Have you been accepted to college yet?

[Down With OPP]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

You know, you didn't have to release that info, some pedo on the internet might track you down

[25thhour]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

Meh, Its not me its my sister. And theres like thousands of people at UNBC

[Nyokou]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

Already? Lol, I'm almost 22.

But I've thought about a few places so far. The easiest thing to do would be to continue at the university I'm already at, Cal Poly - SLO. I have a feeling that's what I'll end up doing. I've been looking at maybe the University of Michigan, which has an incredible aerospace program or Virginia Tech. Both are great schools.

The hardest part isn't deciding where to go...it's what the **** to study.

Yeah, I'm totally aware of the fact that you're almost 22... I was just surprised that you'd decide to go to grad school so soon after undergrad. ><' I don't think I could do that, but then again, if I end up going to Randolph I'll be in a dual-degree program so I'll get a Bachelor's and a Master's in 5 years instead of 6..

[foilman8805]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

So you'll get a Masters no matter what? Or you have the option to.

What major did you get accepted to Randolph for?

[Nyokou]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

Pre-Nursing

I have the option to get a Master's... At the end of my third year at Randolph I can apply to Johns Hopkins and Vanderbilt. If I go to JH, I'll get a normal BS in Nursing but if I go to Vanderbilt I'll get a MS in Nursing instead. I think I'd rather go for the Master's at Vanderbilt... saves me 2 years of grad school.

[foilman8805]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

There's absolutely no reason not to get a Masters in 5 years. Do it.

[revolutionomega]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

Oh nvm, Ilse, you ARE older than me. Weird.
Gotta finish up a research paper on the economics of the Yankees and how it contributes to Macro (GDP, etc.), finish up some crappy low-grade website (because I'm terrible at html so whatever), and then finals woo.

[Relambrien]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

I got rejected by four colleges and accepted by another four.

Went to one of them and now I'm paying $55,000 a year without getting a single dime as scholarship.

I feel your pain.

Once I graduate and start making $75k a year (average amount for new graduates), I should be able to pay these loans off without -too- much difficulty. I mean, I'll only have to support myself, and I've been living very comfortably with a family of 5 all my life.

(Also if any of you get accepted into Carnegie Mellon, congrats)

[MrRubix]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

$75k is way high -- the average graduate gets maybe $45k or so.

[Arch0wl]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

I hate this response:

"This thread has turned into a Critical Thinking thread"

There's a difference between a critical thinking thread and thread that happens to be intelligently discussed; specifically, the former concerns topics that invite critical thought, such as ideas.

To stay on topic, though, I'll probably go to law school even though I detest the idea of being a lawyer forever. I doubt it will make me happy; I'm naturally inclined to artistic and intellectual fields that give not-so-great pay. However, my parents were both artists at one point and one of them hasn't stopped--as a result they've never had any financial security. The thought of being like my parents in that respect terrifies me.

(It's a stupid dilemma that I've been trying to decide for two years now: do I want to do what would make me happy, or do I want to do what I think I "should" do? Either way, I'll have regrets.)

[MrRubix]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

The correct answer is to find something intellectually stimulating that pays you money, yet allows you the time to do fun things like art. Don't sell your soul, though.

For some reason people find it hard to stick with the intuitive answer: "Find something in the middle." You'll always have regret for things you didn't do (Damn, I should have taken a harder job because I need more money/Damn, I'm always working and never have any fun) -- easiest way is to delve into a moderation of both. Figure out what you want to spend your free time doing and what kind of lifestyle you want, then figure out how much it'll cost to do all that in terms of money and time. Then simply aim for that salary bracket. It's a relatively simple calculation and it'll save you a huge headache later... you'll be surprised at yourself, most likely (at least, I was).

[Arch0wl]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

Finding something in the middle is difficult since my choices are dichotomous to say the least. Out of curiosity, do you have any salary brackets available for comparison?

[MrRubix]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

What do you mean "brackets for comparison"? Depends on your field (entry + growth opportunities) and skill level (what you're able to land).

Here is the financial data for graduates of my school (2009 grads):

http://www.vpul.upenn.edu/careerservices/wharton/surveys/Wharton2009Report.pdf

Average base salary upon entry is about 60k, although with growth opportunities and bonuses, they tend to shoot up a bit higher. Most of our grads go into business sectors.

It's also useful to use calculators such as the ones found below:

http://www.bestplaces.net/COL/default.aspx

http://swz.salary.com/CostofLivingWizard/layoutscripts/coll_start.asp

Many people don't take into account cost of living -- disposable income is resultant of more than just how much your job pays you.

But seriously, make a list of everything that you need in life to be happy. It sounds silly, but just do it. My list wound up only being like 10 items long in terms of absolute essentials. After that I had to struggle to think of things I absolutely needed to be happy. It'll help guide you to an ideal place to work and an ideal income bracket. From there you can figure out what kind of job you'd find fun. Of course, if you find something more fun that pays better and still allows you to hit everything on your list, then do that instead. The idea is to get a minimum threshold for things. You don't want to sacrifice anything too far in either direction. It's easier to plot out that degree of moderation between starving artist and lifeless investment banker when you actually calculate what that point may be.

[Draigun]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

$75k is way high -- the average graduate gets maybe $45k or so.

Actually, it depends on the degree. I'm about a year away from finishing a computer science degree and average starting is about $60k.

[lightdarkness]

Re: Have you been accepted to college yet?

I was accepted to college over 4 years ago