Just paid my son's Fall semester at Community College

[eilen]

I paid it from a 529 I started years ago for him. I wanted it paid from there before the debt ceiling plan failed. It should go through before 8/2. We did not bother with the financial aid forms.

Our hope is to get him graduated the first 2 years with zero debt. Then reassess-- if GPA are over 3.5 he can continue his higher ed, if not- vocational school and he can take night classes while he is working if he wants to.

Will consider a semester overseas for language fluency-- migrant labor in Europe might be a necessity if things continue their trajectory in the US.

These days, not only do you need a plan B, you need a C and a D as well.

[TBF]

1. Best wishes to your son -

I hope not only that he finds employment, but that he enjoys his studies as well.

[Warpy]

2. Community college is good

for the first two years. Specific coursework tracks like bookkeeping can also net entry level jobs that actually pay the bills while four year liberal arts grads are languishing on the job market because nobody's hiring middle managers these days.

After 2 years, he might even know what he wants to do with his life.

Then again, I'm old and retired and I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.

[H2O Man]

3. Good plan.

There are a lot of community colleges in NYS that offer quality education. I think that Herkimer CCC is one of the best, at least in several areas of study.

[FSogol]

4. Go get this book from your library:

Debt-Free U: How I Paid for an Outstanding College Education Without Loans, Scholarships, or Mooching off My Parents by
Zac Bissonnette

[LynneSin]

5. I think any kid, regardless of GPA, should do at least one year in community college

With the cost of colleges skyrocketing, community colleges make more sense. With any college you attend, you're required to take some basic college courses that usually include English, Math, Public Speaking, and Foreign Language. Why pay the exorbitant price per credit at a private college or even a state college. I would say take at least 1 year at a community college and get some of your core classes out of the way at a cost that won't put you and your child into debt.

I think your plan is extremely smart. BTW Delaware has a great program with their SEED scholarship that basically will help any DE resident who graduated from a DE high school and has a GPA of 2.5 that they can get a 2 year associates degree at one of the DE state schools or UDel.

[exboyfil]

7. Junior College tuition

is $4,500 while the local university is $7,350. $2850 is a lot of money, but I would recommend starting at the university if you are academically prepared. My experience is that Junior College courses are not as rigorous as the university equivalent. Freshman year might not be to bad, but do not expect to graduate in four years if you do two years at the Junior College.

Our High School actually offers 11 Junior College classes on campus. They include non-Calculus based Physics I and II, Sociology, Statistics, CNA courses, Intro to Business, Intro to Computers, and Business Law.

Honor track English allows opportunity to do the two AP English tests. Accelerating a year in math allows testing for AP Calculus. Accelerating a year in Science allows for AP testing in Biology and Chemistry. AP Psychology or AP U.S. History can be taken as senior year Social Study electives.

My expectation would be, given my experience in High School taking Junior College classes, that the AP classes at the High School will be more rigorous than the Junior College equivalent.

[GaYellowDawg]

9. That's interesting...

I just finished a year teaching biology at a community college and students constantly called my courses challenging but interesting. I would encourage anyone to do their core coursework at a community college; the instructional quality is, in my experience, a hell of a lot better. Students are in lecture classes of 30 instead of 300, they get their labs taught by their lecture instructors instead of grad students who resent being there, their lecture instructors are at the college to teach rather than to do research, and in a lot of cases, the instructional technology is better for the lower-level courses. I've gotten a PhD and taught labs at a Tier I research university. For an incoming freshman, the educational experience that I was able to offer at the community college was a lot better because I had much better departmental/administrative support for teaching, and the instructional technology was at a much higher level. I went from using powerpoints off of my own laptop at the university to using a better computer, a SmartBoard with a high definition projector, and piloting the use of iPads in class for instructional reinforcement and assessment.

In many cases, what you consider to be "rigor" - difficult coursework - is coursework that's made more difficult by lack of instructional quality. When I went to my 4 year school after 2 years at a community college, I had a better grasp of many fundamentals than my peers because I'd had better teachers. When I was back at that community college as a teacher, the quality hadn't slipped an iota; the administration and department demanded excellence in teaching from its faculty to a degree that simply was not present at the university level.

[exboyfil]

10. I can only give my own experience

You sound like a wonderful teacher, but my Calculus I and II and Chemistry I and II courses at Purdue were some of the finest courses which I ever took. While we were packed into large lecture halls, the professors lecturing were masters - some of the best teachers I have ever had. Since Chemistry cost me a 4.0 both semesters, it is not that I hold any particular allegiance to that subject so my opinion is based on what I saw. The Teaching Assistants were good to excellent as well, and lots of help was made available to us struggling Freshman (I actually tutored for dollars as an upperclassmen in Mechanical Engineering classes using this same model).

I took five Junior College classes as a High School student, and none came close to matching the expectation which I received in my Honors English, Chemistry, or Physics classes (let alone AP classes which I never had). It may be the classes which I selected (Biology I, Physical Science, World History I, FORTRAN, and Business Law), but that was my experience. The talent pool was shallow, and I set the curve along with my Honors High School classmates.

I have been involved in education for quite some time (a B.S. and M.S. in Engineering, a MBA, all coursework completed towards a PhD in Engineering, and some post-MBA business courses). I have also been involved closely in my daughters' Middle and High School education (through 9th grade to this point).

