CollegeitP

[Pyromancer999]

Since there's itP groups/threads like LGBTAitP and AustralasiaitP, I thought I'd try to start an itP group/thread for another large group of people: College kids.

So...this thread is sort of for generally talking about college in general, what you like/don't like, and other college-related stuff.

Some rules:

1. Try to keep religious stuff to a minimum
2. Please don't discuss adult sexual content
3. Don't be an arse

That does it. So....CollegeitP, go!

Clarification: The term "College" in the US == University for the UK.

[Castaras]

This College as in American Universities, or College as in one variant of Sixth Form for British people, or what? :smalltongue:

[Grinner]

This College as in American Universities, or College as in one variant of Sixth Form for British people, or what? :smalltongue:

How edifying. But what is a Sixth Form?

[Castaras]

Basic English school system (there's some places with middle school and upper, or something similar, not too sure on that one)

Playschool/Nursery from ages 2-4.

Primary School ages 4-11, with Reception, and Years 1-6.
Secondary School ages 11-16, with Years 7-11.

Then you get either Sixth Form or College. Sixth Form Years 12-13, which is mostly preparation for University, which can be taught at schools or some colleges. Other colleges teach apprenticeships and more practical courses. :smallsmile:

'tis a remenant our old system names, where instead of years 7-11/13 (depending on if the school did A levels or not), you'd have First Form - Fifth Form, then Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth.

[razark]

Some rules:

1. Try to keep religious stuff to a minimum
2. Please don't discuss adult sexual content
3. Don't be an arse
Well, that about ends the discussion of the standard college life, then.

(I guess there's still booze and music.)

[Haruki-kun]

Basic English school system (there's some places with middle school and upper, or something similar, not too sure on that one)

Playschool/Nursery from ages 2-4.

Primary School ages 4-11, with Reception, and Years 1-6.
Secondary School ages 11-16, with Years 7-11.

Then you get either Sixth Form or College. Sixth Form Years 12-13, which is mostly preparation for University, which can be taught at schools or some colleges. Other colleges teach apprenticeships and more practical courses. :smallsmile:

'tis a remenant our old system names, where instead of years 7-11/13 (depending on if the school did A levels or not), you'd have First Form - Fifth Form, then Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth.

I believe this would mean it's University.

[Sholos]

Probably the best thing that's happened to me is the ease of finding a genuinely welcoming group of people with likeminded interests.

[Nameless]

This College as in American Universities, or College as in one variant of Sixth Form for British people, or what? :smalltongue:

I was going to ask this myself. Our college the equivalent of American High Schools... age wise at least.

However, seeing as it looks like we're talking about uni's, I can join this thread. Currently in my second year. YAY! :smallbiggrin:

*goes back to studding* :smallannoyed:



(I guess there's still booze and music.)

Am I the only uni student who doesn't feel this? My entire academic year consists of stressing out about work and studding. None of these wild parties and drinking I see in all the films and what-not has happened to me yet and I've nearly finished my second year.

I must be a terrible student. :smalleek:

[Pyromancer999]

Well, that about ends the discussion of the standard college life, then.

There's more! Like academics! and chillin'.

Also, would it be better for everyone if I changed the title of the thread to UniversityitP or UniitP?

[Castaras]

Heh, I was half-joking when I posted my quip. :smalltongue:

College/University would work though. :3

I'm currently sat at home on the 4th day of my month off from Uni. Feeling pretty 'eh', quite honestly, and shaking my fist at the uni not letting me stay in my accommodation over Easter. Miss everyone. :smallfrown:

But will be going back before the Student Nationals (British Universities meet-up to find the best gaming society :smallbiggrin:), so just gotta relax before then. :smallsmile:

[Pyromancer999]

Heh, I was half-joking when I posted my quip. :smalltongue:

College/University would work though. :3

May end up just clarifying at the beginning of the thread.


But will be going back before the Student Nationals (British Universities meet-up to find the best gaming society :smallbiggrin:), so just gotta relax before then. :smallsmile:

Tell me more, as this sounds FANTASTIC.

[Dallas-Dakota]

This College as in American Universities, or College as in one variant of Sixth Form for British people, or what? :smalltongue:
Or College as we Dutch people know it?

And if so, do you mean MBO 2/3/4(Each a different kind of college, lasting those amount of years respectively), HBO or WO? Do you count if you only got your Propedeuse and don't know what to do yet?

Oh you know I beat you at this game, Cassie, easily.:smallamused::smalltongue:

[Qaera]

*goes back to studding*

Oh my... Can I help~? :smalltongue:

Uhm, I'm probably going to a local tech uni cause of money reasons. Still in high school for now.

~ ♅

[Nameless]

Oh my... Can I help~? :smalltongue:

Uhm, I'm probably going to a local tech uni cause of money reasons. Still in high school for now.

~ ♅

Nah, I'm good for now. Just reading up some academia about slash fics. Unless you want to do my reading for me. :smalltongue:

[razark]

Oh my... Can I help~?
Isn't that rule 2?

[noparlpf]

I'm turning eighteen next weekend, and I'm a sophomore at Bard College at Simon's Rock. I'll be finishing my AA degree this semester (assuming nothing goes too horribly wrong). Next semester I'm transferring to SUNY Stony Brook (again assuming nothing goes too horribly wrong), and I'm studying Chemistry and Biology.

One thing I would like to say to anybody starting college or university: Even if you place out of classes, unless it's something you're interested in, start with the lowest-level classes available. For example, I needed to take two semesters of the same language to complete an AA at this school. I had had enough Spanish in high school to skip Spanish 100 and take Spanish 101 as a first-semester freshman. So I did, figuring taking basic Spanish again would be boring. Then my schedule didn't work out well and I ended up postponing Spanish 204 (the next class--I have no clue how they number these things) until this, my fourth semester, and I had no practice with Spanish in between. Now I'm struggling through what should have been a fairly easy class, and regretting not just taking Spanish 100 and 101 sequentially as a freshman.

[Dr. Bath]

Am I the only uni student who doesn't feel this? My entire academic year consists of stressing out about work and studding. None of these wild parties and drinking I see in all the films and what-not has happened to me yet and I've nearly finished my second year.

I must be a terrible student. :smalleek:

Probably doing it right. I've been doing a fair amount (too much) of the drinkin and going out etc, but an abysmal amount of working so far. Doesn't work out in the long run.

Fun though.

@Cassie: I think someone I know is going to that. Never really joined in with the roleplaying soc at my uni, so don't know for sure.

[noparlpf]

Am I the only uni student who doesn't feel this? My entire academic year consists of stressing out about work and studding. None of these wild parties and drinking I see in all the films and what-not has happened to me yet and I've nearly finished my second year.

I must be a terrible student. :smalleek:

I think you're probably a good student, in that case. But you're not alone in not having wild drunken parties.
I don't drink or party or whatever. Of course, this being the US, I can't legally drink anything containing ethanol for another three years, but that obviously doesn't stop a lot of people. Although, that reminds me, I don't think there are many real "university parties" around here because it's a dry campus, so drinking has to be done surreptitiously, and we don't have frat houses or large common spaces or any real space to party in anyway.
On the other hand, I also don't stress out about work or study much. I'm a terrible slacker. I read, or play solitaire, or chill with friends, or waste time online, or practice this guitar stuff a bit, or occasionally watch shows or movies. And I listen to music a lot.

