What is DL's opinion on community colleges?

Low.

They're an important resource to some — a way into the middle class, etc. I'd rather donate money to good community colleges rather than Yale and Harvard.

I learned ASL in a night class offered at my local community college.

Doesn't matter the college, gotta make sure they are accredited.

The pure goodwill, good work and value of a community college is astonishing and moving to me when I think of it. They truly change lives for the better for those most needing it and wanting to good for themselves and their communities. Long may the thrive.

do/they*

Saved me from the decades of debt which have ravaged peers of my age. I took lower general ed classes there before transferring to a 4-year university -- the classes were great, with smaller class sizes, and more individual attention from the professors vs. the massive lecture halls at the UC I ended up attending.

They're the smarter way for kids to go in the future, I think. Especially kids who are undecided, average, or have no concrete plans for their future. They won't bankrupt them. Yeah, they won't get the dorm life experience, but they can join an Americorps youth program if they want to experience something like that.

I went to Paris-IV, EPFL Lausanne, UNIL Geneve, Brown and several community colleges because why not? I think they are great for everyone! Great for people who go 2 years, and that's it. Or move on to Bachelors. Great for people who need to fill in gaps in their skills, knowledge. I think money should be poured into them and especially struggling students, like it was once poured into state university systems. They do so much good and no harm as far as I know.

Someone in the USA needs to have the balls to close for-profit schools.

They should work closely with HSs and the military to make up for shitty high school education.

They are elective, after all. Most students are trying to make something of themselves.

They’re for dumbasses with no money and I applaud them.

Honey, we’ve talked about this.

I"m in my 40's and finished college long ago--but I love short courses just for the sake of learning.

At my local community college, I took classes on cooking, writing, gay history, and art history.

They are FAR better than for-profit colleges that just want your money.

I'm pretty sure everyone who is going to them got in honestly and didn't bribe their way in with $$$ and lies.

CC's are a good thing. If your a good student in high school you can do your pre rec's as a senior and get a scholarship to the community college. There are many well paying professions for a 2 year degree. Graduate, get a job, continue your education if you want. Great way to avoid studenut loans.

I think they're valuable and helpful and it's shameful how they are sometimes criticized.

There are SO MANY bullshit private colleges that award degrees on par with community colleges.

They are excellent & I agree with the poster above who mentioned wanting to donate $ to CCs rather than the Ivies. Another important thing about CCs: the transferable college courses have actual professors with at least Masters’ degrees whereas every “real college” I’ve been to has grad students teaching the introductory courses.

The guy I see regularly (an "arrangement") goes to one, and it's been great for him. He's going to transfer to a four-year college soon.

Don't give Stanford your billions. A waste.

They are good for updating your skills, if you take night classes for specific programs, gotta make sure they are recognized in the field you are studying for.

Do you all contribute money to Harvard, Yale and Stanford? If you didn't go there, why? Oh, you don't, do you.

But good idea to give money to your local CC. I am sure they have some scholarship funds. Contact the college president's office. They probably do NOT have any sort of development departments but I'm sure they have some funds set up.

[quote]If your a good student in high school you can do your pre rec's as a senior and get a scholarship to the community college.

Oh, quadruple dear.

[quote] Great way to avoid studenut loans.

And again.

Better get cracking those books, Mona.

My Uncle is a Prof at a CC. The guy is brilliant, and he LOVES his students. He would put his students against any others at "great" schools-and is really passionate about it. He is also big on the fact that they save a shit ton of money and a lot move onto 4 years (with only 2 left to pay for)---getting a 4 year degree from a school that is "great", but paying only half.

SO----while I dont go to one, I know lots that do and I think they are a great option.

R19, Yale grad here. I gave at first, but I stopped and won't give anything until they stop using animals for experimentation etc.

I have a high opinion of them.

You can take arts classes (drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, elementary piano) for a fair price. Many of the adjunct teachers have taught the same courses at the bigger schools, sometimes even Ivy League schools. If you're taking an arts course, you'll have better lab equipment at the community college because many times the bigger name schools like to focus more on theory than actual practice.

The courses cost about a fourth of what the four-year universities charge, and many community colleges have an arrangement with one or more local universities to accept you (if you performed acceptably) and transfer your CC credits directly towards a bachelor's degree.

R23 again. I took several arts classes at my local CC, and I loved it. The campus was in an urban location, and I met people from all walks of life, from recent high school grads to retirees.

In the next few years, when I get some time, I'm going to reenroll and try to learn Spanish.

One thing I appreciated about community college was exposure to students of diverse age ranges, i.e. working adults with some life experience. They definitely added a different perspective to discussions and group projects. Once I actually did transfer to a 4-year, I felt like I was sequestered with kids who were more sheltered and more than a little bit more spoiled.

