College Advice?

[Luke]

Don't take college advice from strangers on the Internet. This is a life altering decision you are about to make/

But here's some advice from an Internet stranger:

Talk to your high school academic adviser if you haven't already.

Visit colleges and universities and speak with their academic advisers.

You will more than likely change your major unless you've known what you have wanted to do your entire life...but you also grow and that may change. Think about the institution that has the best overall reputation.

Speak with the university's financial adviser. Don't stress about money. I know, easier said than done, but once you are in college you'll study your tail off, work you ass off*, party your butt off, and after you have no rear end left you'll be prepared for life as an adult.

Speak with college recruiters and ask them about their experience.

In short, think of college as a career choice (even if you change your major). Being able to say "I got a blah blah blah degree from blah blah University" can and will sometimes get you a job on the spot.





*Most colleges will provide you with a job if you seek one out, and student loans have incredible rates. Also, if you're good at a trade, start your own business. I almost put myself through undergrad and grad school by making my own catering company.

[8bit]

I've always liked option 2. Community college classes are usually a little bit easier, smaller in size, and less daunting in general than university classes. If you can get a good start with a sold 3.2+ GPA in community college you should be able to have some nice options for finishing up school elsewhere. This is a much better road than going to a university, slacking off, and then coming home a year later with a 2 point something GPA, only to have to be retaking classes at community college to bring your GPA backup so you can try again.

IMO the hardest thing about your situation is wanting to be out of your house and on your own. Almost everyone your age wants that (lord knows I did). But if you know you are prone to slacking, not making the best decisions (skipping school, drinking, getting stoned, etc), getting out of the house is going to be way more hurtful than helpful.

If you can be strong, think ahead and plain ole suck it up for a while, take option 2, stay home for just two years, save yourself and your parents the money, work hard in school, stay away from chilling too much with any old friends who are not trying to better themselves, and earn the jump up to a bigger school. I think will be glad you did.

[the King]

Sell 17k car, use money to move to New York. Make movies, live long and prosper.

[Ack]

Sell 17k car, use money to move to New York. Make movies, live long and prosper.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, oxy isn't REPO!

[Jmustang1968]

The problem with the CC route is that sometimes it is hard to transfer in. If you get accepted now, you might really want to think hard about starting.

[oxymoron]

Thanks for the advice guy's!

Don't take college advice from strangers on the Internet. This is a life altering decision you are about to make.

Of course but It's always nice to hear different perspectives which is exactly what I was looking for. I don't think I would've heard any counselor give Samson's perspective.

@Mustang

The CC offer a program called Transfer Admission Guarantee (TAG) which will guarantee admission to a mid-tier UC like UC Santa Barbara.

[Jagosaurus]

Thanks for the advice guy's!

Don't take college advice from strangers on the Internet. This is a life altering decision you are about to make.

Of course but It's always nice to hear different perspectives which is exactly what I was looking for. I don't think I would've heard any counselor give Samson's perspective.

@Mustang

The CC offer a program called Transfer Admission Guarantee (TAG) which will guarantee admission to a mid-tier UC like UC Santa Barbara.

That's the kind of program you need to look at. Transferring in (to a better school) without a stepping stone program can be tough. I got lucky, transferred to a tier 1 university after one year at a local school (had enough high school AP hours to meet minimum curriculum hours & a solid GPA).

Mrs Jagosaurus was an academic advisor over a similar stepping stone program, a joint venture between a junior college and said tier 1 university. You had to be accepted into this program & the requirements were strenuous. There was no guaranteed admittance into the degree of your choice but if students met the minimum requirements, they'd help you, although it may not be the major of your choice.

Transferring depends not only on the university but the degree/program you're transferring into. The college of engineering or biomedical sciences likely has much higher requirements (and competition) compared to communications or philosophy.

Research that affiliation program well. Read the fine fine print. Look into transfer requirements by university & degree (hours completed upon applying, GPA, etc).

My wife still works in higher education and always stresses the importance of face to face mtgs to students asking her advice. Go talk with acamedic advisors for different degrees (also see if one specializes in the TAG program), admittance counselors, professors, students, and financial advisors. Good luck

[Forlorn Drifter]

I think its all been pretty well covered. IMO community college and then transferring is the best thing possible if you have a program like you mention. Saves money, which despite what some will say, can become a big weight on your shoulders.

I'd also ignore all the partying advice given here- if you can pull it off, go ahead and do it and do it the way you want. As someone who can't do any of that, I say go for it and screw what anybody else says, assuming you want to. If you can get sex, drugs, or alcohol easily and without much forethought, freaking do it.

[jp1]

I think its all been pretty well covered. IMO community college and then transferring is the best thing possible if you have a program like you mention. Saves money, which despite what some will say, can become a big weight on your shoulders.

I'd also ignore all the partying advice given here- if you can pull it off, go ahead and do it and do it the way you want. As someone who can't do any of that, I say go for it and screw what anybody else says, assuming you want to. If you can get sex, drugs, or alcohol easily and without much forethought, freaking do it.

Come again?

[marurun]

In concession to Dave, I will amend my earlier point. Don't worry as much about which tier of school you go into, but if you have a specific program in mind, make sure they are strong in that program. For example, Kent State University here in Ohio is a pretty average secondary state university (secondary as in not the MAIN state university, like Ohio State), but they have an excellent fashion school, a decent library school, and some neat STEM programs for folks interested in stuff like LEDs. KSU is not a top tier school by any means, but in certain areas they rank very well. No university has a lock on English 101 or Algebra, but when you get into the field-specific classes, that's where your choice is more critical. I've heard Harvard's undergrad classes are actually pretty unspectacular, for example.

*Most colleges will provide you with a job if you seek one out, and student loans have incredible rates. Also, if you're good at a trade, start your own business. I almost put myself through undergrad and grad school by making my own catering company.

I misinterpreted this when I first read it. To clarify, since I had trouble, many colleges have student employee positions open for students who need them. Maybe you work in the library, or for food services in the cafeteria, or in a department office. Pay is usually minimum wage, but it's still money.

Also, student loans these days are not nearly as good deal as they used to be, so try to get through with fewer rather than more. Why do I say this? Interest rates are up. Unless you are a major credit risk you can get better rates on a car or a house. That and college loans can never be discharged in bankruptcy. Thanks to changes in bankruptcy laws, new college loans will follow you until they are paid. If you end up in hard times, making minimum wage, you can still have your wages garnished to pay your loans if you default.

Even with this, peeps with college degrees, on the whole, do better than those without, though, so keep that in mind as well.