College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

[OrganisM]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

You are not the typical student it seems. I agree with the idea of a well-rounded education, and I don't dispute the need for multiple subjects. What I'm debating is the typical curriculum of those levels of classes. The majority of students don't test out of those classes, and I know a lot of people who are capable of doing so yet haven't. I think the standard of classes should be raised. And what you just told me is almost exactly what I told you about undergrad vs. grad degree..

Sorry, I come from a European background, where my parents' generation was more educated when they got out of high school than most people in the States are when they complete their undergrad. Obviously if we're talking about an Ivy league school and testing out of lower level classes and graduating with honors, it's different. But that's not the typical situation. And I don't feel like arguing my observation that the standard of education in this country overall has gone down the crapper... I was making a post, not trying to be a jaded poindexter..

Sheesh, I rest my case.. any time I post something debatable it turns into an epic..

[OrganisM]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

Ah. Apologies then. In that case, I don't mind discussing. I suppose it's reflexive. Just look at my other "discussions"..

[coraleaterlinda]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

I got accepted to SMU.

And then graduated from it.



It is entirely possible that you've met stretchy, then.

I suppose that the "slash Victoria" in your location signifies that you grew up in Victoria. If not, though, I wanna know where you went to high school in Waco.

--Guido

http://andy.mikee385.com

I don't think I've met stretchy. I did grow up in victoria - didn't go to high school in waco.

[clarinet89]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

So you're going to a music school, right? Do you have to study an instrument or voice? I'm going to school for music ed., but the school that my brother will be going to, you can get a music business degree without any musical training. I was just curious what you have to do.

[Relambrien]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

If you're looking at it as thousands of dollars for a piece of paper, go do something else.

You do realize that whole thing about it being thousands of dollars for a piece of paper was sarcastic, right?

[OrganisM]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

So you're going to a music school, right? Do you have to study an instrument or voice? I'm going to school for music ed., but the school that my brother will be going to, you can get a music business degree without any musical training. I was just curious what you have to do.

I assume you were talking to me since I mentioned Berklee. I'm studying music production.. the art of producing a record, which is overseeing it from concept and recording to mixing and mastering. I'm interested because I want to produce my own records. The classes have to do with production techniques, using different programs and equipment, training your ears to break down mixes, and all sorts of fun stuff like that. My musical training comes into play for all those things. I can only imagine trying to do this stuff without what I've learned musically.

You do realize that whole thing about it being thousands of dollars for a piece of paper was sarcastic, right?

Given that it's a popular opinion, it was perfectly reasonable for me to assume you were being serious, particularly because you gave no strong indication one way or the other. In any case, it does bring up an interesting topic of discussion.

[rzr]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

Sadly, I won't be going to college just yet. In May when I graduate I'll be Army bound. Best wishes to everyone who's though.

[roundb0x]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

i got accepted to S.U. a few weeks ago

my PR1 test scores were in the 99th percentiles so it's no wonder

[Reach]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

I know I'm there for the piece of paper. At least with respect to my undergrad. You can go on about how much you've learned, etc, but you haven't. I can guarantee you your memory is not that special; you've forgotten at least 80% of everything you've learned by the time you graduate that doesn't directly pertain to your major. That's if you're lucky.

The only thing an undergraduate education is really doing is shaping your behavior. It's pure conditioning at work, mostly operant. You're being conditioned to do higher level studies, work, etc...you're not really learning much at all. The grades you get are a reflection of your ability to adapt and conform to a set of rules; what they reflect of your understanding is almost nothing, assuming your intelligence meets a threshold high enough to actually get it in the first place.

Sadly, there is STILL no AP equivalent as far as I know in Nova Scotia that allows students to bypass first year courses, from which you will take essentially nothing from.



Anyway, back in the day I only applied to one university and got in 8) I mean, there was no question of whether or not I would get in. I was going to apply to some American universities, as I had taken the SAT, but decided against it at the last minute.

[MrRubix]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

Blah blah blah, yes it's a piece of paper, but the life lessons you learn and the expected value of feasible future income skyrockets.

College is one of those heavily underutilized things. It's prime for really learning the ins and outs of your desired field -- you can network and connect with people who are at the tops of their game. It's definitely worth the price tag, considering the value of the options that become available to you. So yeah, if you're whining about a piece of paper, you're looking at it the wrong way.

