[Desert_Fox]

So I grew up in San Diego and did fairly well in high school, had a 29 ACT and like 3.9 weighted GPA. I was able to get into UC Santa Barbara, which is actually a pretty decent school (top ten public university in country). I had to work hard in high school to get my grades, but much harder in college to get by. I regularly have 6-10 page papers due for each of my classes and if you don't study it's basically a guaranteed D to F for just about any class. That's not a big deal though because I was expecting college to be a challenge.

My question is do you guys think community college can be considered like a 4 year university in terms of difficulty or challenge? All my friends decided to enroll in the local JC and I swear their assignments are a f*cking joke. Half the tests are take-home multiple choice and some professors have elementary school-esque finals like a squirt gun fight. Not to mention they only go to class twice a week for the same amount of units im currently taking. It doesn't even seem fair that they can transfer to a 4 year with taking such easy classes, especially compared to the kids who had to work hard in high school to get in to college. I tell them they're going to be screwed if they actually can transfer to a 4 year college because the difference between what they're doing and what im expected to complete is staggering.

Maybe im being too harsh on them? It just seems like they have so much free time and easy work, if I were a lazier person i'd just go to CC.

[mccannable]

Mine is pretty easy. It's considered one of the best community (now state) they say.

[amanda hor$t]

i went to a 4-yr university after h.s., taken some jc classes here and there for fun.

they're easy. but still depends on the classes. overall: easier. 99 times out of 100, someone with a scholarship to a top school will not choose a jc over that.

[Foodle]

In general, JC is much easier.

[Greenkirby21]

lol i took a community college class once in the summer because i wanted to graduate college early. It was such a joke, and never took another one after that.

First, as you said, it was extremely easy. I took Calculous based Physics II. I took Physics I at my university and it was tough as $%$. Studied everyday.

At the CC, we never even used calc! The test was multiple choice and easy and the teacher got it from some general test bank because they were so generic. Also, it was definitely like high school. We each had a small classroom with little chairs and a slide out desk, and we had to raise our hand if we needed to leave the room. Also, no cell phones or laptops allowed.

[silvergray545]

Community colleges are a joke. I'm pretty sure it's just a GPA builder to get you into a university.

The community college by me only offers 2 year degrees. You have to get a Bachelors from a university. I always assumed losers went to that community college. My parents pushed me to go there for 2 years instead of going straight to a university. I refused to. I wanted to spend my time at a university that would impress future employers when looking for a job. My parents wanted me to go to a community college because each credit hour cost $98 dollars. I coughed up the money and went to a university of my choice.

Just last year, my younger brother was in his senior year of high school and he decided to do post secondary. (Not sure if all of you know, but post secondary is where you take a couple classes at the high school and take a couple classes at an actual college. Basically, you earn college credits while you're still in high school.) So he went to the local community college that I just talked about (that was the only option available). He told me that my assumptions were right. The people that were just there to say they're in college. Some people weren't dedicated to learning. Some were always drunk and/or high. Classes were a complete joke. I don't remember ever seeing him study. When he graduated high school, he ran as fast as he could from that place. He transfered to an awesome university and he's loving it.

I'm an accounting major. The school's accounting program that I go to is ranked top 25 in the nation. And trust me, employers notice. Better schools have more difficult programs to weed out the people that are not capable. You're a smart kid. Stick with it and you'll do well.

[BossSauce]

Community college is easy. Just do your basics there and get that shit out of the way.

[1fastdoc]

It varies by location. I joined the Army out of HS and after getting out I used the GI Bill. I went to a junior college for the first two years and then transferred into the University of Washington.

At UW I tutored Physics, Chemistry and Biology. The education I got at the junior level was on par if not better than the 100 and 200 level courses at UW.

Now as far as the English courses, well, they were definitely easier.

