Corneo

I had a discussion with my roommate the other day about the reason for going to college. His reason for going to college was so he can learn from the experiences of college. He said that some people lose that mentality along the way, some students just focus their time into their school work so they can graduate and start having a career. I told him that I was the latter. I didn't come from a rich family. I knew in high school that there was only one person I can truly count on in life. That person was myself. I knew I needed to go to college and graduate inorder to secure a future for myself. I don't see how this idea could be wrong. Perhaps if I didn't have any financial obligations, I would attend college and perhaps chosen a major that allowed me to have more free time.

Granted I am a little bias to other majors that are labeled "cake majors". I don't see how some parents or students themselves would pay thousands dollars of college tuition to study something that isn't quite marketable as a career.

astrahl

College has become a default for people who shouldn't even be there. Look around your campus and think of all the wasted money these kids are using up just because they don't want to leave the academic lifestyle. Trade schools are not encouraged enough.

I don't know how many more cheerleader-type communications majors this country needs (sorry to all you cheerleader-type communications majors), but I truly think that college has become the new high school.

My decision to go to college was kind of a given too, but for different reasons. My parents encouraged me to get a degree for a career. I wanted to be an independent, very well educated woman, and college was a crucial step for me.

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soma

Same.

I think college is just the thing people are expected to do after highschool. There isn't a whole lot of thought put into it. Well... This was at least the case with me. I went to a college prep highschool where it was very very much expected you would attend college after graduation.

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Corneo

That is correct, I know a few seniors that are into thier 6th year, with no end in sight.

Glory's Sun

woah woah woah.. you mean.. college is for learning???!!


ok all jokes aside. I think it's a comfortability issue for alot of people. People wonder what's going to happen to their friends or where they're going to end up or they just are unsure of the job market or they want to get away from their parents and college is the best choice. I don't think that they shouldn't be there as it could serve some good and they may actually get a handle on things better later in life.

Now, when someone has been there (as Corneo said) for 6 years and no end in sight, then it starts to become an issue. That person has become to adjusted and just doesn't want to leave.. but then with all the free beer around.. who can blame him/her?

flstf

A college degree is necessary today to even get your foot in the door of many employers much like a high school diploma used to be in the past.

rlbond86

That would be me, in 4 years.
Of course, I'm double-majoring

Sgoilear

I share your view point Corneo. My folks aren't made of money and I have three siblings also. No way were they going to be able to afford to help me with college. I joined the military for a few years to get some experience and now that I'm out I'm very focused on school. This doesn't mean I'm not enjoying the experience college has to offer, just that I know why I'm here.

I see quite a few people in my classes who think like your roommate and I just sigh, shake my head and get back to studying.

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cellophanedeity

I see nothing wrong with going to school to learn, not to become marketable.

If you can afford it, university is a great place to be. You take courses to learn, and maybe eventually do something, but the focus is to learn. I think you have it wrong when you say that this is what it's becoming. The reasoning behind universities throughout history was to create well knowledged people.

I don't know how you do it in the states, but up here in Canada, we differentiate between college and university. College is for people who are learning toward a career, whereas university is for people who are aiming at enhancing their knowledge.

Mind you, I may be biased. I intend on taking as many years in university as possible, until the funds run out.

Rodney

You should go to college to learn, but there's no question that going to a different place and meeting people who think differently and come from different backgrounds is very valuable.

I grew up in a pretty blue-collar town, and in college I was exposed to people who came from much different backgrounds and thus thought a lot differently than I did. I studied with them, lived with them, worked with them, absorbed their ideas and gave them some of mine back.

Of course I went there to learn something that would earn me a living, and I did. But the college experiences themselves were valuable, too.

I have to laugh about one thing: all you guys kvetching about the pampered people who go to college just because they can't think of anything better to do. Used to be a lot worse, back when community college was essentially free (here in CA) and state university cost a big $100 a semester tuition (it wasn't even called tuition, it was a "fee."). People who had no interest in school would go to community college or the local state university just so their parents wouldn't pressure them about getting a job. Aand of course, they got to keep living at home.

Gilda

You present these things as if they're distinct things, and the one best reason is to get a mareketable degree.

I don't really see "the college experience" as a good reason to go to college, but there's certainly nothing wrong with getting something out of the social aspects of college life. I do think that it seems a bit backwards for someone who isn't there to learn to be criticizing those who are.