[Pyromancer999]

I think you're probably a good student, in that case. But you're not alone in not having wild drunken parties.
I don't drink or party or whatever. Of course, this being the US, I can't legally drink anything containing ethanol for another three years, but that obviously doesn't stop a lot of people. Although, that reminds me, I don't think there are many real "university parties" around here because it's a dry campus, so drinking has to be done surreptitiously, and we don't have frat houses or large common spaces or any real space to party in anyway.

Wow. That sounds awesome. It's the complete opposite at my university. Parties a lot of the time, alcohol flows pretty freely so long as you've got the money, and you can essentially party where you please, so long as it is not in a public building or outside. Even the local geek club throws ragers every week or two. Which sort of makes it hard to have friends, as I don't drink/party/etc. either. What sort of paradise university do you go to?


On the other hand, I also don't stress out about work or study much. I'm a terrible slacker. I read, or play solitaire, or chill with friends, or waste time online, or practice this guitar stuff a bit, or occasionally watch shows or movies. And I listen to music a lot.
Wouldn't all that make you an excellent slacker? :smalltongue:

[Tono]

To chip in, I don't party as often as you see on TV, but I still have yet to find out exactly what happened during Friday's black light party simply because nobody was sober enough to remember every detail.
Freshman year I joined a club and was lucky enough to meet people through that and party once a month. The next year a group of people that I had classes with threw one once every other week. This year its just me and a few friends who drink when we want, and they throw 'parties' whenever everyone wants something different.
And I am also on a dry campus. In fact, it is so dry you take all the empty containers on a sunday morning and spell out 'This is a Dry Campus. Be smart about your drinking please' with them.

That being said, the only reason I could ever drink with the people that I have drunk with over the past few years is because I like all the people I drank with. I can't have fun with people I don't like, and there has been many a night that I stayed sober, just because there was nobody I actually liked drinking with at what ever place. The people are more important then the booze and the parties to me.

[Anarion]

Despite what television would have us think, my experience is that the wild parties actually occur in late grad school or after you join the work force and then last until you have children. I had a very mild college life and never got drunk at all.

By the by, can I assume that anyone in this thread talking about being in college was born in 1990 or later? Because that scares me silly.

[SaintRidley]

By the by, can I assume that anyone in this thread talking about being in college was born in 1990 or later? Because that scares me silly.

For the most part, probably. There are still a number born in the late 80s who aren't yet done for whatever reason, like being a 5th year super senior finishing a third B.A or doing a really odd path through a major or two.

[AtlanteanTroll]

Not sure I'm welcome as I'm still a junior in HS, but I did a visit to Kenyon yesterday and I'm doing a visit to Ohio Wesleyan tomorrow.

[Kindablue]

Despite what television would have us think, my experience is that the wild parties actually occur in late grad school or after you join the work force and then last until you have children. I had a very mild college life and never got drunk at all.

By the by, can I assume that anyone in this thread talking about being in college was born in 1990 or later? Because that scares me silly.

'92. And yeah, most of the college parties I've been to have been a bunch of mid-twentysomethings and me. I'll try not to linger on that thought too much, though.

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

Well, not in Uni yet, but I'm going to McGill University next year. I plan on... enjoying myself. I'll be of legal drinking age too, which is going to be awesome!

[Icewalker]

UCLA! Bioengineering and/or Neuroscence major here. I tend not to do partying much. Although I may go to some raves if I can find any, both because I like them, and because I'm taking a History of Electronic Dance Music class (which is GREAT) and it's actually completely relevant.

I've actually had less luck with finding friends around campus? I think it's because I tend to be relatively quiet around new people, and I didn't find myself quick friends with the general nerd/sci fi/gaming club on campus, plus most of the classes I have been in are 100+ people because that's always the first two years for science majors. Got some good friends through the Shakespeare group here though, been in a few plays.

[Eldan]

Am I the only uni student who doesn't feel this? My entire academic year consists of stressing out about work and studding. None of these wild parties and drinking I see in all the films and what-not has happened to me yet and I've nearly finished my second year.

I must be a terrible student. :smalleek:

No, not really. I had 40+ hours work weeks, plus homework. I lived about 1.5 hours away from campus, as did almost everyone else, in various directions. I don't think I eever really went much to any parties. And that was pretty much normal.

Edit: I also met all the fellow nerds I know off-campus at the local warhammer store. None of them went to the same university I did. Actually, most never went to university.

[Whiffet]

For the most part, probably. There are still a number born in the late 80s who aren't yet done for whatever reason, like being a 5th year super senior finishing a third B.A or doing a really odd path through a major or two.

Technically, my sister was born in the 80s. She was born in late December of '89, to be specific. She finishes her fourth year and gets her degree next month.

[Moff Chumley]

Heading to Drexel in Philadelphia next year, barring me failing all my classes this year, which is, uh, definitely not off the table.

[Sholos]

Speaking on parties, there's a stupid big party culture here. Interestingly enough, the academics are still strong. Yay for mixing doing well in school and partying hard at the same time!

[Dumbledore lives]

I think it's a bit different here because the drinking age is 18, but from what I hear/have been to it seems that people head out to town to drink a lot, though there aren't too many parties at the dorms because the common rooms close at like 10, and there is supposed to be no drinking in public after that.

[Nameless]

Probably doing it right. I've been doing a fair amount (too much) of the drinkin and going out etc, but an abysmal amount of working so far. Doesn't work out in the long run.

Fun though.

@Cassie: I think someone I know is going to that. Never really joined in with the roleplaying soc at my uni, so don't know for sure.


I think you're probably a good student, in that case. But you're not alone in not having wild drunken parties.
I don't drink or party or whatever. Of course, this being the US, I can't legally drink anything containing ethanol for another three years, but that obviously doesn't stop a lot of people. Although, that reminds me, I don't think there are many real "university parties" around here because it's a dry campus, so drinking has to be done surreptitiously, and we don't have frat houses or large common spaces or any real space to party in anyway.
On the other hand, I also don't stress out about work or study much. I'm a terrible slacker. I read, or play solitaire, or chill with friends, or waste time online, or practice this guitar stuff a bit, or occasionally watch shows or movies. And I listen to music a lot.



No, not really. I had 40+ hours work weeks, plus homework. I lived about 1.5 hours away from campus, as did almost everyone else, in various directions. I don't think I eever really went much to any parties. And that was pretty much normal.

Edit: I also met all the fellow nerds I know off-campus at the local warhammer store. None of them went to the same university I did. Actually, most never went to university.

That's sort of good to know. Most of the hanging out or clubbing that I do do tends to be with people outside my university. I have friends at uni as well, I just don't socialise with them much outside of uni hours, although I guess not living on campus doesn't help much in that department...
Although we were planning on going to Annacy in June, which sounds kinda fun.

