nellebelle

>>>Part of the reason for going to college is to figure out what you
like, and what you don't.>>>>>

Maybe, if you are wealthy enough to afford hanging out at college for years. There are certainly other ways to figure out what you like or don't.

In today's society, college is primarily a job training facility. People speak of college as *expanding your horizons*, but most people are there in order to get better qualified to be hired.

Many degree programs are set up with such specific prerequisites, that it can easily take four years to get through even if you know exactly what you want to major in when you start. Besides, liking a class about something doesn't always mean you will like doing it as a job.

Mary Ellen

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Kiersten Pasciak

--- In [email protected], "nellebelle"
<nellebelle@c...> wrote:
> >>>Part of the reason for going to college is to figure out what
you
> like, and what you don't.>>>>>
>
> Maybe, if you are wealthy enough to afford hanging out at college
for years. There are certainly other ways to figure out what you
like or don't.
>
> In today's society, college is primarily a job training facility.
People speak of college as *expanding your horizons*, but most
people are there in order to get better qualified to be hired.
>
> Many degree programs are set up with such specific prerequisites,
that it can easily take four years to get through even if you know
exactly what you want to major in when you start. Besides, liking a
class about something doesn't always mean you will like doing it as
a job.
>
> Mary Ellen


Mary Ellen,
I must say that I agree with you from my experience. Perhaps it
would have been different if I had gone to a less expensive school
or actually been encouraged to try lots of different classes "on for
size".

I went to CWRU, an expensive private school that ran about $22,000 a
year. When I chose the school, many things factored in, including
majors offered, college size, etc., but mostly I went because it was
close, my brother was already there, and I did not know I had other
options. I enrolled having earned many scholarships based on my high
school record and test scores.

UNfortunately, you need to keep a certain GPA to maintain
scholarships. This made me too afraid to take some of the classes I
would have found interesting and led me to seek out any class I
thought would be "easy" enough to get an "A" to balance out
any "B"'s to keep my scholarship. (3.6 GPA required to keep the
money)I wound up having the largest scholarsip amount lowered after
the second year when my GPA fell to a 3.4 and lost a science
scholarship completely when the government cut the funding. I piled
on the classes and earned the BS in 3 years so I could get out
before having to pay tuition for the next year. This schedule cut
out any chance of exploring classes.

I would recommend very seriously looking at less expensive college
choices and trying classes a few at a time (or even 1 at a time)
before putting up the money for a degree program.

I would also be wary of scholarship benefits that are not promised
for the duration of the program or have standards set very high.
This really makes it hard to enjoy the work.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVED college, but it was NOT for the classes.
It was all about the relationships I made while there.

Kiersten

Linda

>>>Part of the reason for going to college is to
figure out what you like, and what you don't.<<<

Yes, as far as that which is included in the college
system and the career choices it supports. My current
work is in a field that I didn't even know existed in
college. And the vast majority of my interests
(including academic ones) were not found through
attending college.

-Linda




__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
All your favorites on one personal page � Try My Yahoo!
http://my.yahoo.com

queenjane555

> I must say that I agree with you from my experience. Perhaps it
> would have been different if I had gone to a less expensive school
> or actually been encouraged to try lots of different classes "on
>for size".

Or maybe a different type of school. My first college experience was
at Antioch, a 4 yr liberal arts college in Yellow Springs Ohio. The
basis of their "program" is the co-op, and students spend half of
their college experience in far-flung locations ranging from organic
farms and animal sactuaries, to democratic elementary schools, to
researching endangered species in the rainforest. Unfortunately i got
too homesick to even be away at college, so i dropped out before
going on co-op. Yes, its an extremely expensive school, but i got
lots of financial aid when i went there, the bulk of which was just
"forgiven" tuition (not a scholarship in which i would have to
maintain a certain GPA or take specific classes.) My family was
pretty solidly middle class and i know that kids in "poorer" families
got more financial aid.

> I would recommend very seriously looking at less expensive college
> choices and trying classes a few at a time (or even 1 at a time)
> before putting up the money for a degree program.

I think the important thing is to find a college that is the right
fit for what you are looking for. And "going to college" doesnt have
to mean packing all your stuff, moving halfway across the country,
and signing on for the 4 yr degree program. Going to college can mean
taking a class or two in the evening at the local community college,
or even the local university. (I know this depends on where you live.
Where i live in Michigan there are tons of 4 yr universities within
commuting distance.) That's why i suggested the teenager look over
some college classes and see what sparks her interest. One of the
best college classes i ever took was one called Evolution and
Behavior, and was about how animals' genes influence their behavior
(including humans). It was at the local CC, and the professor LOVED
his subject. I mean he was obsessed with it, and you couldnt help but
love it along with him. I would never have thought that psychobiology
was a field i'd get into until this class.

One thing i wasnt prepared for when i went back to school (community
college)as an adult, was how distracting and immature alot of the
other students were, who had come straight from high school and didnt
seem to want to be there. I found that evening or saturday classes,
in which there were more working adults who were trying to balance a
job and/or family obligations, and who really wanted to *be* there,
were more satisfying to me at the time. Just a caution for an
unschooled teenager who might not be so accustomed to being
surrounding by others for whom "compulsory education" extends into
college due to pressures from family/society.


Katherine