The average college experience (part 2)

[B_henry miller]

The other thread has gotten really long and a bit heated, so I wanted to start a new thread. Thanks to everyone who responded to the original thread.

That original thread helped me narrow down my issue with college. So, suffice it to say ... most people who end up in college are not in my position. Most people who go to college are, first of all, younger than I am. Second of all, are not proficient in their field. Third, aren't there only for the degree that proves they know what they already know (and will thus give them the opportunity to teach in a college if they so desire).

Okay so my college experience is very different from most, I suppose. Can someone here clue me in as to what the average college experience is. I myself have waited a decade out of high school to go to college. Very late in the game, I know. To start, a main difference may be that others go to college right out of high school.

Anyway, anything anyone has to say on this topic will be interesting. Thanks.

 

[sdbg]

Anyway, anything anyone has to say on this topic will be interesting. Thanks.

I can't say that this post will be interesting, but here is my experience. I went to the local community college right after high school in 1969. I dropped out a few months later. The following fall, I returned and did well. My major was French; my minor was German. I went for 2 years and got restless. I left the East Coast and moved to Arizona. At 26, I took classes just for fun - piano and racquetball. I knew that I was still way too immature to tackle anything academic. 3 years later, a friend kept pushing me to go to school because "you're so smart". Yeah, whatever. I signed up for fall semester and did well. The following spring, I went full time and maintained a 3.88 gpa. My plan was to be a French professor.

I moved to San Diego when I was 38. A year later, I had residency and started going to SDSU. I really liked the university setting compared to junior college and had a great time there, even though it was a lot of work. I made a few friends and became active in a few clubs on campus. In the early '90s, I started thinking that my options would be limited with a French degree. I also wanted a career where I wasn't so much in the spotlight as a professor would be - especially a gay one. I took accounting and economics just to see how I would handle business classes. I've always had good math ability and accounting came naturally to me. The following semester, I changed my major to accounting and never looked back. I did continue with a French minor and just before I graduated, I took a 2-day exam given by the Paris Chamber of Commerce. I passed and was issed a certificate that legally enables me to do business in France. I chased an accounting internship in France with KPMG, but didn't make the final cut.

I went through the interviewing process while I still had my evening job as a food server in an upscale restaurant. I quickly learned that even though I had a recent degree, there is a disadvantage to being 47 and trying to get an extremely desirable job with a prestigious company. I did the temp-to-hire thing with accounting staffing agencies and ended up with my present position. I've been there 8 years now and am second in rank after my boss. Our company does business internationally, so I get to use my foreign language background on occasion. I'm valued, respected, and have great job satisfaction. I'll never be rich, but money isn't everything. We have to be happy with how we spend our 40 hours per week at work, or we are wasting a significant portion of our lives.

 

[Lex]

Everyone's experiences are different. I don't know that most people experience an "average" college experience.

Depending on the location, size, focus of the school, your gender, age, race, orientation, aptitude, socio-economic status, major, etc. your experiences will vary.

 

[B_henry miller]

Thanks. This is really interesting. It's as varied and interesting as my own experience.

To be honest, I sometimes wonder if I've made a mistake by going to college. I want to get a masters degree in my field. But then I wonder if I'll be too old, yada yada yada....

But I guess that's just the way life is. You never know what you're gonna get.

I can't say that this post will be interesting, but here is my experience. I went to the local community college right after high school in 1969. I dropped out a few months later. The following fall, I returned and did well. My major was French; my minor was German. I went for 2 years and got restless. I left the East Coast and moved to Arizona. At 26, I took classes just for fun - piano and racquetball. I knew that I was still way too immature to tackle anything academic. 3 years later, a friend kept pushing me to go to school because "you're so smart". Yeah, whatever. I signed up for fall semester and did well. The following spring, I went full time and maintained a 3.88 gpa. My plan was to be a French professor.

I moved to San Diego when I was 38. A year later, I had residency and started going to SDSU. I really liked the university setting compared to junior college and had a great time there, even though it was a lot of work. I made a few friends and became active in a few clubs on campus. In the early '90s, I started thinking that my options would be limited with a French degree. I also wanted a career where I wasn't so much in the spotlight as a professor would be - especially a gay one. I took accounting and economics just to see how I would handle business classes. I've always had good math ability and accounting came naturally to me. The following semester, I changed my major to accounting and never looked back. I did continue with a French minor and just before I graduated, I took a 2-day exam given by the Paris Chamber of Commerce. I passed and was issed a certificate that legally enables me to do business in France. I chased an accounting internship in France with KPMG, but didn't make the final cut.

I went through the interviewing process while I still had my evening job as a food server in an upscale restaurant. I quickly learned that even though I had a recent degree, there is a disadvantage to being 47 and trying to get an extremely desirable job with a prestigious company. I did the temp-to-hire thing with accounting staffing agencies and ended up with my present position. I've been there 8 years now and am second in rank after my boss. Our company does business internationally, so I get to use my foreign language background on occasion. I'm valued, respected, and have great job satisfaction. I'll never be rich, but money isn't everything. We have to be happy with how we spend our 40 hours per week at work, or we are wasting a significant portion of our lives.