[noparlpf]

Wow. That sounds awesome. It's the complete opposite at my university. Parties a lot of the time, alcohol flows pretty freely so long as you've got the money, and you can essentially party where you please, so long as it is not in a public building or outside. Even the local geek club throws ragers every week or two. Which sort of makes it hard to have friends, as I don't drink/party/etc. either. What sort of paradise university do you go to?

Wouldn't all that make you an excellent slacker? :smalltongue:

Meh, it's not paradise at all. There is drinking and smoking, it's just done a little more privately. There are annoying people and loud neighbors and nasty bathrooms and all the fun parts of dorm life.

[Castaras]

Tell me more, as this sounds FANTASTIC.

Well, it's gonna be my first year there, but my understanding is that there's lots of gaming and meeting up with people from other universities. I'll be able to tell you more once it's happened. :smalltongue:

RE: My university's social stuff - Leicester's quite a nice place actually, for variety in things to do. There's the big massive parties that go on if you're that way inclined, but at the same time there's a huge amount of quieter places where small groups of people hang out at a house playing games, or watching movies ; and my personal favourite is the mass amount of societies that meet up each night, which revolves around whichever activity they might be involved in, then a trip to a quiet pub for a chat.

I find I'm kept very busy, in between working (sort of) by day and socialising by night. :smallsmile:

[SDF]

I'm in the middle of my most paper intensive week this semester. Just signed up for my last class next semester before I get my BA. Gonna take the LSAT and apply to some law schools. Psha

[Anarion]

I'm in the middle of my most paper intensive week this semester. Just signed up for my last class next semester before I get my BA. Gonna take the LSAT and apply to some law schools. Psha

Feel free to message me if you'd like any LSAT advice.

[Hbgplayer]

Currently in my second semester at Santa Rosa Junior College, which is about an hour (with out traffic anyway, ~60 miles) north of San Francisco. I enjoy it much more than high school as well, but I'm anything but a party person: I can't stand rap and most of the other "pop" music now days.


One thing I would like to say to anybody starting college or university: Even if you place out of classes, unless it's something you're interested in, start with the lowest-level classes available. For example, I needed to take two semesters of the same language to complete an AA at this school. I had had enough Spanish in high school to skip Spanish 100 and take Spanish 101 as a first-semester freshman. So I did, figuring taking basic Spanish again would be boring. Then my schedule didn't work out well and I ended up postponing Spanish 204 (the next class--I have no clue how they number these things) until this, my fourth semester, and I had no practice with Spanish in between. Now I'm struggling through what should have been a fairly easy class, and regretting not just taking Spanish 100 and 101 sequentially as a freshman.
(bolded mine)

I've got to say, I disagree with this statement. In my college, the lowest math level is basic arithmatic, i.e. 1+1=2 etc. It would take for ever to get to a transfer/degree level math class if one were to take that class and they didn't need it. Same with the english requirements.
I say take the highest level class in what ever subject that you are comfortable. For example, I took AP Calculus (for those not in the US, AP clases are basically a college level class at the high school level, spread out over the entire year) my senior year, and I placed into Math 1B (second semester calculus) according to the placement exam. I decided to take Math 1A, however, because there were several subjects in my AP class that I needed help with still. Its a good thing I did, because my math proffessor explained it in a way that I could understand it better, and now that I'm in 1B, I understand everything better.

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

Currently in my second semester at Santa Rosa Junior College, which is about an hour (with out traffic anyway, ~60 miles) north of San Francisco. I enjoy it much more than high school as well, but I'm anything but a party person: I can't stand rap and most of the other "pop" music now days.


Then find friends with better musical tastes who throw parties: Nothing is better than dancing to "Twist and Shout" by the Beatles at a party!

I have the option of completely skipping first year university, if I want to. I'm not sure what I'm going to do, though. I'm not going to be going straight into all 2nd year courses, that seems like a bad idea. I might take the first year to just experiment with courses though, knowing that I don't actually need the prerequisites for my actual year 2... OR I could spread the 3 years of courses over 4 years, and just take university really slowly... After the work-load of this last year, that's seeming more and more like a nice option.

[Moff Chumley]

Ohay, I have a ton of friends at SRJC. I've heard good things about it, although I must say: Santa Rosa is one of the most soul-crushing towns I've ever ventured through.

[Haruki-kun]

I transferred schools at the end of my junior year, so I'm likely to be graduating in six years altogether. Which means 2 years from know. Less if I can plan ahead.

Re: Parties.

They happen every weekend, but you don't go to one every weekend, usually. They happen every weekend because someone, somewhere, is probably having a party, but you don't always go. And even if the party is crazy wild, you usually only go as wild as you want to, you can drop in, have a beer, and leave.

[Ceric]

On the subject of skipping lower-level classes, I recommend not doing it. I took AP Calculus in high school so I could have skipped one or two quarters of my required math series and gone straight into 21B or 21C (can't remember). I started with 21A anyways and I'm glad I did, because I swear there were a few lessons that I'd never heard of when I learned it in high school. Every school teaches slightly differently, even if it's supposedly the same course. But more importantly, taking a class that you already know most of allows you to breeze through and get a high grade (good for GPA padding). And if you're a first-year and everything on campus is new, at least the academics won't be new as well.

I also recommend joining a club as a first-year. Yeah you can make friends in your dorms, but meeting upperclassmen and grad students can be pretty useful as well. One guy in my (fairly small) wushu club is a math grad student who's offered free tutoring to anyone in club :smallbiggrin: You can also get advice on good GE courses, nearby restaurants, etc.

[noparlpf]

Clubs are a good way to meet people in bigger schools. My school is small enough that I randomly met some neat people, but I hardly know anybody in my dorm.

[Ceric]

I sure didn't meet anyone in my dorm. I'm pretty introverted so I rarely go out of my way to talk to random people, and for some reason my particular dorm building was set up suite-style (rumor says it's a hotel that was converted into a dorm, which would explain the palm trees and swimming pool). So you get to know your 3-8 suitemates (depending on how many bedrooms your particular suite has) but not many others because the "hallways" between suites are outdoor pathways and no one hangs around on them. There's a study room on each floor but, being a study room, it's library levels of quiet rather than a place to socialize. I guess having our own bathroom(s) in each suite is nice though, although we're responsible for cleaning them ourselves. The dorm provides free toilet paper.

If your college gives a choice between suites and traditional dorms, I recommend the traditional dorms.

[Qaera]

If you took AB Calc in HS, then your third college calc class probably had lessons from BC Calc.

~ ♅

[warty goblin]

I sure didn't meet anyone in my dorm. I'm pretty introverted so I rarely go out of my way to talk to random people, and for some reason my particular dorm building was set up suite-style (rumor says it's a hotel that was converted into a dorm, which would explain the palm trees and swimming pool). So you get to know your 3-8 suitemates (depending on how many bedrooms your particular suite has) but not many others because the "hallways" between suites are outdoor pathways and no one hangs around on them. There's a study room on each floor but, being a study room, it's library levels of quiet rather than a place to socialize. I guess having our own bathroom(s) in each suite is nice though, although we're responsible for cleaning them ourselves. The dorm provides free toilet paper.

