age though, so it's not looking good…
That's just a nickname people use for regional former imperial universities
'Palace' is said with a bit of irony
And the fact that you're introducing yourself with your past credentials like this says it all
I'm not happy.
I'm seeing a psychiatrist and a counselor
Do you actually tell your psychiatrist and counselor that you're starting threads on 5ch and chatting with random strangers?
Being born into a family that could pay for all that already makes you lucky
Because I hated studying
I mean, if you are happy, that's totally fine though
It's just been one failure and setback after another… I can't feel happy
What kind of guidance is right really depends on the kid's stage of development
But it's parents' first time raising a kid too
Saying that now doesn't really change anything
That's no excuse
The point is you should look into it and use your imagination ahead of time
Pushing a kid to study isn't inherently bad in today's world, but saying things like 'get into XX University, become a doctor' can only backfire, however you slice it
But you know, my grandma telling me she wanted me to become a professor someday —
I still hold onto that as my goal
Good pressure is fuel for life
That's because you were already plenty smart to begin with
OP apparently hates studying, though
OP got told to aim for Tokyo University since childhood, stayed trapped by that through his whole adolescence, and ended up broken by the pressure — his abilities got wrecked along with it
Sure, you might have a shot at becoming a professor, but it's obvious way more people don't make it than do
That's not someone you need to put up a front for
This, exactly
Being honest with your doctor
Once OP can actually do that, it'll mean he's grown mentally
I do tell my counselor about my past
I just haven't mentioned the part where I start threads on 5ch
He's already in his late twenties so that'll be tough
And he's got a developmental disorder on top of it
Can't, because of the illness
He can't even accept that he's sick, so he can't get to the starting line for treatment
If you graduate from a good university, there are plenty of jobs where you can earn well without taking on risk
So people tend to go for those instead
Honestly, starting a business has nothing to do with being smart
Being good with people matters way more
Background and Key Points of This Discussion
It’s not unusual for someone who got into a top school through the junior-high entrance exam process to later struggle with career choices and employment, and cases where the scale of educational investment doesn’t match the outcome come up again and again online. The term “palace” used in the thread is slang for regional former imperial universities, used somewhat ironically in contrast to the University of Tokyo (“Todai”) — it’s easy to mistake for a slur, but it isn’t meant that way. Also, the developmental disorder mentioned is the poster’s own self-assessment, and the post doesn’t make clear whether he actually has a doctor’s diagnosis. Given the nature of anonymous forums, details like educational background and income are likewise unverified self-reports, so they should be read with that in mind. The thread was split between harsh takes blaming the poster’s own “lack of effort” and sympathetic ones pointing to “how he was raised or his environment,” with no clear consensus reached.
※This article is compiled as an excerpt and summary of the 5ch (Nandemo Jikkyo G board) thread “I graduated from a prestigious school but I’m unemployed, what should I do?“
