go to the cheapest school possible for the first year since all the entry level classes are essentially the same thing, the only thing you’ll miss are the parties and slutty freshman chicks getting drunk for the first time.
Get the basics out of the way, and then find a school which has the best department in whatever area you want to study and go from there.
no one here has mentioned the atmosphere of going to a technical/community college. the people going there aren’t there for the party. they’re serious about school.
they’ll be some that are getting prerecs for 4yr schools and others are getting the classes to help with promotions and raises. you’ll meet people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities. In every class I was in people that had problems got real help from other students as well as faculty. we didn’t really have much of the “clique” issues that carry over from HS into a 4yr.
there are also some fun elective classes. I took a couple of metallurgy class. really enjoyed learning some of the skills of being a blacksmith and cnc programing.
also you’ll be2-3 yrs older and, hopefully, you’ll have learned how to study and use your time wisely.
since you’re in TX check this out http://www.austincc.edu/
[quote]Aggv wrote:
go to the cheapest school possible for the first year since all the entry level classes are essentially the same thing, the only thing you’ll miss are the parties and slutty freshman chicks getting drunk for the first time.
Get the basics out of the way, and then find a school which has the best department in whatever area you want to study and go from there. [/quote]
The best thing about freshmen girls is there are thousands of new ones every year.
That’s what I used to say. Now I have 3 daughters.
[quote]Steel Nation wrote:
[quote]Aggv wrote:
go to the cheapest school possible for the first year since all the entry level classes are essentially the same thing, the only thing you’ll miss are the parties and slutty freshman chicks getting drunk for the first time.
Get the basics out of the way, and then find a school which has the best department in whatever area you want to study and go from there. [/quote]
The best thing about freshmen girls is there are thousands of new ones every year.
That’s what I used to say. Now I have 3 daughters.[/quote]
[quote]libanbolt wrote:
im a junior in high school and i really want to go to a 4 year university. i live in texas and i plan on going to a state school since private schools and out of state schools are expensive. the universities i have in mind are sam houston state university and stephen f. austin state university
i have a 2.676 and my class rank is 471 out of 777. i plan on getting a 3.0 gpa and above before i graduate high school
i have met multiple seniors who have plans on going to a community college after they graduate. some say its because of their grades and others say its because universities cost too much. i really don’t want to go to a community college. i want to go to a university.
i always thought it was kind of easy to pay for school since universities hand out need based scholarships to people who are not rich. my dad is a taxi driver so he does’t make a lot of money but he makes enough to take care of both of us. sam houston and stephen f. austin is around 15k a year.
if you have gone to a university can you tell me how hard it was to get accepted and how hard was it to pay for it.[/quote]
unless your ideal major leads into a career path relatively easy, then it ain’t worth it, I’d pick a trade or something, otherwise you’re stuck paying student loans like me, my undergrad only pays off if I decide to get a masters in something more profitable
[quote]sardines12 wrote:
[quote]libanbolt wrote:
im a junior in high school and i really want to go to a 4 year university. i live in texas and i plan on going to a state school since private schools and out of state schools are expensive. the universities i have in mind are sam houston state university and stephen f. austin state university
i have a 2.676 and my class rank is 471 out of 777. i plan on getting a 3.0 gpa and above before i graduate high school
i have met multiple seniors who have plans on going to a community college after they graduate. some say its because of their grades and others say its because universities cost too much. i really don’t want to go to a community college. i want to go to a university.
i always thought it was kind of easy to pay for school since universities hand out need based scholarships to people who are not rich. my dad is a taxi driver so he does’t make a lot of money but he makes enough to take care of both of us. sam houston and stephen f. austin is around 15k a year.
if you have gone to a university can you tell me how hard it was to get accepted and how hard was it to pay for it.[/quote]
unless your ideal major leads into a career path relatively easy, then it ain’t worth it, I’d pick a trade or something, otherwise you’re stuck paying student loans like me, my undergrad only pays off if I decide to get a masters in something more profitable [/quote]
True, a lot of community colleges offer associates degrees and certifications in some much needed areas. A friend of mine just went to a community college and basically got an associates and certified in radiology technology and he is getting hired right after graduating with some pretty good starting pay.
Canadians have it easy.
20 years ago I paid about $2000US or so each year. I worked all summer to pay for it and also worked while I went to university.
That’s why when you see some student complaining there about student debt and they say it’s 20,000 bucks I’m flabbergasted.
Two best posts on here are magick and fisch’s. Read them and listen to them OP.
I personally would have gone crazy if I went to a community college first, and it is completely legitimate if you feel the same way and just want to get to university, regardless of the trade-off in money spent. Sometimes your psychological peace of mind is the most important my friend, it certainly was that way for me. 
I would remember two things when you go to college: the first is like magick said treat your college like it is your job to do well, because it is. Nobody’s going to get you up on time, nobody is going to make sure you study, hell in fact a lot of people are going to try toget you to skip classes! Your thoughts become words, words become actions, actions become habits, and habits form your character and sucess. It sounds like you are coming to realize this with your talk about bringing your high school gpa up above 3.0 and I think thats a great thing. Plenty of very successful people got 3.0s in high school, or worse. What they all had in common however was they made the realization you have, and worked at improving themselves with the goal of success.