Good luck on your remaining schools, man! I was overkill and applied to 15 back then (got into 14 lol).

[Nyokou]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

Going to college is something really important for my parents. My dad went to the National Autonomous University of Mexico and my mom only graduated from high school in Mexico. The big difference I've seen is that my mom, with only her high school education, has only reached her goal of being a secretary at a Family Counseling center for drug and alcohol addicts. It really, really saddens me though because when we were kids she tried so hard to go to medical school but just couldn't because of my brothers and I. It was too much of a responsibility for my dad alone (we were all young only 5 years apart, four of us) so my mom ended up quitting her studies and night job as a nurse to take care of us.

However, since my dad got a decent education in graphic design (yes, the very early stages of graphic design using computers) he got pretty good jobs at first. He worked at a Newspaper at one point before getting hired at Capital One where he worked for about 8 years and now he's one of the best bilingual graphic designers in the country. Various contacts and everything, so he's pretty successful now working as a freelancer.

My dad really inspires me and so does my mom. I want to become as successful as my dad, you know, something artistic, but I also want to go to college and get an education that my mom never had the opportunity to get. She really sacrificed a lot for my brothers and I, even her dream of becoming a doctor.

._.'

Anyway, I'm going to start writing my applications this summer, although it seems unlikely that I'll be going the fall of 2010 (the year I graduate) because of a personal inconvenience that needs to be fixed beforehand. So, I'm most likely entering college in spring of 2011 or fall of 2011.

I'm applying to...

Virginia Commonwealth University
George Mason University
Minneapolis College of Art and Design
University of Northern Iowa
Ringling School of Art and Design
Full Sail University

2 schools in Virginia, 2 in Iowa and 2 in Florida.

I'll probably apply to others as well but I don't know. I've also been thinking of taking some online classes at the Academy of Art University (Cali) but I'm not sure about that either.

[Relambrien]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

Given that it's a popular opinion, it was perfectly reasonable for me to assume you were being serious, particularly because you gave no strong indication one way or the other. In any case, it does bring up an interesting topic of discussion.

I figured I was being sufficiently sarcastic, but you're right, this is quite an interesting topic.

I recognize that most of what I learn as an undergrad isn't going to be very useful to me, just like most of what I'm learning in high school isn't going to be very useful to me. But the experience of being able to live on your own, keep track of yourself and make sure that you stay on the path you want, and figure out how you want to apply yourself to the world makes college worth it.

[JKPolk]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

WTF, 6 months??

How?

Our school offers a BS/MS program. If you get accepted into the program (sign up in your junior year usually), you can take classes that will count toward both your BS and MS degrees. For example, the current plan has the setup where you take two 4000 level courses and two grad courses in your senior year that count for both BS and MS credit, 3 credits each course towards MS. Needing 30 credits total for an MS, you're left to only take 18 credits the year after you get your BS to receive your MS.

The boat I'm in, I'll have 4 grad courses and 2 4000 level courses completed, that's 18 credits. If I put enough effort in, I'll be able to finish in 6 mo. With a new plan that they're trying to enact where AE majors can count up to 4 4000 level courses, I could have easily over 20, close to 24 credits towards my MS by my BS graduation in 2010.

[Mogsworth]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

I only applied to four schools, so a rejection is going to hit harder than a lot of other people in my class (many of whom applied to at least seven). I only applied to:

James Madison University
University of Texas at Austin
Rhode Island College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts

The only school I've heard back from is UT, and I got rejected for my music composition major (since my guidance department sent both my audition tape and portfolio to the wrong location), but got into the school itself (since I put down Psychology as a fallback major). My audition for RIC is March 7th, MCLA doesn't have an audition (which is why it's my absolute last choice), and I had my JMU audition last Monday. I sure hope that I get into JMU, now that I've been to the campus; incredibly wonderful atmosphere, some of the friendliest people I've ever met, and the professors are awesome.

[OrganisM]

Re: College acceptances, or four years and thousands of dollars for a piece of paper

But the experience of being able to live on your own, keep track of yourself and make sure that you stay on the path you want, and figure out how you want to apply yourself to the world makes college worth it.

Oh yeah, I wasn't contesting that. I agree that college is worth it.