[Hisam135i]

Originally Posted by Desert_Fox

So I grew up in San Diego and did fairly well in high school, had a 29 ACT and like 3.9 weighted GPA. I was able to get into UC Santa Barbara, which is actually a pretty decent school (top ten public university in country). I had to work hard in high school to get my grades, but much harder in college to get by. I regularly have 6-10 page papers due for each of my classes and if you don't study it's basically a guaranteed D to F for just about any class. That's not a big deal though because I was expecting college to be a challenge.

My question is do you guys think community college can be considered like a 4 year university in terms of difficulty or challenge? All my friends decided to enroll in the local JC and I swear their assignments are a f*cking joke. Half the tests are take-home multiple choice and some professors have elementary school-esque finals like a squirt gun fight. Not to mention they only go to class twice a week for the same amount of units im currently taking. It doesn't even seem fair that they can transfer to a 4 year with taking such easy classes, especially compared to the kids who had to work hard in high school to get in to college. I tell them they're going to be screwed if they actually can transfer to a 4 year college because the difference between what they're doing and what im expected to complete is staggering.

Maybe im being too harsh on them? It just seems like they have so much free time and easy work, if I were a lazier person i'd just go to CC.

Depends on the school you go to, i went to a small jc and now at a private school. My jc was much more difficult than the school I am now at

[Tarty Fruit]

It depends on the JC, some are very tough and excellent and others are just ass and full of idiots. Bullshit clases like English tend to be easier at JC, but science classes are pretty tough depending on the professor. BTW most employers won't care if you went to a JC and you had transfered out to a good 4 year school. It matters where you got your degree from at the end.....does not matter where you started.

I have several cousins (who are now doctors) that went to a JC, transferred to a good 4 year school and moved onto medical school. The JC they went to is one of the best in the state and the professors are hard as shit.

You can clearly tell silvergray545 is a snob by the way he wrote his post. What university doesn't have kids that come to class drunk/high and kids that are not dedicated to learning? I am sure almost ALL universities have that. The funny thing is he is acting like he is some sort of badass brainiac but in reality he is an accounting major lmfao! Good job bro you are going to a top 25th ranked school to become an accountant, have fun with that in life. Enjoy paying those loans for the rest of your life, newsflash accountants don't make that much money. What a tard.

[IrishCoffee]

I don't think that community college offers the same experience as going to a 4 year university where you are away from home right out of high school. The growing experience that occurs for most people in those first 2 years is invaluable and the experiences and friendships gained are irreplaceable. I'm still close friends with many people I met in those first 2 years... that was 14 yeras ago.

Also, at many schools you can't transfer into some of the more desirable majors. I went to UCSD. You couldn't transfer into Computer Science from a JC. The program was too crowded.

When you look at those friends and are jealous that they don't have to work as hard, realize that many of their credits will not transfer (pariticularly if you study a science of any kind). Also, later on you will realize that the hard work you are putting in will pay off. Work ethic goes a long way and this is preparing you for the working world.

One last thing... you're at UCSB man! It's beautiful, has tons of girls, is party central, AND is a quality school. While you're buddies are living at home saving money and effort, you are truly experiencing what will likely be your most important growing years and some of the best moments of your life.

Have fun, experiment with weird shit, be safe, and get laid. You're in the right place.

[Desert_Fox]

Originally Posted by IrishCoffee

I don't think that community college offers the same experience as going to a 4 year university where you are away from home right out of high school. The growing experience that occurs for most people in those first 2 years is invaluable and the experiences and friendships gained are irreplaceable. I'm still close friends with many people I met in those first 2 years... that was 14 yeras ago.

Also, at many schools you can't transfer into some of the more desirable majors. I went to UCSD. You couldn't transfer into Computer Science from a JC. The program was too crowded.

When you look at those friends and are jealous that they don't have to work as hard, realize that many of their credits will not transfer (pariticularly if you study a science of any kind). Also, later on you will realize that the hard work you are putting in will pay off. Work ethic goes a long way and this is preparing you for the working world.