I think either extreme, though, misses the main point, which cello outlined earlier, which is that college is there for you to learn, to been an adult educated in a variety of subjects. There's nothing wrong with getting a marketable degree, but that way of looking at it is treating college like a trade school. Probably half of my World Lit class is just taking up space, not really interested in learning any more than the minimum needed to get through the course.

I wish students, both the "college experience" people and the "marketable degree" people could see what a marvelous opporunity this is. My problem as an undergraduate at USC was not having the time to take all the courses I wanted to take, not having enough time for all those lit and history and science and sociology courses that I just couldn't fit into my schedule.

There's a movie, "Springtime in the Rockies," which has a rich man waking up after a bender that resulted in a blackout to find that he's somehow ended up with an old man who is now his personal valet. We find out later on that the old man had been in college. For forty years. His father's will left a trust that paid for his living expenses and college tuition for as long as he was in college and making progress towards a degree, but cut him off the moment he graduated. So he just kept taking courses, changing majors every few years and making sure he never had the credits to graduate. He finally had to leave because there were no courses left he hadn't taken.

For the remainder of the movie, he acts as a kind of expository shortcut, because he knows everything.

I've always thought that that was a man who knew how to make the best of college.

Gilda

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Corneo

I use to live in Canada. University means the same thing as college here in the States. In the states, 2 year institutions are refer as either junior college/community college or trade school.

Gilda

The difference in the states is usually size. Bigger schools are called Universities, while smaller four-year schools are called colleges. There are technically specific criteria for a University, but for the most part, it's about size and the number of programs.

Gilda

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Carno

That's true, but by and large people in the US interchange college and university freely, with no regard as to which it actually is.

If I could, I would stay in school for as long as I had the money. College life is FUN. Granted, I would switch to a different school than the one I currently go to though. But just because a lot of people with money attend college, doesn't cheapen the experience for the students who don't have much money. You'll still be getting that degree that will lead to a better job, regardless of how many people don't take college seriously. So, why care about the reasons people go to school? If they didn't go to school, you'd still be in the same boat, so there is no point in worrying about them.

And hell, rich people make school better. I mean, if only poor people went to college, who would buy the beer?

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Fob_Magi

well not quite, in actuallity most people I know never use the word University as a stand alone word... College is the only word used for education after highschool. I have never heard "I attend university" or "I'm a university student" from a US born person. Although there is a difference between college and university.

I personally went to college (university actually.. lol) to prepare myself for a job... and ended up having a little fun along the way... I came from a very poor family, my dad died when I was 17. I went to college entirely on student loans and the meager grants I was able to get. I have worked a full time job since I was 16... w/o any breaks. I took my sweet time and enjoyed my college experience, but I had to cut it short and finish my degree (actually my second degree) as I was tired of being broke and my debt had broken the 50k barrier.. lol.. but I took a job in the same town where I attended college (again.. university) and I am still sorta living the college lifestyle.. although without any classes and with alot more money :P

For the people who take college extremely seriously... take a break and enjoy the scenery.. you're young and could be having the time of your life with the awesome availability of beer and easy women (or men.. but do men ever cease to be easy?)

For the people who do nothing but party, or pursue degrees that may have no future application.. stop wasting your time and yours (or your parents) money... you can live the college lifestyle without being in college.. then decide what you want to do later.. or just suck it up and get a real degree.. I mean I was able to take a full load in Electrical Engineering, Work 40 hours a week and still have time to date and party on the side... whats your excuse?

remember that line they fed you as a kid is bullshit... sometimes you can have your cake and eat it too... however I also feel like I have aged 12 years over the course of the last 6... but to hell with it...

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Carno

I know, people interchange college and university freely. That's what I just said.

And I have heard plenty of people say, "My university..." Or, "The University of Florida sucks donkey dick."

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The_Jazz

I don't think that I ever considered NOT going to college (or a university ), although there were always questions about how to pay for it. I was a good enough athlete to attract attention from the Division I schools although I didn't go that direction in the end.

When I started college, my goals were very different than they were when I graduated. As an incoming freshman, I was going to run for all 4 years and get good enough grades to get by, spend a year or two in Europe after graduation running on the B or C track circuit and try to qualify for the 96 trials in either the 10k or the marathon. By the end of my sophomore year, I probably would have quit the team if I weren't addicted to the endorphines to the point of being in pain if I didn't run and the fact that most of my close friends were runners too. I was going to get my bachelors and then go on for a Phd in History and a job teaching. That didn't work out either, but it's a lot closer to what actually happened than my intentions going into the college experience.

