I also live at home. I'd rather not live on campus because of the whole "party" atmosphere as well. I don't get why people think that it is really cool to completely waste your money on college while all you do is get wasted and use lots of drugs. I'd even go so far as to say you'd get better grades living AWAY from that sort of environment off campus.
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Just thinking about college
- Thread starter irain
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I also live at home. I'd rather not live on campus because of the whole "party" atmosphere as well. I don't get why people think that it is really cool to completely waste your money on college while all you do is get wasted and use lots of drugs. I'd even go so far as to say you'd get better grades living AWAY from that sort of environment off campus.
Background: I've been to four colleges, and I'm on my sixth major. I currently have 293 credit hours. I should be getting a B.S., two B.A.'s, and a B.F.A. in the next year
just out of curiosity, why? and in what?
Probably because college is a completely retarded waste of time, other than the inevitable (but nonsensical) boost in pay that you receive once you get the sheepskin. I learned more smoking pot and watching my friend play Everquest than I did my first two semesters of college. Then I learned more reading Wikipedia in one afternoon than I did in all of my classes that week. Then the Wikipedia experience was repeated pretty much weekly for two years.
College is idiotic. If you can write your name legibly on a piece of paper (with guide lines so that you don't smush your letters together, no less!), you can get through any program just fine. Take me, for example. I'm a shamefaced graduate of the Navy's Nuclear Power School. I drank myself into unconsciousness the night before each and every test, and still graduated with a 3.44 out of 4.0. One of the instructors (who was probably full of ****) said that it was the toughest engineering program in the nation, next to that of MIT, according to some news article or study.
It was harder than any college I'd gone to (and again, I'm on #4, with 293 credit hours and a 3.6 GPA) -- but that's not saying much. College is ridiculous. The professors have pathetically low expectations, the graduation requirements are idiotic, and the system in general is a big fat pile of crap.
So why not get drunk and make an ass out of yourself? Why not try every psychotropic substance humanly ingestable? Why not drink and drug and screw and make glorious mistakes for however long you can extend the experience?
It's the only chance you'll get in life to be outrageously irresponsible... but probably live through it, probably not get arrested, and it's not even socially unacceptable! People expect college students to be irresponsible, hedonistic, diseased madmen! Even the Amish send their young out to be ridiculous for a while. It's healthy. Eventually you react to it with distaste, and then you can be a healthy and hardworking member of society who makes some fatcat in an office somewhere loads of money while said fatcat receives sandwiches, coffee, and oral sex from his secretary -- your future wife!
So treat college like the last four (or five, or eight) years of your life! I guarantee you, you won't regret it. Read Ayn Rand, and read Karl Marx! Drop acid and steal music! Chase girls around the duck pond, and get pulverized by frat brothers! Blow up your friend's volkswagen in a public place!
ENJOY!
Uhhhh, don't forget getting laid! I recognize I am on a comp forum and that there are a variety of interests out there, which is awesome, but college is a great place to explore life and place yourself in situations you are not used to, some better than others. I am not saying you need to go out and get wasted each night, but I am suggesting that for the same reason almost everyone on here has suggested living on campus to start, it is important to expose yourself to risks and new experiences and frankly getting wasted, once, once a week, once a night in college is ok.
I'm currently a junior at Boston College, who lives on campus. (Then again, if you're not granted four-years of housing, you'll be off-campus anyway your 3rd year.)
I absolutely love it here. If you have any specific questions, let me know.
I absolutely love it here. If you have any specific questions, let me know.
I don't quite understand how getting wasted will help me explore life or why exposing myself to that will help me in anyway.
EDIT: Lets maybe start a new topic so we don't hijack this one.
[offtopic]
I graduated May 1999. I was rejected for admission to the University of New Mexico due to my GPA, so I went to a community college (New Mexico State University)School A. I declared my minor as English Literature Major 1, iirc. I went there Summer and Fall of 1999, and worked in a radio station as a DJ
UNM accepted me after that, since I had a 4.0 GPA those two semesters B. I changed my major to Music Performance: Flamenco guitar 2. I quickly realized I was immensely outclassed by every other musician there, and switched to Music Theory and Composition 3 my second semester there. However, I didn't feel like I was very good with music, and my aspirations were low (I just wanted to be a high school band director), so I decided I needed some time out of college. So I joined the Navy in January 2001.