If your college gives a choice between suites and traditional dorms, I recommend the traditional dorms.
I'd have committed multiple homicide and sacrificed the Dean of Student Affairs to a dark and terrible god for a living situation like that in college.

I went to two different schools as an undergrad, so I got a double dose of dorm goodness. Highlights include:


The triple the first college stuck me in. There was so little space my bed was literally twelve inches from the ceiling, and had a tendency to migrate off the stand over the course of a night. Personal space was limited to the space under my bed, half of which was taken up by one of my roommate's TV, on which he liked to watch zombie movies at ungodly hours.

The bathroom on the all-male first year wing. A pair of damp, probably moldering boxers once sat on the floor for a solid week.

The fact that by the end of the first week, the floor had degenerated into a multitude of passive aggressive, yet often loud, feuds.

My roommate at the school I was transferred to. He was bipolar, around about March went a week without sleeping, crashed and dropped out. Turns out doubles make for one hell of single though, so maybe that was an upside.

The floor I had second year at that school. Because chance is a cruel mistress, I ended up in the single greatest concentration of binge drinkers on campus. They played beer pong at crazy hours outside my door every single Friday and Saturday night all semester.

Here's how out of control the drinking was. In the first semester that year people from my floor had to have their stomach pumped on I think five separate occasions. IIRC this accounted for at least half of the stomach pumpings that semester. There were under thirty people on the floor total.

Also the first semester RA got booted from the position after trying to get other floor members involved in her group sex parties.

Even after they got a new RA, it was still World War Beer every single weekend.

Senior year was actually pretty good. But hardly anything to go out of one's way for.


And compared with the stories I've heard from other people, I got lucky.

Also I made basically no friends in college despite living in the dorms. All that means is that you're around people constantly, not that you actually want to be around any of them. My experience was that it generally had the opposite effect.

[Eldan]

Stories like that really make me wonder how people get anything done at american universities. Of course here, only a small percentage even go to highschool and we have neither dorms nor clubs, so that probably helps. on the other hand, after six years, I didnt even know the names of most people in my course, so there's that.

[Madara]

Stories like that really make me wonder how people get anything done at american universities. Of course here, only a small percentage even go to highschool and we have neither dorms nor clubs, so that probably helps. on the other hand, after six years, I didnt even know the names of most people in my course, so there's that.

That's the thing, no one tells stories about normality :smalltongue:

[Rockphed]

Despite what television would have us think, my experience is that the wild parties actually occur in late grad school or after you join the work force and then last until you have children. I had a very mild college life and never got drunk at all.

By the by, can I assume that anyone in this thread talking about being in college was born in 1990 or later? Because that scares me silly.

Late 80s here. One of my classmates is nearly 30, and another has a 10 year old kid and grey hair. I am also in engineering, so even if I hadn't bummed around for a couple years, I would be graduating after 5 years.


UCLA! Bioengineering and/or Neuroscence major here. I tend not to do partying much. Although I may go to some raves if I can find any, both because I like them, and because I'm taking a History of Electronic Dance Music class (which is GREAT) and it's actually completely relevant.

I've heard that "Bioengineering" is the "Jack of all trades, master of none" of the engineering majors. Useful as a Master's subject, but not really worth it as an undergrad. How far along are you and can you confirm or deny the hearsay?


I've actually had less luck with finding friends around campus? I think it's because I tend to be relatively quiet around new people, and I didn't find myself quick friends with the general nerd/sci fi/gaming club on campus, plus most of the classes I have been in are 100+ people because that's always the first two years for science majors. Got some good friends through the Shakespeare group here though, been in a few plays.

My advice: go find an reasonably trafficked area. Do something out of the ordinary that expresses your personality well(sing disney songs, larp, accost passers by with wit). People worth being friends with will be drawn to you. It is how I met all my friends freshman year. Well, one of them did that and then my group of friends formed around them.


I say take the highest level class in what ever subject that you are comfortable. For example, I took AP Calculus (for those not in the US, AP clases are basically a college level class at the high school level, spread out over the entire year) my senior year, and I placed into Math 1B (second semester calculus) according to the placement exam. I decided to take Math 1A, however, because there were several subjects in my AP class that I needed help with still. Its a good thing I did, because my math proffessor explained it in a way that I could understand it better, and now that I'm in 1B, I understand everything better.

I took AP calc, calc 1, calc 2, repeated calc 2, linear algebra, multivariable calculus, and diffEQ. Then I thought I was done with math until I realized that lots of engineering classes are really math classes that actually make sense. So, yes, take the highest class you are sure you can do well in. So if you are kinda iffy on algebra and trig, you probably need to sign up for a pre-calc math class, but if you can do integrals and derivatives in your sleep, just take the highest level of math you can find. Same goes for any other discipline.


I'd have committed multiple homicide and sacrificed the Dean of Student Affairs to a dark and terrible god for a living situation like that in college.

I went to two different schools as an undergrad, so I got a double dose of dorm goodness. Highlights include:


The triple the first college stuck me in. There was so little space my bed was literally twelve inches from the ceiling, and had a tendency to migrate off the stand over the course of a night. Personal space was limited to the space under my bed, half of which was taken up by one of my roommate's TV, on which he liked to watch zombie movies at ungodly hours.

The bathroom on the all-male first year wing. A pair of damp, probably moldering boxers once sat on the floor for a solid week.

The fact that by the end of the first week, the floor had degenerated into a multitude of passive aggressive, yet often loud, feuds.

My roommate at the school I was transferred to. He was bipolar, around about March went a week without sleeping, crashed and dropped out. Turns out doubles make for one hell of single though, so maybe that was an upside.

The floor I had second year at that school. Because chance is a cruel mistress, I ended up in the single greatest concentration of binge drinkers on campus. They played beer pong at crazy hours outside my door every single Friday and Saturday night all semester.

Here's how out of control the drinking was. In the first semester that year people from my floor had to have their stomach pumped on I think five separate occasions. IIRC this accounted for at least half of the stomach pumpings that semester. There were under thirty people on the floor total.

Also the first semester RA got booted from the position after trying to get other floor members involved in her group sex parties.

Even after they got a new RA, it was still World War Beer every single weekend.

Senior year was actually pretty good. But hardly anything to go out of one's way for.


And compared with the stories I've heard from other people, I got lucky.

Also I made basically no friends in college despite living in the dorms. All that means is that you're around people constantly, not that you actually want to be around any of them. My experience was that it generally had the opposite effect.

Dorms are good if they are pretty stratified by class rank. Also, dorming with people who are only there for a semester is a good way to have lots of people who are sociopaths. Personally, I prefer living off campus. Before I got married, I lived in a pretty good complex right across the street from the freshman dorms. By "Pretty Good" I mean the people, not the facilities. The walls were falling apart and I think their window AC units did more harm than good. Also, the kitchen was horribly set up. But I got to go around and meet people while barefoot, which was a bonus.


Stories like that really make me wonder how people get anything done at american universities. Of course here, only a small percentage even go to highschool and we have neither dorms nor clubs, so that probably helps. on the other hand, after six years, I didnt even know the names of most people in my course, so there's that.

