OS College Stuff

[Diabeto]

I’m going to college soon. Suggestions and help would be great. What to do to get ready, and some course planning would be great.

[bentoonie]

[fornplakes]

squidard comunit coleg

[Cool172]

all things considered, you can't beat SCC (squidward community college) for the price

[Diabeto]

all things considered, you can't beat SCC (squidward community college) for the price

this will be my top choice of course

[Jacob_]

Apply to Georgia Tech so you can meet George P. Burdell.

[Diabeto]

Apply to Georgia Tech so you can meet George P. Burdell.

Good idea

[prodvaughn]

I’m going to college soon. Suggestions and help would be great. What to do to get ready, and some course planning would be great.

aye this is a controversial take, so im not gonna try to convince you. i'll share with you my take based on my experience. take what you will. 

tldr; dont go if you dont have the money 

get the money first, then if you got it, spend it on college if you REALLY want to. you ACTUALLY need to want it. otherwise you will not have the discipline to get through it. even if you do though, you will accrue debt at best, making you then a slave to your next jobs instead of a slave to your professors. giving the decision time will let you explore potential pathways instead of feeling like college is one of the only options in this life. only you know what you want, but really listen to your soul. you need to have the right feelings, and the right knowledge and the right experiences to make a descision with your soul. some argue you are not guaranteed a job afterwards, but if you are proactive with getting experience and internships, and contacting companies, getting a job is not that hard if you can talk with people well. and trust me. i used to be super introverted, but if you're open-minded and introspective and humble, you can become extroverted fairly quickly and easily. just get a temporary sales job. you'll learn a lot.

there are more budget-friendly options like community college or trade school that are WAY better, if you really need to go. but you need to be aware of EXACTLY what you're paying for. college is a product you buy. it is not highschool. you must treat it like a service. dont waste your money. buy college like you are buying a house because it is a big investment that adults will just ALLOW you pursue with ignorance. that's what they want. it makes them money. 

this is circumstantial but expect professors who will waste your time by not showing to class, expect to get not super great classes or schedules because people with more privilege will have higher priority when choosing classes, expect to wait hours between classes. if you don't live close, expect to drain your time getting to class. your time is your life. arguably the most valuable currency. and college drains a lot of it. if you're like me, you will probably hate inefficient uses of your time. and if you're like me, you are good at learning on your own. hell, while we're on the subject of learning on your own, expect that too because you can bet that there will be teachers who dont really teach. you will have to learn a lot of things by yourself anyways. 

what are you really paying for?

are you paying for nice facilities? maybe. you can show up and use college facilities for free even if you're not enrolled. free bathrooms, you can read library books and work in the libraries. just can't check out books usually. but i bet if you know students, you can get them to check out books for you if you talk to them. 

are you paying for the college experience of meeting young adults your age? maybe. but you can just show up regardless to a campus. some professors will even let you show up to classes if you're nice about it. talking to people in college is free, public, and requires only your voice and your spirit to talk to people. you can make friends and choose your own evironment. and even better, you get to choose everything by not being enrolled. you are not bound by your schedule. you make your schedule. 

are you paying for the diploma?
the real question here is: can i still get the job i want without the degree? maybe. if i've learned anything in sales, it's that it's not impossible to talk anyone into doing anything. people skills can take you a long way in life. it's the most practical skill to know. our society is built on it. it's a very human thing to work with and communicate with other people. learn it and you will be better able to forge your own destiny. 

then what are you paying for?

THAT right there, is an excellent question. what do i think? i think you're paying for your fears. i think the price you pay for college is being afriad. "im too afraid of a world i don't really know yet. maybe this will help me get to know it." fear is a choice my friend. we fear what we do not know. as a young adult, people will try to take advantage of you because this is a stage in your life where you are the most vulnerable, yet have the most energy, time, and passion. even though you may not have that much money, these are the things that are the most valuable. this is why these people are rich. this is why colleges are so nice. this is why the military gets recruits, this is why fake millionares try to get you to buy their courses. you don't know the world. you're young and ignorant, and not an ounce of that is or ever will be anyone's fault.

but the best way to approach this issue is to experience the world FIRST before you focus that beam of passion and drive and energy in a direction you choose. give yourself time. and in that time. TRY things. do not committ. be humble. talk to people. experience things. DONT waste your money. but more importantly DO NOT waste your TIME. you're young. that's the one thing you have on your side. your one advantage no matter the situation. USE it. dont BE USED. 

i hope this helps you think a bit. it's just my two cents. you control your life. only if you let yourself.

[MoonlightTheStupidTouhouFan]

bro wrote an entire frickin' essay

[Liam]

> tldr; dont go if you dont have the money

That's all true and good advice, but it's very specific to the US, and very specific to the last few decades. Recent US college prices are nuts. You all should be furious about it. It's true but tragic that you have to treat college as "a product you buy". It forces kids to plan their whole life out, treat college as a means to get a high paying job to pay off their student loans. Most people at that age don't know what career they want to pursue. College should be the place you go to broaden your mind and figure that out. It can and should be free (or cheap). Every dollar that the government spends on university education generates 5 to 10 dollars of economic growth, so it's a great investment for governments to make. The fact that the US is one of the few western governments that doesn't subsidize higher ed is just stupid and short sighted.