One last thing... you're at UCSB man! It's beautiful, has tons of girls, is party central, AND is a quality school. While you're buddies are living at home saving money and effort, you are truly experiencing what will likely be your most important growing years and some of the best moments of your life.

Have fun, experiment with weird shit, be safe, and get laid. You're in the right place.

+1 buddy. I applied to UCSD but didn't make the cut (I think I was pretty close to the cutting line though). I've taken some summer courses there and it's no joke!

Tarty Fruit, I understand your points but I think you're being a bit harsh. TBH, I think accounting is a more useful degree than business.A bachelor
s in business is basically the "I don't know exactly what I wanna do, but this field is popular and not too difficult". Accounting teaches you some useful skill sets, and if you're a social person AND can cram numbers and understand fiscal policies, you're in better shape than the guy who just went for business admin. Plus, the baby boomers are retiring and the need for accountants to manage these assets is pretty high. Not a bad start at all, I think. A director for a large public company once told me
"Accounting is for people who couldn't be Engineers, Economics is for people who couldn't be Accountants, and Business is for people who were too lazy or incapable to do any of the above."

[Templar]

Originally Posted by Tarty Fruit

It depends on the JC, some are very tough and excellent and others are just ass and full of idiots. Bullshit clases like English tend to be easier at JC, but science classes are pretty tough depending on the professor. BTW most employers won't care if you went to a JC and you had transfered out to a good 4 year school. It matters where you got your degree from at the end.....does not matter where you started.

I have several cousins (who are now doctors) that went to a JC, transferred to a good 4 year school and moved onto medical school. The JC they went to is one of the best in the state and the professors are hard as shit.

You can clearly tell silvergray545 is a snob by the way he wrote his post. What university doesn't have kids that come to class drunk/high and kids that are not dedicated to learning? I am sure almost ALL universities have that. The funny thing is he is acting like he is some sort of badass brainiac but in reality he is an accounting major lmfao! Good job bro you are going to a top 25th ranked school to become an accountant, have fun with that in life. Enjoy paying those loans for the rest of your life, newsflash accountants don't make that much money. What a tard.

U mad?

[crimsonred335is]

I agree that community college is easier, but I don't agree with your overall viewpoint. My experience with UCSD and UCLA is that a larger percentage of transfers compared to freshmen acceptances are driven to succeed. These transfers tend to care more about classes and score higher than the average. Transfers continue the trend they established at their community college and if classes are harder they adapt. Hell what is your explanation for universities with grade inflation.

It probably has to do with a different mentality, but what I'm trying to say is that you can't just look at where someone comes from and state they don't deserve to enter a university. How is that any different than comparing a kid who performs well at at a subpar high school to a kid who performs well at an ultra competitive high school?

I did an intra-UC transfer and I'm double majoring in Chemistry & Biology. Besides CompSci/Engineering classes everything else is a joke. University classes aren't really all that hard and I think you need to get off your high horse. The sole purpose of school is to grasp concepts and show your employers/grad schools that you knew how to apply them (your grades). Job/Graduate opportunities will reflect for those who cared about school and for those that didn't.

Stop caring so much about little things like this. You are going to a world renowned university and drive a beautiful BMW. You are better off than 95% of people in the world.

[silvergray545]

Originally Posted by Tarty Fruit

It depends on the JC, some are very tough and excellent and others are just ass and full of idiots. Bullshit clases like English tend to be easier at JC, but science classes are pretty tough depending on the professor. BTW most employers won't care if you went to a JC and you had transfered out to a good 4 year school. It matters where you got your degree from at the end.....does not matter where you started.

I have several cousins (who are now doctors) that went to a JC, transferred to a good 4 year school and moved onto medical school. The JC they went to is one of the best in the state and the professors are hard as shit.

You can clearly tell silvergray545 is a snob by the way he wrote his post. What university doesn't have kids that come to class drunk/high and kids that are not dedicated to learning? I am sure almost ALL universities have that. The funny thing is he is acting like he is some sort of badass brainiac but in reality he is an accounting major lmfao! Good job bro you are going to a top 25th ranked school to become an accountant, have fun with that in life. Enjoy paying those loans for the rest of your life, newsflash accountants don't make that much money. What a tard.