Mostly, the people who get things done are in hard science majors. Personally I wish American Universities would do away with sports and let the academics matter more. Also, eliminate binge drinking, but that is a pipe dream. For example, my school has very strict policies regarding drugs, but there was still a drug bust in the dorms this semester. If you want to go get high, go somewhere like UofM or UC Santa Barbara where there is a drug culture. Don't go to a school that makes you sign something saying "I won't do drugs while here" as a condition of enrollment.

[warty goblin]

Stories like that really make me wonder how people get anything done at american universities. Of course here, only a small percentage even go to highschool and we have neither dorms nor clubs, so that probably helps. on the other hand, after six years, I didnt even know the names of most people in my course, so there's that.

You get used to working with a certain amount of annoyance, and not working during certain critical hours - even if one wants to, studying Friday night just isn't worth trying IMHO.

The other thing to keep in mind is that as obnoxious as everything I described was, probably better than 80% of the time there wasn't anything egregious going on. The times when it was really bad pissed me off, but as annoying as that was it was hardly impossible to work around.

Except for the bloody fire alarm going off three times a week at all hours because somebody burned their popcorn. There were certain times, generally around 2:00 AM in the middle of January, when I hoped those morons down in "substance free" housing actually would die in a fire.

Aaahh college. Some people remember the sex, some the parties, some the classes, some the late night conversations about life and stuff in the dorms. Me? I remember standing around in a snowdrift in the middle of the night waiting to be told that my life was not in danger from improperly microwaved popcorn two buildings away.




Mostly, the people who get things done are in hard science majors. Personally I wish American Universities would do away with sports and let the academics matter more. Also, eliminate binge drinking, but that is a pipe dream. For example, my school has very strict policies regarding drugs, but there was still a drug bust in the dorms this semester. If you want to go get high, go somewhere like UofM or UC Santa Barbara where there is a drug culture. Don't go to a school that makes you sign something saying "I won't do drugs while here" as a condition of enrollment.

Both of the schools I went to did sod-all about drinking in the dorms. The second one didn't really care about drugs either, so long as it wasn't too hard. I did know one kid who got kicked out for dealing...something. Struck me as an act of flaming hypocrisy on the part of the administration, given that at the time I lived next to a couple eighteen year olds who drank like fish, a guy who showed up to class high as a kite on acid more often than not, and various and sundry other chemically altered people. Had the administration actually had the guts to apply their rules consistently they'd have had to expel a solid third of the students.

And college athletics is a horrendous waste of money. The year I graduated my school put up a $9 million dollar athletic facility for a student body of < 1500. The best part? They already had two athletic facilities when they did this. It's not like any of our teams ever won snot either, they were just good for the occasional inappropriate party and resulting campus furor.

Although on the plus side I did get extra credit for going to the meetings about how the sense of 'campus community' had been violated.

Bottom line: when people say college is the best four years of your life, you should feel very sorry for them. College kinda sucks.

[noparlpf]

Yeah, late-night mid-winter fire alarms are a pain. I remember once last winter, it was sleeting and I had gone to bed around 10 PM like I usually do, and the fire alarm went off around midnight. And for some reason that was like, the one night of the year when I didn't wear my pants to sleep. So I wake up swearing, climb down from bed, find my glasses, tell my roommate to get going, because **** it, I have a window open, we're on the ground floor, and I am damned if I'm going outside in my boxers when it's sleeting. And by the time I got dressed and went outside we had to go back in already. The RA didn't even check all the rooms to see if they were evacuated. Fortunately it was just some improperly microwaved popcorn or whatever, as per usual. (Occasionally it's toast or a pop-tart being microwaved/toasted incorrectly.)

[THAC0]

And college athletics is a horrendous waste of money.

Depends on the school, doesn't it? Our college athletics brought in big bucks and were directly responsible for keeping multiple departments (such as the classics department) open, as well as building libraries, etc.

Speaking of which, libraries are excellent study locations during drinkytime.

[Haruki-kun]

Stories like that really make me wonder how people get anything done at american universities.

To be completely fair, it's because stories like that don't happen ALL the time. I'm living in a dorm room in an American University as well and the worst thing I've seen happen was that one person accidentally broke a glass door while arriving late drunk one night (and they were held responsible for it.) Well, that, and I have some neighbors who play annoyingly loud music during the day, but they turn it off past 10, which is when rules declare Quiet Hours.


Mostly, the people who get things done are in hard science majors.

:smallsigh: Art student here. We get a lot of stuff done.


Personally I wish American Universities would do away with sports and let the academics matter more.

It's how you sell the school. Games and stuff make people have a little more interest for it.

[Hbgplayer]

Like I said earlier, I'm attending a Junior College, only due to financial constraints, and there fore still live with my parents, so I don't have to deal, or have any experiences with dorm problems.
It is amazing, even at a college with no dorms, however, that I regularly see classmates show up to class, even my 7:30 a.m. class, drunk or high!

[Goosefeather]

I highly recommend that anyone who can do a year abroad in a foreign country, do so. As a language student, mine was compulsory, but I know many science/Maths undergrads who also wheedled their way onto Erasmus schemes and the like.

It's daunting beforehand, terrifying when you arrive, absolutely incredible from about day two until the end, and tragic when you have to leave - though by then you have a wide network of contacts around the world, and think nothing of popping a couple of countries over to visit people! Culturally and socially, it is an unbelievably enriching experience. My first two years at uni were amazing, but my third year, spent half in Spain and half in France, was even better.

Final year studies, however, are now callously murdering my social life in cold-blood :smalltongue:

[Moff Chumley]

It is amazing, even at a college with no dorms, however, that I regularly see classmates show up to class, even my 7:30 a.m. class, drunk or high!

I think geography sorta plays a role with regards to the latter.

...also I'd try to minimize time spent sober if I lived in Santa Rosa, too. :smalltongue:

[ForzaFiori]

Junior History Major/Philosophy Minor @ Clemson (I plan on being a bum when I graduate :smalltongue:)

I haven't had the "luck" to live in student housing yet, because of finances, but my best friend did during his brief stint in College (he's a private in the army now). I thank god I live at home every time I hear a story about bad roommates.

Clemson has some killer parties, but they're usually organized by frats, which makes it hard to get in if your not part of them, or they're small get togethers. We rarely have massive house parties just springing up.

I cant see any US university giving up their athletics team (except maybe Vanderbilt. They just suck at everything.) Heck, Clemson's football team is what turned it from a small town college into a nationally renowned University - The college exploded after we won the '81 football national championship.

I gotta say though that the weirdest thing to me was how freaking big colleges are. My HS was tiny (like, 800 people), and Clemson has over 15,000 undergrads. There are classrooms at Clemson that could fit my entire graduating class.

[Pyromancer999]

I highly recommend that anyone who can do a year abroad in a foreign country, do so. As a language student, mine was compulsory, but I know many science/Maths undergrads who also wheedled their way onto Erasmus schemes and the like.