They're a great resource for the community.

They’re alright.

Also, if you enroll as a student, you can subscribe to Microsoft Office for free. And you'll get Amazon Prime for free.

I took some woodworking classes at one a few years ago and really enjoyed it.

I took some science classes at a CC after getting my Bachelor's. The quality of the instruction was very high and the class sizes were very low. So much better than being in a 200+ person lecture hall at a large university with an instructor that is mostly disinterested in teaching.

*with an instructor who is

JCs can work for those who are motivated and focused.

I taught at a few. Students are generally down on the fact that they have to go to CC. If you can get past that, they are mostly good kids.

They're a bargain.

I was going to pay only $250,000 to get Olivia Jade into a CC on the crew team, but then she hooked up with the richer USC kids and yachts.

They can be OUTSTANDING. I have a two year AA from William Rainey Harper, one of the best (maybe the best?) in Chicagoland. Originally, I planned to transfer to Loyola, so I took the same classes required for their liberal arts/Jesuit structured curriculum. I came out with extra hours to fulfill Loyola’s requirements, and I felt like I had a true foundation for all kinds of learning, it was a holistic preparation for further learning. I ended up instead transferring to University of Georgia — Athens because I wanted to love and it was cheap, and guess what? I was a star because of the rigorous liberal arts l coursework I took thinking I would be at Loyola. I love that school and will be forever grateful, I double majored at UGA, graduates summa cum laude, and went on to graduate work too.

Having sung the praises of Harper Jr College — some are better than others for SURE. If this is the beginning of your higher education and you don’t know what you want to do yet, do what I did — a liberal arts curriculum (look at Loyola for their transfer requirements). Also, beware of day classes at CC’s. My experience was striking — while all the young people were taking day classes, and night classes didn’t look hip AT ALL because there were old fogies, guess what? They were highly motivated learners! They WANTED to learn. So for classes like ENG 101 — go at night, those are the people who already gave jobs, realized they fucked up and NEED this education. The quality of class discussions will be night and day (no pun intended), during the day most classes were teeming with kids who didn’t want to learn, they weren’t ready yet.

I’ve has multiple family who are/were professors at CC’s. These schools are the unsung hero’s of our workforce, lifting workers and families up into the next class. Yes, definitely wish I had had the traditional dorm experience too in hindsight, I did miss that BUT I was 24 by then, and I had partied a lot, so I despised the Greek thing, I was artsy, at the time it wasn’t for me. Good luck OP!!!!

[quote]And you'll get Amazon Prime for free.

Amazon Prime Student for free is well worth whatever this school costs.

R35 is spot-on about the difference between day and evening community college classes.

R7 is right. Just in terms of debt, a community college is a life saver. I did not attend, I went straight to university, but that was at a time when it was much more affordable. My brother's son on the other hand did go to a C.C. and he did save a pile of money. It is the way to go if you don't have scholarship money to pay for your university studies.

I should have gone. , Wasted my parents money on 4 years degree.

I'm a fan.

Big fan and I think we should make them free.

It's the best path for kids who are smart but either can't afford a 4-year college or aren't ready for it academically. I suspect you'd see a lot more kids going that route rather than getting in debt to afford a mediocre 4-year school.

Do well at the two-year school and transfer.

I also think we have a whole lot of jobs where employers are asking for 4-year degrees, but where a 2-year degree would more than suffice.

We're in a weird place now where the children of that top 15% to 20% are getting an even bigger leg up in life--no college debt (mom and dad pay for everything) plus cushy internships courtesy of same, that lead to well-paying jobs while their peers drown in crushing college debt loads with degrees that aren't going to land them anywhere.

Free CC would go a long way to remedying the "crushing debt" part of that equation.

It isn't that you wasted your parent's money R39. You only wasted two years of your parent's money. :)

I have a BA from a traditional 4 year university and I still take 2-3 classes a year from my local community college. Some just for kicks, and some for genuine professional advancement. I love it. As others have said, they are a fantastic local resource.

Wanted to add to R41 that many of the people teaching at CCs, especially in pre-professional programs are people actually working in the field--I taught a few courses on law about 15 years ago--it's a nice resume bit when you're at that level in your career--and then those people are in a position to help you land a job or at least guide you down the right path.

That's in sharp contrast to many professors at 4-year colleges who have limited contact with working professionals.

I'm talking about pre-professional subjects like "prelaw" or "communications" or "marketing" --- subjects like history, philosophy and physics should still be taught by academics.

Tom Hanks is a fan.

Middling.

I took a class in Child Psychology for 20 minutes at a CC. It was with a bunch of women who spent the entire time ( in class) telling each other their techniques for guaranteeing the baby's gender. After the woman said that she heard," If your husband ejaculates to his left, you will have a boy," I stood up and walked out.