"We're leaving together/but still it's farewell/and maybe we'll come back,/to earth, who can tell?

I guess there is no one to blame/we're leaving ground/will things ever be the same again?/It's the final countdown."

The final countdown. Those of us in the class of 2009 may not be leaving earth for Venus as depicted by Europe in the song that premiered in 1986 (the year many of us were born), but we are leaving. The 1980s trademark synthesizer echoes in my head as we near the final day…

But over that musical sound, a question occurs to me that I never truly asked myself during my college career: What else could I have been doing these past four years had I foregone my Marquette education for a different life experience?

A degree is not necessary for success or happiness. Bill Gates didn't have one when he founded Microsoft. Neither did President Lincoln, Walt Disney or Thomas Edison. Peter Jennings, Elvis Presley, Larry King: All famously successful folks without a college degree.

In many news articles and blogs, I've heard the argument that the necessity of a college degree is a myth. Though we graduate with a degree, many also graduate with loans they incurred while missing out on four years of earnings.

So I looked into it and tried to see what could have been if I hadn't troubled myself with this education. I found a few appealing jobs I could have adopted after high school. I could have auditioned to be one of those women who hold the cases on "Deal or No Deal" and worked hard at merely looking good and saying, "Hi Howie." I could have begun preparing to become president of the United States in 2024 when I will finally meet the constitutional age requirement. I could have worked as a construction worker or tried out for "American Idol."

Any of us could have made more than $50,000 a year as a funeral director, elevator repairer, fashion designer, cosmetologist, commercial pilot, or manager of fire fighting and prevention – all jobs that do not require a college degree, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and CBSalary.com.

But we didn't do those things. Though it is definitely possible to thrive without the diplomas we've worked for, our degrees are not trivial. Our Marquette education adds unique experiences to our lives that I'm guessing most of us wouldn't trade for anything.

We've grown in an environment that both nurtures and challenges us to become "men and women for others." The invaluable contributions of instructors, mentors and peers have guided this journey.

Yes, this is the final countdown. But it's also the acknowledgment that our time in this community provides the beginning of a new chapter of our lives filled with happiness, success and wonder. Just like the last four years.