It's daunting beforehand, terrifying when you arrive, absolutely incredible from about day two until the end, and tragic when you have to leave - though by then you have a wide network of contacts around the world, and think nothing of popping a couple of countries over to visit people! Culturally and socially, it is an unbelievably enriching experience. My first two years at uni were amazing, but my third year, spent half in Spain and half in France, was even better.


Are there any specific reasons why you thought it was enriching and incredible?


Junior History Major/Philosophy Minor @ Clemson (I plan on being a bum when I graduate :smalltongue:)


I know of a few people who are close to applying to college that are sort of interested in that university. How is it, parties aside?

[Hbgplayer]

I think geography sorta plays a role with regards to the latter.

...also I'd try to minimize time spent sober if I lived in Santa Rosa, too. :smalltongue:

May I ask why you dislike Santa Rosa so much? :smallconfused:
Really the only people I've heard that don't like it are people who are from very large cities, like New York, LA, and an exchange student from Tokyo (yet he liked Healdsburg, which is a tenth the size of Santa Rosa...)

[fergo]

I'm in my second year of uni, and am (in my own quiet way) loving it.

In my first year I lived in flats... sure, selfish people, loud music, passive-aggressiveness... but to be fair it wasn't that bad. I found one or two of my flatmates annoying, but I didn't spend that much time there, to be honest.

I can't speak for anyone else, but in my experience these massive student parties we see on TV don't happen very much (if they do, I'm not invited :smallwink:). People mostly go into town.

I'm lucky enough to have, by complete chance, fallen into a society that goes out once a week or so and is full of pretty cool people (with the odd exception, of course, but that's the same everywhere :smalltongue:).

My advice for people worried that they won't fit in at uni, or who are at uni and wondering if they're 'missing out' on all the things students do--don't worry.

The important thing is to try everything--at least once. Find a place where the people are welcoming, the nights out are fun (not necessary horrendously drunk) and you feel you belong.

Most unis are so big that this is possible, no matter how much of a social misfit you think you are, there are others like you. You will find something. I know I did, and by God I was the most awkward idiot out there :smallannoyed:.

[Moff Chumley]

May I ask why you dislike Santa Rosa so much? :smallconfused:
Really the only people I've heard that don't like it are people who are from very large cities, like New York, LA, and an exchange student from Tokyo (yet he liked Healdsburg, which is a tenth the size of Santa Rosa...)

Here's my rational. I'm a California kid from top to bottom, Northern California's my favorite place in the world. This place takes my breath away on a pretty much daily basis. However, the drab, ugly suburban sprawl that springs up in every other valley hacks me off to no end. I got no problems with towns, it's obtrusive sprawl that I object to. Santa Rosa's kinda just this huge, characterless stretch of grey in the middle of an otherwise beautiful valley.

This is also my objection to San Jose and Los Angeles, for the record, I don't discriminate. :smalltongue:

[ForzaFiori]

I know of a few people who are close to applying to college that are sort of interested in that university. How is it, parties aside?

I will admit to being slightly prejudiced, since I've lived here my whole life, but:
I personally think it's the most beautiful part of the US. It's a small town if you don't count the college, so it's pretty easy to learn your way around (learning the back-roads takes forever however). With the college, it's big enough that there's stuff to do and enough people that even someone from a city wouldn't get lonely.

As a college, Clemson is pushing to be one of the top 20 in the nation (though to be honest, it's actually effecting the university badly), and is already one of the top engineering schools. I've had very few profs I didn't like, and none that were so horrid that the class was unfeasible. Even the students are awesome. I actually think there were more *******s at my HS than I've met at Clemson.

The weather around here is excellent as well. In winter, it may get cold enough to snow maybe once a year, but rarely drops below 20. In the summer, it'll get up to 100. During the semester though, it's usually 50-60 for a high near winter, and 70-80 near summer. We don't really have any sort of natural disasters (nearest fault line is in Charleston, too far inland for hurricanes, wrong side of the mountains for tornadoes, and even strong T-storms usually get broken up by the hills. Your in the foothills of the mountains, so it's not high up enough to be impassible (though the hills can be rough), but we're also close enough to the ocean that you can go there for a long weekend.

I also have had people from all over comment on how awesome Clemson is, students from the NE, West Coast, SE, Midwest, everywhere. I HIGHLY recommend that anyone who is in the least interested should come check it out.

[Hbgplayer]

:mad:
OK, can somebody please explain to me WHY I Had to get up at 6 IN THE GODS DARNED MORNING if both my classes were canceled today????? :furious:

[Pyromancer999]

:mad:
OK, can somebody please explain to me WHY I Had to get up at 6 IN THE GODS DARNED MORNING if both my classes were canceled today????? :furious:

Because your teacher is not good with notifying people, is why. I can relate. I once had a class canceled slightly before midnight, but didn't get to look at the email until after I'd already woken up early and traveled to the opposite side of campus. Apparently, the teacher considered it to be enough advanced notice, as he had technically sent the email the day before the canceled class date.

[Hbgplayer]

Because your teacher is not good with notifying people, is why. I can relate. I once had a class canceled slightly before midnight, but didn't get to look at the email until after I'd already woken up early and traveled to the opposite side of campus. Apparently, the teacher considered it to be enough advanced notice, as he had technically sent the email the day before the canceled class date.

It would be so much better if they notified us before hand! The way my college notifies people of class cancelations is by posting a sign on the door saying the class is canceled for today! Yep! We don't find out class is canceled untill we arrive to it. :smallmad:

[Pyromancer999]

It would be so much better if they notified us before hand! The way my college notifies people of class cancelations is by posting a sign on the door saying the class is canceled for today! Yep! We don't find out class is canceled untill we arrive to it. :smallmad:

That sucks. Your college needs to improve at informing students about class cancellations. At some of the universities that my high school friends went to, professors are able to notify students about class cancellations and other important class info by mass-text.

[Noedig]

College for me has been three years spent working myself into a depression before discovering I hate my major. Now I'm double minoring, still overworked, and drinking myself into euphoria in the privacy of my apartment on the really bad days, which are fortunately only about once a month.

Nothing about College is what I was led to expect. It's like a bigger, harder more drunk version of high school, complete with all the jackasses I was hoping to leave behind.

Thank God for weekly Dungeons and Dragons, or I'd go insane.

[Adumbration]

Second year vet student here, checking in.

[fergo]

College for me has been three years spent working myself into a depression before discovering I hate my major. Now I'm double minoring, still overworked, and drinking myself into euphoria in the privacy of my apartment on the really bad days, which are fortunately only about once a month.

Nothing about College is what I was led to expect. It's like a bigger, harder more drunk version of high school, complete with all the jackasses I was hoping to leave behind.

Thank God for weekly Dungeons and Dragons, or I'd go insane.

Does your college have societies? Might be a good way of meeting new people (and avoiding the jackasses) outside of your D&D.

I go to a British uni so I don't know if societies are common over in the States (or if they have another name, or whatever :smallcool:).

[ForzaFiori]

Does your college have societies? Might be a good way of meeting new people (and avoiding the jackasses) outside of your D&D.

I go to a British uni so I don't know if societies are common over in the States (or if they have another name, or whatever :smallcool:).