I was in the Navy for 1 year, 7 months, and 23 days. I completed all my training in the Nuclear Power pipeline, but around the same time I became increasingly aware of what I was actually contributing to by being in the Navy. So I got out. I couldn't claim conscientious objector status as an atheist, but they said that I "wasn't adjusting well" and charitably discharged me September 11, 2002.
I went back to school at New Mexico State University A, but the main campus. I decided to major in philosophy until I figured out something better 4. I took more general education classes (and only one philosophy class, since that was all they offered). They didn't offer a Nuclear Engineering Technology degree, so I couldn't complete that degree.
Then I decided I was sick of New Mexico and decided to move to Ohio, where my mom was (in-state tuition, far from New Mexico). I went to Bowling Green State University C starting in the Fall of 2003. They had a Creative Writing major, which I've always wanted to do ever since I was a child. I decided to chase my dreams 5. I also worked toward a degree in Philosophy 6, sorta, but I won't count it. I married my wife November 2005, and looked around and said "Holy crap!" and dropped out to work full-time to support us. I was six credits short of a BFA in Creative Writing.
She graduated May 2006, and we moved to Akron so that she could get her Masters in Librarian Science at Kent and work at U Akron. Since she was a staff member, my tuition is free
Sadly, they didn't have the BFA in Creative Writing, or a BS in Nuclear Engineering Technology, so I lost all that coursework. So I'm majoring in English 6 at the University of Akron D. Since I need to graduate quickly, I took 23 hours this past Fall and I'm taking 26 this Spring. Counting those hours, I've taken 296 credit hours. But I'm dropping one class (hopefully), so it'll be 293.
So yeah
I'm like a professional student... just not a very good one[/offtopic]
which is exactly why you should be doing it. college should be about being outside your comfort zone, that is when great things can happen.
There are other things people can do "outside their comfort zone" if thats so needed. I chose to attend college to help make me a more well rounded person.
I have had this discussion a many times with people and no one really agrees with me and think I'm a loser.
Maybe I am really missing out on something(but no one has me convinced), but thats quite alright because I am having a great time not doing that kind of stuff and I'm quite content with the path I am on.
To each his own.
EDIT: If you ever get a chance, read I Am Charlotte Simmons, it does a realistic job depicting college life and what can happen to a person who gets caught up in this "trying stuff you will never again be able to do" hype.
I have had this discussion a many times with people and no one really agrees with me and think I'm a loser.
Maybe I am really missing out on something(but no one has me convinced), but thats quite alright because I am having a great time not doing that kind of stuff and I'm quite content with the path I am on.
To each his own.
EDIT: If you ever get a chance, read I Am Charlotte Simmons, it does a realistic job depicting college life and what can happen to a person who gets caught up in this "trying stuff you will never again be able to do" hype.
in addition to the Navy Nuke school, care to elucidate upon what the other three were?
I will be brief so don't take my comments as inclusive of all my examples or views. I honestly cannot think of a post I have seen on here that I disagree with more than the views you expressed. I don't know if it is because of the nature of an engineering program, though I highly doubt it, but you have completely missed the entire point of college, which is premised upon a liberal arts education that exposes students to a variety of disciplines; we are not talking about grad school here. More importantly, I was exposed to a variety of subjects, which included the variety of views expressed about these subjects by my peers and professors. I am a better person because of these contributions, though clearly not all. I was afforded numerous opportunities to engage in independent thought and study with professors whose work I took a particular interest in. College provided me with many leadership opportunities, including: student government, athletics, greek life, and even becoming a police officer. It's not simply about "the pay bump," though there is absolutely nothing wrong in that being one of the consequences of graduating from a college. The pay increase is actually as good example of my point. It's not like a group of academics got together one day and say ok lets have these higher edu schools and just going to our school will result in a higher salary. No, there is obviously a basis upon which the pay increase became associated with college, i.e., the knowledge and cross-disciplinary exposure you receive. This is very different than the graduate/professional school level.
I could go on, but I doubt it will change much based on your earlier post, though I could not help but respond when I read what you said above. Anyway, good luck with wikipedia and the pot, I am sure it will serve you well.