A snob? LOL far from it. I was just explaining what our community college is like up here. I'm glad you think accounting is a joke. And I'm sure what you are studying is what more "cooler" bro. You can tell that to all the accountants and CPAs on this board. I'm sure they'll agree with you. I also just wanted to mention great opportunities can be found from going to well known school. Oh and by the way, my school is paid for. You think I would spend as much as I am on a car if I had student loans? Lol and I'm the tard...

Anyways "Tarty Fruit" enjoy being an internet badass while I'm going to move on with my life.

[BossSauce]

Originally Posted by silvergray545

A snob? LOL far from it. I was just explaining what our community college is like up here. I'm glad you think accounting is a joke. And I'm sure what you are studying is what more "cooler" bro. You can tell that to all the accountants and CPAs on this board. I'm sure they'll agree with you. I also just wanted to mention great opportunities can be found from going to well known school. Oh and by the way, my school is paid for. You think I would spend as much as I am on a car if I had student loans? Lol and I'm the tard...

Anyways "Tarty Fruit" enjoy being an internet badass while I'm going to move on with my life.

my major is cooler than yours silverjew. actually just harder

[shah269]

If you want to study engineering or another very difficult subject. Yes it is a very good idea to start off at CC.
Simply put, your classes will be much smaller, you will get more 1:1 with the professors and your debt will be lower and you will have a better foundation to move into university.

If you are studying anything non science and math related...go straight off to unversity. It does nothing for you to go to a CC for an undgrad in english or music or what ever.

[Small Yellow]

In JC if youre smart you can start a tutoring session the fuck the chicks after. Theyre that easy.

[amanda hor$t]

if it's for the degree alone, 2 yrs at a jc is A LOT cheaper. but like someone mentioned, the experience of moving out, living in a dorm etc is half of college. i learned quite a bit staying up late and bs'ing with roommates or at study groups.

btw, i'm just gonna quickly plug in that i invented the iphone prototype back in '99 for a cs ui course. we called it the touchphone (it was a pda/phone with some computer functions). wifi wasn't available at the time.

[samchoi604]

Originally Posted by Desert_Fox

So I grew up in San Diego and did fairly well in high school, had a 29 ACT and like 3.9 weighted GPA. I was able to get into UC Santa Barbara, which is actually a pretty decent school (top ten public university in country). I had to work hard in high school to get my grades, but much harder in college to get by. I regularly have 6-10 page papers due for each of my classes and if you don't study it's basically a guaranteed D to F for just about any class. That's not a big deal though because I was expecting college to be a challenge.

My question is do you guys think community college can be considered like a 4 year university in terms of difficulty or challenge? All my friends decided to enroll in the local JC and I swear their assignments are a f*cking joke. Half the tests are take-home multiple choice and some professors have elementary school-esque finals like a squirt gun fight. Not to mention they only go to class twice a week for the same amount of units im currently taking. It doesn't even seem fair that they can transfer to a 4 year with taking such easy classes, especially compared to the kids who had to work hard in high school to get in to college. I tell them they're going to be screwed if they actually can transfer to a 4 year college because the difference between what they're doing and what im expected to complete is staggering.

Maybe im being too harsh on them? It just seems like they have so much free time and easy work, if I were a lazier person i'd just go to CC.

It's all a matter of perspective. Guys studying their PhD's in physics might think what you're doing is a joke too.

[Hawkeye]

The ones around here are more like 12th grade part 2. Many HS students take the courses as Sophomores - Seniors just for the extra credit. Doing a full 4 years there would be pretty stupid IMO. Doing 2 then hitting a real university would be ok though, and cheaper.

[Minefield]

OP is just mad he got a 3.9 and ended up at Santa Barbara.