They're pretty common, both greek life (fraternities and sororities) as well as extracurricular clubs (language clubs, intramural sports, lifestyle clubs, hobby clubs, etc). At least, there have been hundreds at every college I've seen (I think Clemson has over 400 different student organizations and clubs)

[Pyromancer999]

They're pretty common, both greek life (fraternities and sororities) as well as extracurricular clubs (language clubs, intramural sports, lifestyle clubs, hobby clubs, etc). At least, there have been hundreds at every college I've seen (I think Clemson has over 400 different student organizations and clubs)

Not that many here. Clubs here definitely number in the double digits, but not beyond. Frats are plentiful here, although I should caution that if someone wants to join a frat, aside from the community service some do, the main intention of frats and sororities are to party a lot and/or get smashed, for the majority. Still, clubs are definitely a good thing to look into.

[Noedig]

Much like pyromancers mentioned, there are clubs and frats all over, though with my work schedule, I have very little time for either. Bills and what not. :smallannoyed:

[Hbgplayer]

Much like pyromancers mentioned, there are clubs and frats all over, though with my work schedule, I have very little time for either. Bills and what not. :smallannoyed:

Gee, I wonder where I've heard that before? Oh yeah, ME! :smalltongue:
My JC has a few greek societies, which surprised me, as it's a two-year school :smallconfused:, and several dozen clubs; but I don't enough time to join any of them due to work and studying obligations. I work 1-6 on tuesdays, basically noon to midnight (two different jobs) wednsdays,1-5:30 thursdays, and 7- midnight Fridays, so I need all the time I can get to get catch up on studying and sleep.

[JCarter426]

JC
Hmm? Oh, I thought I heard my name. Sorry. :smalltongue:

I'm actually surprised... I think this is the first time I'm too old for something! Well, not by that much. Some of my friends have just graduated, almost a year ago now. Two of them admit they learned absolutely nothing and that it was an enormous waste of time and money. They both have the same jobs they did before they graduated. The other only got a job after graduating, one that required a degree - teaching English to foreigners. But then most jobs don't have such specific requirements, and most people don't have such a specific idea of what they want to do. And with some prodding he'd probably admit he didn't really learn all that much in college either; the classes he took to be certified were somewhere else.

In any case, I don't want to depress you all. I know some people enjoy college, and some still must actually learn something. I myself did not and did not. But then rather than gaining "Freshman 15" I progressively lost weight due to public transportation being unreliable and one of the above friends convincing me to quit soda... so maybe you're all doing it wrong. :smalltongue:

[warty goblin]

I would say I learned a lot in college. Of that, probably 75% is of no direct use to me. Thus most of that I have now forgotten.

The other 25% I use frequently in grad school, and mostly wish had covered more material in more depth.

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

I'm not studying in University to get a job, I'm studying because I enjoy learning about things that interest me.

[Pyromancer999]

I'm not studying in University to get a job, I'm studying because I enjoy learning about things that interest me.

And just so long as that gets you a good-paying job, it's okay :smalltongue:

Actually, most people I know simply are going because a degree is really needed in order to get better job opportunities. All the stuff in the Computer Science degree at my university could easily be learned on one's own in two years, instead of going through 4 years at the university. However, people need degrees for good jobs.

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

And just so long as that gets you a good-paying job, it's okay :smalltongue:

I'm not even worrying about that right now. I have no sense of what I want to do career-wise after university.

[warty goblin]

I'm not even worrying about that right now. I have no sense of what I want to do career-wise after university.

I'd suggest working on that. Not to be a killjoy, but this employment market really rather sucks, particularly for young people. If it's an entry level job that doesn't suck, odds are there's gonna be lots of applicants, many of whom will have been planning and preparing for this during their time in college. If you aren't, it certainly won't help make you the person employers want to hire.

Besides which, college is a once in a lifetime opportunity to learn things that you basically can't get anywhere else. I've never understood not leveraging this towards getting a job you actually like. Seems kinda short sighted.

Take fun classes by all means. Just think about how to turn whatever it is you like and are good into something that puts food on the table.

[JCarter426]

I'm not studying in University to get a job, I'm studying because I enjoy learning about things that interest me.
As Frank Zappa said, if you want an education, go to the library. :smalltongue:

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

Well, considering I detest the sciences, I'm taking language and history courses. Doesn't exactly give me many options. Besides, the actual CONTENT of the degree doesn't matter so much outside of super-specialized careers: both of my parents are working in only TANGENTIALLY related fields to the field they studied in university.

I suppose the dream job with the courses I'm taking would be add some Economics and Poli-Sci into the mix and try and get into the diplomatic corps, that would be fun.

Edit: that's a lie, the dream job would be being an academic, a university professor. THAT would be the dream job, for me.

[Anarion]

Well, considering I detest the sciences, I'm taking language and history courses. Doesn't exactly give me many options. Besides, the actual CONTENT of the degree doesn't matter so much outside of super-specialized careers: both of my parents are working in only TANGENTIALLY related fields to the field they studied in university.

I suppose the dream job with the courses I'm taking would be add some Economics and Poli-Sci into the mix and try and get into the diplomatic corps, that would be fun.

Edit: that's a lie, the dream job would be being an academic, a university professor. THAT would be the dream job, for me.

So, you're planning on getting a PHD then? Basically, if you write something original and complete a PHD you can go straight into college level academia if you want.

[fergo]

I think what a lot of people don't get about uni is that, for some of us at least, it's not just about academic education--it's education about like: living away from home, having to organise your own time and money, maybe even finding a job (I wish, haha).

Sure, most of us have a safety blanket of going back to our parents or whatever, but it's still invaluable experience in the 'real world'.

Maybe some people don't need that, maybe they feel they can just move straight from school into a job and their adult lives. Well, best of luck to them, but I know that both emotionally and practically, I wasn't ready to do that at that age, and I'm sure there are at least a few other people who agree with me.

[warty goblin]

Well, considering I detest the sciences, I'm taking language and history courses. Doesn't exactly give me many options. Besides, the actual CONTENT of the degree doesn't matter so much outside of super-specialized careers: both of my parents are working in only TANGENTIALLY related fields to the field they studied in university.

Language courses are quite useful actually. With more and more businesses operating in multiple countries and the expansion of non-native English markets, my understanding is that people with an effective command of multiple languages. History somewhat less so, but depending on what you study I'm told by the historian in my family there's consulting sorts of positions available.


Do note that this isn't our parent's job market anymore. As more people get degrees, and the baby boom continues not retiring, employers can be quite picky about who they hire. While you can still get a job in a field tangentially related to what you studied, you'll be at a disadvantage compared to the people who studied and trained for that field. And lots of people seem to be doing just that in my experience.


I suppose the dream job with the courses I'm taking would be add some Economics and Poli-Sci into the mix and try and get into the diplomatic corps, that would be fun.

Edit: that's a lie, the dream job would be being an academic, a university professor. THAT would be the dream job, for me.
Well then find out about, and work towards those as goals. Getting to the end of senior year without a plan or much in the way of job opportunities really sucks. As somebody whose plan dissolved halfway through that year, trust me on this.