Thank you, my point exactly! It is one that you cannot understand and appreciate until you have gone through it. That's not to say you cannot have a healthy appreciation for the value added by new experiences, but even then your perspective will change.
Hah, you're kidding right? Those prices are for a studio to a one bedroom apartment which is far out of the range of the majority of college students around your age. If you're not too keen on living on campus or dorm life just rent a room in an apartment. Depending on the place it can be a nice comprimise betewwn the social aspects of living with other people and the comforting aspects of having your own place (sorta). Ever better if you can find one with students from your school.
I have my own reasons for not wanting to live on campus as opposed to my own room elsewhere but that doesn't mean its for everybody. Doesn't hurt to try it out for a bit and if it doesn't work then move on...
You really should smoke some headies a few times and think about your life and goals.
Kalis, although I agree completely about Wikipedia, I think that you are underestimating the education aspect of college and the opportunities that it can provide.
Great
Constructive disagreement is always a good thing -- which I learned from reading a psychology textbook in middle school I'm willing to bet I've been introduced to more disciplines (in college, at least) than you. I love the liberal arts, don't get me wrong. Learning is a wonderful thing. I just think that the current school system is a terribly poor way to go about it.
You were "afforded numerous opportunities to engage in independent thought?" Please don't wait to be afforded opportunities! Create them!
What's good about leadership? What do you do with these leadership opportunities, once they're "provided" to you? Do you lead others to opportunities where they will be afforded opportunities to engage in independent thought? Do you provide them with leadership opportunities?
Leading explicitly denies the exercise of independent thought in others. You're saying "this way... or else." I'm not crazy about leadership. Discussion? Disagreement? Schism? These are fantastic. I like the idea of people walking as a group, though, not following a leader.
When did I say it was orchestrated? And when did I say it was all about a pay bump? I'm deeply offended by your apparent assertion that I, a kid slightly left of the Dalai Lama, am doing this for money I went to school to learn. I learned, but not in the classroom. In fact, I've corrected too many of my teachers not to get a bit arrogant about this. For instance, just a couple weeks ago I had to tell my Humanities teacher that the Synoptic Gospels were Matthew, Mark, and Luke -- not John, Matthew, and Mark. That's not an error of trivia -- that means he doesn't know the content of the Gospels, doesn't know what "synoptic" even means, or doesn't care. That's shameful. Not that I'm preaching adherence to the Word of God here -- I'm an atheist -- but because it's a despicable lack of comprehension in a Doctor of History. Not because anyone would die over this, but because it is a severe deficiency in the quality of education I was attempting to receive!
For $300 a credit hour, I expect to learn -- not to be casually misinformed. I can be casually misinformed by Wikipedia for free.
I actually don't smoke pot, and haven't for some time. I don't drink alcohol, or smoke cigarettes (although I used to, I quit recently), and I'm completely monogamous. I'm trying to become a vegetarian (it's tough for me), and eventually a vegan. In short, I believe myself to be a rather ascetic individual. I believe that the meaning of life is to find what makes you happiest and what helps you make the greatest contribution to the happiness of the world in general. A necessary (the most important, to me) component of that is knowledge.
So I'm not denying the value of an education deeply stewed in the liberal arts. In fact, I wish that middle school was more like high school, high school more like college, and college far more intellectually rigorous. I want more diversity in classes, not less. I want more general education requirements, not fewer. I want college to be ten times as hard as it currently is, and I want people to have to work to get through it.
Again this passivity! This is the core of our disagreement. You are not actively participating in your own evolution. You are letting it be done to you. Like the women in the olden days said about sex, "just lie back and think of England." You learn more effectively when you do, when you teach others -- as countless studies have shown. Learning should not be instruction. Learning should be investigation. Unfortunately, by the time we reach college, it's generally impossible to be motivated self-teachers -- or even learn at all, in many cases
Why do you question the value of a responsible alcohol/entheogen experience? It's an experience, which means it's inherently good unless it intrinsically or extrinsically results in a negative effect whose magnitude is greater than the benefit
So you weigh the risks and benefits, do what you can to minimize the risks, and enjoy "the great waves of eternity flowing through the basses of Bach." Have a few beers! Kiss a girl you don't really know! Disagree with a teacher! These are all good experiences, and I would say that they are better than being told that Gothic architecture has pointed arches and Romanesque architecture has rounded arches, and yes -- that is a friggin' test question. I heartily despise the idea of being a well-rounded person. I imagine a little fleshy ball of BigPrince, just kind of sitting there and rolling around uselessly. Working a 9-to-5 job. Being well-rounded. He rolls home, up the ramp onto the couch, and softly engorges himself on smaller meaty balls.