You can certainly still have a social life and you SHOULD. Thats at least as much of an education as class is, but only one of those things is getting you a job and it ain’t the party scene.
The second thing I would remember is that you should take your time in college to build a network of people. Network with professors, administration ppl, local business owners, everyone in a position to help your path to success. This is different from being a suck-up or a flattering brown noser. You shouldn’t bullshit people like that and most are wise to it (I certainly was when teaching my students).No, what I mean is getting to know them, talk to them, help them out or in general just treat them as you aould a co-worker or visiting team of professionals working with you on a project–being genuine this way. Networking is the other great lesson to be learned, because in the end it is who you know that gets you places. Its a constructive social life haha :). I am only marginal at this, but my father and friends are great at it and I see how much easier it is for them than the people who never learned to stay in touch. Im getting better however.
The second thing I would remember
[quote]Aragorn wrote:
I personally would have gone crazy if I went to a community college first, and it is completely legitimate if you feel the same way and just want to get to university, regardless of the trade-off in money spent. Sometimes your psychological peace of mind is the most important my friend, it certainly was that way for me.
[/quote]
Oddly enough, I had a friend that did go to a community college for 1 year before going to a 4 year. He absolutely hated it, said it felt just like high school. I’ll admit I would have been less then thrilled if I had to have went to a community college, the atmosphere wasn’t something that fit me well. I’m glad you made this point because I completely overlooked it, but it’s definitely relevant.
And the rest of your post is without a doubt good advice, stuff I wish I would’ve paid more attention to my first couple years at college.
One last thing I forgot to mention OP, and I don’t remember seeing anyone else mention it. Even though your gpa from high school isn’t amazing, in college you get a clean slate. Which is great news, because they actually do give some scholarships a year or two into your college career based on your performance in college. Meaning, if you start off your college career with a great gpa you could earn a couple thousand dollars a year scholarship. So whatever steps you take to improve your gpa in high school, continue using (and improving) those measures and use them to start off college strong.
How easy it is to get one of these scholarships depends on which college you go to and what department your major is in, so I can’t in all honesty tell you it’s super hard or super easy to get one of these scholarships.
And FAFSA is hit or miss depending on your situation. Definitely fill it out because it doesn’t take much time and you could potentially gain a lot from it. I was fortunate, while I have friends whos families are only slightly better off and they received no grant money because of it, despite the fact their parents don’t pay anything for their college. Again, slightly BS system but really there isn’t a great way for the government to know who’s family is or isn’t going to pitch in so it is what it is.
Good luck OP, many people don’t realize just how much effort can effect your grades. I’ve done very well in college, but like others have said I came into it treating it like my job and never let myself be satisfied just with passing a course. If you can have that mindset, you’ll do well in most things in life.
[quote]Aragorn wrote:
I would remember two things when you go to college: the first is like magick said treat your college like it is your job to do well, because it is. Nobody’s going to get you up on time, nobody is going to make sure you study, hell in fact a lot of people are going to try toget you to skip classes! Your thoughts become words, words become actions, actions become habits, and habits form your character and sucess. It sounds like you are coming to realize this with your talk about bringing your high school gpa up above 3.0 and I think thats a great thing. Plenty of very successful people got 3.0s in high school, or worse. What they all had in common however was they made the realization you have, and worked at improving themselves with the goal of success.[/quote]
Personal experience hurts =( I wish I tried harder in college.
But, that + the 1.5 year outside of it taught me enough that you shouldn’t take your education for granted. A bit late to learn it, but at least I’m still young and have my family backing me in my latest educational venture. I finally realize just how blessed I am. Pathetic that it took me this long to learn it.
[quote]fisch wrote:
Good luck OP, many people don’t realize just how much effort can effect your grades. I’ve done very well in college, but like others have said I came into it treating it like my job and never let myself be satisfied just with passing a course. If you can have that mindset, you’ll do well in most things in life.[/quote]
I think many college grads have no idea about this reality. They just think that coming out of school with that degree will get them hired somewhere.
Like Aragon said, your thoughts eventually become your action. If you treat what you do seriously, then you can party all day long and still succeed.
I actually love my new chosen profession, and find myself spending hours just working on it without even knowing where the time went. I really wish I felt like this back when I studied in college or studied for the LSAT. There really is a significant difference between studying done with motivation and studying done in apathy.
This is a distinction that so many people fail to recognize, I think. We’re so drilled into thinking that time spent=learning. I strongly disagree. In fact, I think now think approaching education like that is utterly pointless.
You must be MOTIVATED. If you’re not, then all the fucking time you think you spend working will be nothing but pointless wasted time.
Didn’t read any responses but my college experience.
*takeaway
I learned a lot about time management, hard work, and that I am very resilient. If I had to do it all over again I wouldn’t change any of it because it made me tough and I showed myself that if I can do that for four years then the rest of my adult life should be a breeze.
If you can I would say at the very least try to have a part time job and pay for most of your expenses because it will make you a better person in the long run.