[JCarter426]

I think what a lot of people don't get about uni is that, for some of us at least, it's not just about academic education--it's education about like: living away from home, having to organise your own time and money, maybe even finding a job (I wish, haha).

Sure, most of us have a safety blanket of going back to our parents or whatever, but it's still invaluable experience in the 'real world'.

Maybe some people don't need that, maybe they feel they can just move straight from school into a job and their adult lives. Well, best of luck to them, but I know that both emotionally and practically, I wasn't ready to do that at that age, and I'm sure there are at least a few other people who agree with me.
And you really think this is all worth a hundred grand? You can get that for free. This is one thing I detested; the administration at my college shared this attitude - that it's about the experience, not the education. They spent more time telling us how to have safe sex than actually explaining such things as what classes are required for one to graduate. My first semester schedule was drawn up by a student no more than two years older than me. It had me staying past sunset twice a week and mostly consisted of classes I'd already passed out of, unbeknownst to me of course. Suffice to say, the administration was extremely relaxed. The "we let you do what you want" approach would be better described as "if you don't show up for two months, no one will notice". But enough about my exploits.

Not everyone lives on campus, either. I'm from a city with over a hundred colleges; the ones that are in the city proper tend to be commuter schools. UMass Boston, for example, only recently built dorms, to accommodate for and attract students from out of state; most of the students still commute. Of course, this is because there's not a lot of room in the city. There are three main exceptions, the three largest ones of course: Boston College, Boston University, and Northeastern. Boston College isn't actually in Boston; the other two are on its outskirts. However, it's still a city and there is public - if unreliable - transportation. One of my friends went to BC and lived on campus, but the college itself was so close to his house that he spent most of his time there anyway. He ended up staying at home his senior year.

I know they're not all like this. I didn't want to live on campus, so intentionally chose a commuter school that was very nearby. If I'd gone to a college town I'm sure I'd have a very different perspective. But I didn't, and I didn't want to. Then again, I've always seen school as school, and never had any interest in getting anything else from it. So really it all seems like an enormous waste of money to me.

[Asta Kask]

:mad:
OK, can somebody please explain to me WHY I Had to get up at 6 IN THE GODS DARNED MORNING if both my classes were canceled today????? :furious:

Because the universe hates you.

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

Eh, if I need to get a degree for a job, at that point I'll switch majors, or go back to get another degree. Getting a PhD like my mum is my goal, though: she would have become a university professor, only right when she graduated the universities suddenly stopped hiring.

But, right now? I have no goals for my life other than "make music, have fun, and enjoy learning things I like in University.

The fact that my 1st year courses don't matter at ALL, not even pre-req wise, helps.

[warty goblin]

And you really think this is all worth a hundred grand? You can get that for free. This is one thing I detested; the administration at my college shared this attitude - that it's about the experience, not the education. They spent more time telling us how to have safe sex than actually explaining such things as what classes are required for one to graduate. My first semester schedule was drawn up by a student no more than two years older than me. It had me staying past sunset twice a week and mostly consisted of classes I'd already passed out of, unbeknownst to me of course. Suffice to say, the administration was extremely relaxed. The "we let you do what you want" approach would be better described as "if you don't show up for two months, no one will notice". But enough about my exploits.


I find this attitude fairly detestable as well, and was pretty much my experience also. Most of the academic advisers I had were either useless or told me to take totally pointless classes, while the administration had come up with a carefully designed set of policies that meant they had sod-all to do with student life. Naturally they dressed this up with a lot of pretty language about fostering community, nevermind the fact that the entire campus was drinking itself into unconsciousness every other weekend.

Admittedly I hardly think it's entirely the administration's fault. They need to attract students, and a lot of kids seem to want the 'college experience.' I find this intensely depressing. College is a great opportunity to learn, but it's immensely expensive. It strikes me as very shortsighted to squander that on having a good time. Enjoy the experience by all means, but enjoy it with an eye for the future. Your life will never be that simple again, take advantage of the chance that gives you to really think about what you want to do in the future. In the future you'll be mostly too busy for that sort of thing.

[JCarter426]

Admittedly I hardly think it's entirely the administration's fault. They need to attract students, and a lot of kids seem to want the 'college experience.'
That's a fair point, but I want to make note that my college had no real campus - it's more like a few buildings scattered all over a hill, with unrelated office buildings and stores in between - and most students commuted. All in all, it's hardly a the ideal place for the "college experience" to begin with. Maybe this is why they stressed it so much, but I'm not going to sympathize with that; I chose the school because I didn't want any of that, and for once I thought I was in the majority. It's by no means a party school, and it's primarily a law school, so I thought the academics would be taken more seriously. But they were not.

[warty goblin]

That's a fair point, but I want to make note that my college had no real campus - it's more like a few buildings scattered all over a hill, with unrelated office buildings and stores in between - and most students commuted. All in all, it's hardly a the ideal place for the "college experience" to begin with. Maybe this is why they stressed it so much, but I'm not going to sympathize with that; I chose the school because I didn't want any of that, and for once I thought I was in the majority. It's by no means a party school, and it's primarily a law school, so I thought the academics would be taken more seriously. But they were not.

Fair enough. Both the places I went to as an undergrad were residential colleges, so I got the college experience from both barrels. Remarkably they told me at the second school I could avoid all that if I wanted. Because I could totally avoid my entire dorm smelling like beer, the bathrooms full of vomit, or the guy who's so drunk he can't stand up crawling around in his girlfriend's underpants.

Which was my first experience with the the fundamental truth that unless that admission person is giving you really hard specifics, they are either leaving out something very important, or they simply have no clue. They did this when I applied to grad schools as well, so I ended up at a place where the American students are mostly ignored and set up to fail by a department that apparently just doesn't give a crap.

So if anybody here is trying to decide on colleges, please keep this in mind. If it's between the place that lays out a hard truth plainly and one that says a lot of nice vague things, put the pressure on the second one. The truth may be they're actually hiding an uglier picture than the first school.

[Pyromancer999]

Just realized something: the European equivalent of clubs is society. So, while there's nothing wrong with that, doesn't the declaration of starting one sound a little conspiracy-like?

"I want to create a new society"

Yeah, that was pointed out to me, so that's sort of odd.

Also, follow warty goblin's advice. It's good stuff.

[Morph Bark]

Actually, we've got clubs, societies are just a specific kind of club. :smallwink:

Also, yay, college students! Boo college though, at least right now, since I need to finish a whole stack of papers this month or else I'll need to re-do a bunch of classes and won't be able to be part of my study union's (or whatever it's actually called in English) leadership next year. So wanted to try out for the secretary position.

[Pyromancer999]

Actually, we've got clubs, societies are just a specific kind of club. :smallwink:

Also, yay, college students! Boo college though, at least right now, since I need to finish a whole stack of papers this month or else I'll need to re-do a bunch of classes and won't be able to be part of my study union's (or whatever it's actually called in English) leadership next year. So wanted to try out for the secretary position.

We call them Honor Societies, if I'm right. And what's the difference between a club, a society, and a study union?