The list of things you can do at Harvard is too long and intimidating to be repeated here. Besides, you will probably hear it all during the student group fair. The list of things that Harvard students have already done is even worse for your ego because it make you aware of all the things you will not do at Harvard.

Given these depressing facts, it might be tempting to give up on college altogether and start an Internet company. Why an Internet company? You're at Harvard--the answer to that question should be self-evident.

Trust me, I have been tempted, especially since my brother is currently worth a cool $800,000 thanks to his entrepreneurial efforts. Especially since that amount of money could pay for my Harvard education at least six times over. It is enough to make even me, someone without even the wherewithal to create my own Web page, be tempted to learn what IPO means.

Lest some of you are already typing furiously in Java or C++, one word of caution--this editorial is not meant to convince you to give up your Harvard education. On the contrary, despite the urge to pack up and move to Silicon Valley and sunshine, there are several compelling reasons to stay right here.

First and foremost is the fact that while my brother may be buying leather jackets and cell phones right now, he cannot buy himself a college education, even if it has a sticker price. And that education is not just a debt that will begin accruing interest as soon as I graduate, it is also an investment. As Harvard economist Caroline Hoxby can tell you, my education's yield will far exceed the initial cost. If you have not taken Social Analysis 10, "The Principles of Economics," that means that I will probably earn back the amount of money I spent (or that my parents spent) on my education in my lifetime. In fact, I will probably earn quite a bit more than that. Enough, perhaps, to send my own child to an outrageously expensive college.

Those students who are leaving college in droves to join Internet start-ups will (hopefully) find themselves returning in a few years to complete their degrees. That is because life is not about money. There, I've said it. Even in the Bay Area where I live, where 65 new millionaires are made everyday, life is not about money.

I can tell that despite my protestations several of my readers have already dropped the paper and caught the next flight to Palo Alto. That's okay, I don't mind. Those who have stuck with me this far are obviously the people who agree that life is not about money.

In fact, life is about learning and there's nowhere in the nation you can find more of it than here. It is true that experiences other than college can afford tremendous opportunities for learning. One can also learn by starting one's own Internet company. But there is something unique about this particular learning environment, and it's not just the number of books in the libraries.