It may sound cliche but. What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. including paying for college
[quote]Highjumper wrote:
It may sound cliche but. What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. including paying for college[/quote]
Unless it’s Polio or TB and leaves you stricken for life with a permanent disability =P
[quote]Highjumper wrote:
Didn’t read any responses but my college experience.
*takeaway
I learned a lot about time management, hard work, and that I am very resilient. If I had to do it all over again I wouldn’t change any of it because it made me tough and I showed myself that if I can do that for four years then the rest of my adult life should be a breeze.
If you can I would say at the very least try to have a part time job and pay for most of your expenses because it will make you a better person in the long run.
It may sound cliche but. What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. including paying for college[/quote]
Bro, there is no way you could have paid for tuition + accommodation + living expenses (+ have anything left over) with just money from working student jobs.
Join the military, college is real cheap…
[quote]usmccds423 wrote:
Join the military, college is real cheap…[/quote]
I don’t think anyone should join for college benefits. It can be an incentive but people should join only if they actually want to be a soldier, Marine, etc. One of the more annoying things to hear was, “I only joined for the college benefits.”
[quote]zecarlo wrote:
[quote]usmccds423 wrote:
Join the military, college is real cheap…[/quote]
I don’t think anyone should join for college benefits. It can be an incentive but people should join only if they actually want to be a soldier, Marine, etc. One of the more annoying things to hear was, “I only joined for the college benefits.” [/quote]
I was just joking.
I wouldn’t call 4 years of your life “cheap.”
[quote]magick wrote:
[quote]Highjumper wrote:
It may sound cliche but. What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. including paying for college[/quote]
Unless it’s Polio or TB and leaves you stricken for life with a permanent disability =P[/quote]
Very true
[quote]Gettnitdone wrote:
[quote]Highjumper wrote:
Didn’t read any responses but my college experience.
*takeaway
I learned a lot about time management, hard work, and that I am very resilient. If I had to do it all over again I wouldn’t change any of it because it made me tough and I showed myself that if I can do that for four years then the rest of my adult life should be a breeze.
If you can I would say at the very least try to have a part time job and pay for most of your expenses because it will make you a better person in the long run.
It may sound cliche but. What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. including paying for college[/quote]
Bro, there is no way you could have paid for tuition + accommodation + living expenses (+ have anything left over) with just money from working student jobs.[/quote]
Bro
I really wouldn’t call working at a factory/warehouse for $15 per hour a student job…
Besides what was the point in questioning me?
[quote]magick wrote:
I think many college grads have no idea about this reality. They just think that coming out of school with that degree will get them hired somewhere.
Like Aragon said, your thoughts eventually become your action. If you treat what you do seriously, then you can party all day long and still succeed.[/quote]
I definitely did this. I didn’t party per se, but I definitely blew things off to have fun, realizing full well that I was going to pay the price later and deciding that it was ok. The key thing though was that I refused to do badly in a course, so I would pay whatever cost it took to make grades happen–whether that was constant studying instead of playing while all my friends were out playing ultimate frisbee, or whether that was pulling an all-nighter so I COULD play frisbee, or go out, or hit the late showing of a new movie.
I wouldn’t take that strategy first though lol–I had bad study habits because I test well and I know it. There was a lot of both and I made a lot of mistakes, but one thing I never did was accept bad performance. If I had to make changes I made them, regardless of how it affected my social life. I remember miserable days studying in front of a window to a sunny day (it would have been much less miserable if I had decided to study AWAY from any windows…but I’m a glutton for punishment )
[quote]This is a distinction that so many people fail to recognize, I think. We’re so drilled into thinking that time spent=learning. I strongly disagree. In fact, I think now think approaching education like that is utterly pointless.
You must be MOTIVATED. If you’re not, then all the fucking time you think you spend working will be nothing but pointless wasted time.[/quote]
Big fucking ditto on this. You have to be focused on what you’re doing at the time you’re doing it. Just like the gym, you can spend all day reading muscle mags but until you actually put sweat and blood into something to TEST it out in real life, you’ll never know if it works and you won’t really “have” that knowledge. Testing is verifying. Not just for professor’s exams but the actual process of pattern recognition.
Let me say it again–pattern recognition. Pattern recognition and linking concepts together is more than just memorizing factoids for a multiple choice exam. You have to actually be able to USE these concepts and manipulate them if need be. That’s part of “critical thinking skills” and one of the biggest thing that undergrad does NOT teach anywhere in the country.
Like magick said, all the fucking time you think you spend working is wasted time if you do it half-assed (think of how many people you see at the gym that “have been working out for 5 years” with nothing to show for it). Obviously nobody’s perfect but it’s the effort to do it that ends up making the difference through the years.
^ I think part of the problem is that many people are forced to get that piece of paper just to qualify for a job and “learning” in a class room is completely different than “learning” on the job, imo. I struggled mightily with motivation in college; although, I did fairly well.
It was hard for me to go from being an NCO of Marines to giving a 5 minute presentation of why the sky is blue… I think a lot of people are like that. They would be exceptionally focused at a new job and learn the necessary skills & information to excel, but are first required to focus on subjects/topics completely unmotivating to them.
I think we do a poor job of allowing for program variation when student backgrounds can vary so much.