Well, grow some tendrils, man! Don't be neat and pleasant! Be an OFFENSIVE LUMP OF PROTOPLASM! Reach for things that interest you, even if society doesn't approve. Recoil from things that bore you. Be lumpy, uneven, and different! Adhere to your passions!
BE A STRANGE LUMP!
This is the best advice I've found in this thread thus far. First of all, it doesn't matter how many AP classes you take if you get 2s, 3s, and 4s on all of them. I have plenty of friends who took dozens of the classes and only got a few 5s; it's better to take 1 or 2 AP classes and get 5s on the exams than six or so and getting a few 3s, mostly 4s, and a couple 5s.
Standard exams are extremely important. More important, in fact, than your AP tests - and likely more important than your GPA. The valedictorian of my class (out of 440 kids) got rejected from the schools you mentioned because her test scores were mediocre (30 on the ACT).
You'll need a 33, 34 on the ACT and a perfect 4.0 unweighted (you can't get above a 4.0 unweighted on any ordinary scale...) if you want a shot at MIT and a scholarship. You'll need tons of extracurricular activities (as this poster mentioned, which is why I liked his/her post so much
)Figure out a way to differentiate yourself, apart from academics. Good luck
Oh, and count me in on the staying in the dorms advocacy group - I pay 650 per month rent for my apartment and I'm considering moving into the dorms. 1200, let alone 1600, is simply too high.
Tuition should always be greater than board, if at all possible
If I was a wealthy man, I would just go to college full time forever. I love school. I love the thought of learning about a career without actually having to work.
i am with you on that one
the OP wants a private, boston area college and while that is prestigious, there are easier ways to make more money than being an architect
i would hate to think how many years the OP would have to work to pay off school expenses if that is his lot in life...but being a doctor or dentist from a private boston area school is not as bad and it's conceivable that one could have all loans paid in full by mid-30s or so
i have met people who went to very expensive private colleges to study something virtually unmarketable in the workplace like sculpture or poetry, but in those cases the student came from money, or were older students who had made a chunk of change earlier in life
in the end, however, i think most people will feel better about themselves if they actually learned something in college that enriched their lives mentally as opposed to having received some practical career training
the good thing is that you, like me, went to cal poly and the cost of education was/is very reasonable so hopefully, most likely, you are not under a mountain of debt from college
i hope you are well on your way to paying off student debt you incurred
but could you imagine if you took out student loans and studied architecture at stanford or usc? how many years would it take at an average architect's salary to pay that off?
my dentist went to usc and he complained about how long it took him to pay that off, and he made crazy big money
personally, i don't mind if i make good money or a pittance in life, but what bugs me are huge debts from credit cards and student loans...debt from owning a house though is not so bad since eventually property goes up and covers for most or all of the debt in the end
i wish w would take some of that money he is spending in iraq, and for tax cuts for the wealthy, and use it to make non public schools more affordable since the stanfords and usc's of the world do receive some free government monies...but obviously not enough
i am in the hole a bit more than $100K from my undergraduate education and i think it was worth every penny to go to an elite school. my income has tripled from what i was making when i went into school (doing the same profession - graphic design) and the networking opportunities are extraordinary, especially as the alumni from a top school tend to prefer to hire other alumni, so you have an automatic in at a lot of jobs. i think that there is a clear and measurable payoff from going to an elite institution, both in terms of your education and in terms of employment after the education if you are wise enough to know to take advantage of it.
as far as the loans go, a lot of people take forever to pay them off but what they do not realize is that paying over the minimum makes a massive impact on the payoff term. doubling your monthly minimum will make a 15 year loan only take 5 years to pay off.
as far as the loans go, a lot of people take forever to pay them off but what they do not realize is that paying over the minimum makes a massive impact on the payoff term. doubling your monthly minimum will make a 15 year loan only take 5 years to pay off.