College has a spotty track record in the United States. Although the nation’s top universities are the envy of the world, it’s also true that a stunning number of students learn little, fail to graduate and take on debt that they struggle to pay back when they don’t complete.

One of Bob Moesta’s and my findings in our new book Choosing College: How to Make Better Learning Decisions Throughout Your Life that debuts this week is that a core reason many students struggle in school is that they lack an intrinsic passion and purpose for being there in the first place. Many students are going because someone else expected them to attend or because they are trying to get away from something else in their lives.

One question for students in these circumstances is what could they be doing instead of college to boost their odds of success?