Class of 2011: now it's your turn to freak out about college

class of 2011: what are you thinking about for after graduation?

Straight into the workforce	6.0%	[ 4 ]
Military	6.0%	[ 4 ]
Community college	6.0%	[ 4 ]
4-year college	37.3%	[ 25 ]
Oh hell I don't know	14.9%	[ 10 ]
Something else	3.0%	[ 2 ]
I'm not class of 2011	26.9%	[ 18 ]
Total Votes:			[ 67 ]

[Dinosaur Sr]

i have no clue what I want to know after school, get money first then move somewhere :3

[J.P. Chartreuse]

xSakuaex

In reply to the title of this topic: yes, and it's driving us insane. :/

I loved it. d:

[J.P. Chartreuse]

Scritch

J.P. Chartreuse

Scritch

J.P. Chartreuse

Scritch

G'luck, class of 2011. The competition is pretty brutal.
I spent my whole senior year in various levels of tired or zoned out, which didn't help my somewhat spotty record in terms of getting into an interesting college. I probably couldn't have gone out of state anyway, so I'm attending a massive local university. At least aiming low got me some scholarships.

What state are you in, if I may ask? (I hope I'm not supposed to remember. D: )

And I'm sort of in grad school mode, and I gotta say, it's amazing how little undergrad institutions have to do with where people get into grad. d: A lot depends on how much individual effort you put in and the initiative you take. Undergrad matters, for sure, but it isn't the end-all and be-all.

Oregon~. I've only ever lived in the hippy parts, ie west of the Cascades.

I've been hearing as much from the adults around me. My worry is the same things that made me lackluster in high school will keep on being a problem. I also have extreme dislike of the general populace of the university. In a city that thrives on anarchists, druggies, hippies and protesters, they're all so mainstream America normal.

Well that's gross, but there have got to be lots of chances to get out "into the community," so to speak, and do things more up your alley. d: Every campus has some good old-fashioned oddballs. I mean, something like 40% of the undergrads at my school are so loaded they get no financial aid whatsoever (and my university has DEEP pockets to give aid to those who need it), but I haven't let that brand of elitism get to me.

Whoops, wandered off. >>

I really have no excuses for not finding the parts of the community I do like, so I'll work something out.

I didn't apply to Reed. With reason, even! (Beyond being sick as a dog when it was time to do apps, which was not conducive to creating the highly-polished essays they look for.) I would never be able to get enough financial aid for Reed ever, and I don't have the physical and mental fortitude. I have no desire to be part of Reed's extraordinary mental breakdown rate.

har. I wonder how much the rate of psychiatric intervention actually varies between the Reeds of the world and the state schools of the world. four of my friends at school (and I do not have an enormous group of friends) have now gone to mental health counseling at University Health Services at least once, three of them in crisis situations. and it's weird, because I don't really believe in free will, but I can't help but think that whether someone lands there depends almost as much on how well they can suck it up and weather difficulties like depression, anxiety, and interpersonal BS as it depends on their "innate qualities" or any actual, diagnosable psychological issues they may have.

my point is, I have some unsolicited advice, for which I apologize in advance, and that is: don't set yourself up for a breakdown by anticipating one. d: I hear college is supposed to be the best time of your life.

[J.P. Chartreuse]

HennesyXO

J.P. Chartreuse

my dragonsies: let me show you them. (click bitte?)

Hm. Well, I went to a medium-sized, high-powered American university, and in general the teaching has been quite good. And we have precepts, which are small classes, to discuss material or go over more details than in the big lectures. Plus, professors and teaching assistants hold office hours and sometimes review sessions to make sure everyone can get their concepts straight. So I haven't experienced those problems much.

I do get the impression that the educational system in Europe is way more brutal than in the U.S., at least in some ways. I know high school in France is a nightmare.

I've been finding the system at my school good too. The teachers here explain you the theory on the classroom, but when it comes to practice, that's where you do have to do the work by yourself. Sometimes the teachers help if this is a class where they know the students have lots of trouble (e.g. the programming 101 teacher might help you with a code, or the CPUs 101 teacher could help you with your circuit), but usually, you have to figure out what to do by yourself.

I find it good... you learn more if you figure things on your own after all ^^

That's usually not true of me - I like to learn from someone experienced and talk about things or watch problems solved if possible. And there's definitely plenty of lecturing and reading at my school, so sometimes that's a pain. But everyone's different!

[J.P. Chartreuse]

xXDark_Beauty_Mo3Xx

Honestly, I have no clue. I've been thinking about college for months now.
There is apart of me that wants to go to college, but another part of me that wants to be totally done with schooling period!

...But if I were to go to a college, I want to study art. Like become a cartoonist, anime artist, or maybe even become an animator.

well, there are lots of good schools for that, but they tend to be tough to get into and very rigorous. do you think you have the portfolio to make the cut?

I loved art class in high school but it was never the first thing on my mind - just sort of a hobby. and high school studio left a lot more room for creative license than intro college courses do.

EDIT - and there are definitely all those cost concerns too, with art school. art, like creative writing, is really something you should only do if you can't not do it.

[J.P. Chartreuse]

Take It Down Elizabeth

xSakuaex

In reply to the title of this topic: yes, and it's driving us insane. :/

It happens.

I knew I had a problem when I had constructed my own spreadsheet of the acceptance rates, populations, locations, SAT ranges, etc. of 40 schools I was interested in. It was extremely excessive. I wasted a disgusting amount of time worrying about it, and the worrying did not help me in any way.

lol. I never did that for undergrad but I started doing it for grad . . . I really just need to talk to more people in fields I'm looking at and see what they have to say. grad school is much more about specific people and programs than undergrad.

[x smexxi erica x]

J.P. Chartreuse

Talk to me! Where are you looking? What are you thinking of studying? What's important to you in a college? What are you going to write about in your essay?

I know it seems early to be thinking about some of this stuff, but trust me, the earlier you get excited about your applications and your next four years, the better off you'll be!

(I got in everywhere I applied, including the top 10 university at which I'm a rising senior, and I like talking about college admissions and shopping and stuff more than is healthy. This may become a sort of awkward advice thread.)

[x smexxi erica x]

J.P. Chartreuse

Talk to me! Where are you looking? What are you thinking of studying? What's important to you in a college? What are you going to write about in your essay?

I know it seems early to be thinking about some of this stuff, but trust me, the earlier you get excited about your applications and your next four years, the better off you'll be!

(I got in everywhere I applied, including the top 10 university at which I'm a rising senior, and I like talking about college admissions and shopping and stuff more than is healthy. This may become a sort of awkward advice thread.)

[officer shakira]

xxlolzxxcutest

lol funnny i cant wait 2 go 2 college

im not in college

[Yaruko Uzu]

My mind is set on JOINING THE WORK FORCE! At least for a good year smile
Then I'll head off to my four year University...GO UF!