I think that the valuation of education has changed in the past decades. Fifty years ago, a high school degree wasn't required at all for most blue collar jobs. These days, the lack of a high school degree is going to confine you to the bottom rung of society almost always. Any degree that is remotely white collar requires at least an associates degree, if not a bachelors, and there are a lot of jobs that require a masters for the ground floor job that pays $25,000 a year. At the same time, a lot of companies have discontinued their training programs, so new hires are expected to be able to hit the ground running.

But the University of Florida does indeed suck donkey dick. What's your point? Go Vols! [/end threadjack]

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Jinn

I'm a far better self-teacher than any I've yet had, so if I want to :LEARN:, I teach myself. I go, however, because its free and people, for some asinine reason, won't believe I'm 'educated' until I have that piece of paper.

College is an institutionalized waste of an 'education' for me, and I'd probably go with your roommate.. its about developing as a person, not an academic. My interpersonal skills have dramatically changed, and I've learned much more about myself than I learned about scholarly topics.

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Carno

Well that's great for you, but not everyone is like you. Do you seriously think that the average person could pick up a book and teach himself quantum physics as well as he could learn it from a professor? What is your major?

College is not about developing as a person. Sure, people do develop while at school, but it's because it's a brand new situation to them, not because the school is geared towards that goal. Does your school have backrub sessions and hair braiding support groups or something? I don't know of any employer that would give two fucks about someone being developed as a person because they went to college. Sure, it's good to have stable, mature people working for you, but that's not why specifically they would hire a person. "Well, he has no works skills and knows nothing about biochemistry, but let's hire him anyway, because he's a nice guy!"

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Glory's Sun

I think by "developing as a person" the poster is trying to say that he learns how to handle himself in unique situations. This is vital to anyone in any field of work. A person can have all the knowledge in the world but won't be worth anything if they can't handle themselves when the pressure is on or in unique situations. College brings about all kinds of new and interpersonal situations which will help later in life. I think the combination of making college into an interpersonal experience as well as a place to learn a person is better suited to have a great career.

soccerchamp76

The way I have heard it best is this:
A college degree is equivalent to a high school diploma 20-30 years ago.
An advanced degree is equivalent to a college degree 20-30 years ago.

Many people go to college not to learn a specific subject, yet because it is more of a necessity in today's society.

In reality, even your major [except in certain instances] does not have a major bearing on post-collegiate life. The only cases would be if you wanted to go to get an advanced degree (Medical School, Master's Programs, PhD programs, etc.).

Personally, I see college as just another step in my education. I plan on being a doctor so I still have the 4-year step of med school, the 3+ year step of residency to look forward to.

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match000

So I've posted some thread similar to this kind of stuff before.

Well, when I started college I always had the mentality of grades/learning first, but I also knew I should be social and have more fun. When will you get 4 years again in life to have this kind of freedom?

As I progressed through college, I lost track of the social side after my first year (never had it big in first year anyways) and the 4.0 challenge became an obsession. I found myself having a totally minimal social life but a beast of a study life.

In my 4th year, (now), having achieved good grades, I have looked back and regretted not having developed more socially: making more friends, making closer friends, making more girl-friends, etc.

I think either extreme is bad: super studier or super socializer. Like many people (wisely) say, everything in moderation. The most successful people I have noted study their butts off when they have to, and use their time wisely to socialize to the max when they can.

Its all about time management and efficiency.

I think alot of it (falling into these kind of tunnel-vision traps) has to do with getting too focused and not stepping back and looking at the big picture. Sure, in hindsight its always easy to point out mistakes, or to criticize too strongly (heck without having studied so hard I wouldnt be able to go to a good grad school). But, really, it is just as easy to not appreciate your opportunities, and to just sit back and let certain things slide.




I disagree with treating college/university like a trade school. I am an engineer, and at times it certainly is a fact that most of us engineers all study and work on projects nearly 24/7, except for maybe friday nights. But after seeing the flip side and how socially awkward many can be, its just as important to develop your people skills. And college is the most convenient and important time to do so.


Also, while there are certainly great teachers and professors out there, college is also just as much about learning to how to study on your own. Noone is going to hand-hold you through the material. I go to a huge university, where I learned that to succeed I have to rely on my own persistence. That means reading, going to office hours for help, etc. Noone is going to spoon-feed me this shit.


I have also realized that its never too late to start to do anything. So if you have bad grades, then even if you're a senior, start studying! If you have a minimal social life (like me), then even if you're a senior, start socializng! Get out there, meet people. Its never too late. Only when you're 95. Then maybe...