[GaYellowDawg]

14. Well, that's true.

Purdue is, of course, an outstanding university, especially in engineering. I'm not surprised that you got fine instruction in those classes. I certainly would be willing to stipulate that community colleges could be hit or miss, but my Biology I and Human Anatomy and Physiology teachers at my community college were two of the best teachers I've had (it has been, by the way, a real treat to teach alongside the A&P professor). Given that we've had much different experiences, I suppose that opinions like ours are based, as you indicated, on circumstances - but I wanted to let you know that community colleges and their faculties are not universally inferior. My dad taught at the same college I went to (he wouldn't let me take his class) and he was awarded several NEH fellowships over the years. He studied (and excelled) alongside some of the nation's leading historians at universities like Rutgers, Cornell, etc. He was so bright and wrote so well that some years, he had to choose between fellowships. You can find some really great people like him who simply love the teaching and aren't interested in the publish or perish grind at community colleges. I know if I'm ever a quarter of the teacher he was, my students will have a superb learning experience in my classes and enjoy them, too.

Thanks for the nice words about the teaching. I've gotten a B.S. and an M.S. in biology, and completed all the coursework for the PhD in Genetics before transferring to Science Ed to focus on teaching, so I obviously place a high premium on education. :-)

[kick-ass-bob]

17. It really depends on the system you are in.

If there is a strong CC system in your state, then people can easily be prepared and can graduate in 4 years in normal programs (as opposed to some like engineering, which can take 5).

If you have a weak CC system, then your example may apply.

[mod mom]

19. Also consider CLEP test. I got about 1 1/2 years from them.

[Divernan]

6. The overseas study experience is invaluable - not just for language fluency

but also to get some international perspective on how people live, and how other governments govern. My 3 kids spent time abroad ranging from one summer session in Germany to 3 years in Dublin, Ireland (actually got an honours degree from University College Dublin), to my son who spent a post grad year in the Indonesian rain forests. None of them stayed in on-campus housing. One shared an apt. in suburban Dublin with 3 Irish students, one rented a room in Bremen, Germany from a widowed Mom with a severely handicapped child, and my son started with a rented room in Jakarta while he took a crash language course, and then lived in native villages on two different islands.

Living on their own in a different culture gives a tremendous amount of life experience, empathy and confidence. As one traveler noted, it's hard to hate people whom you know.

[SheilaT]

8. I have attended a total of

six different community colleges (2) and public universities (4), and in general the community colleges were better than the universities. However, once you reach upper-division level coursework, the public universities are themselves quite good.

Also, depending on your son's interests and academic abilities, he might want to go straight into a vocational program. Those are what the community colleges excel at, and he can start work, often earning quite a decent wage, very quickly.

My older son recently completed a CAD degree at his local community college, and has just landed a very good entry-level job in that field. The entire engineering field is one that typically has lots of job openings. Of course, if he has no interest or aptitude in that field, it's not a great idea for him.

Another thing community colleges tend to be great at is culinary programs.

Anyway, you are making a great decision for him, getting through school with minimal debt. The only real down side of starting out this way is that there's usually no real campus life at the community colleges, but that's not a tragedy.

[eilen]

11. My son's friend is enrolled in an engineering field of study

there but my son's talents lie elsewhere. He leans more towards writing, philosophy, and comedic/theatrical performance (at this time). He is very personable/dynamic and makes friends easily (I am stopped at local businesses by young clerks around town asking if I am his Mom). This month he told me that after he graduates, he wants to go to LA for pilot season... I suggested he complete a MFA first. Last Fall he wanted to go to school for music. His teachers all seem to genuinely have enjoyed him in their classes as he brings the discussion up... sometimes over the heads of his peers. However, he seems to only do well in classes he has a great interest in and then, only on projects he finds compelling so we will see. He tends to find something interesting, immerse himself in it to the exclusion of everything else until he has some mastery of the subject/topic/skill then moves on. So organizing work has been a big struggle and he has gotten better at it but it took a toll on his grades/academic performance. He has PDD which is a variance of autism/aspergers. We try to structure classes in a schedule that can have a common thread to them and remind him to do stuff. His brain works differently than anyone else. I would not be surprised to see him on a creative team for film and tv projects with maybe advertising consultant work.

I can't imagine him in a cubicle-- he is more the itinerate musician on the street corner Saturday, Lecturer on his soapbox on Sunday, Stand-up comedian on Monday, Guerilla activist on Tuesday--then hibernates/reads/writes/sketches--watches films/plays videos.

[SheilaT]

16. I constantly tell young people

to go ahead and major in what interests them most, always keeping in mind that they need to earn a living in the end.

My younger son graduated (cum laude, I must brag)from the University of Tulsa in four years. When he got done he went back to doing pizza delivery, rather than looking for a "real" job. It made me a little crazy, but I was no longer supporting him. Last fall he moved to Portland, OR, where he continues to support himself with pizza delivery, meanwhile going to open mike nights at the various comedy clubs around the city, and hopes to become a real stand-up comic eventually. I am extremely proud of him all around, for his degree, for his willingness to follow his dream.

[uponit7771]

12. Amen! Good for you, wife and I have same plan but it begins with acedemic\athletic scolorships

...then CC then state 4yr.

Most degrees prestige is regional save the ivy leagues and ivy league tech schools, employers need degree'd folk.

[Ruby the Liberal]

13. You don't need to worry about the debt ceiling with your 529

Those are done on the state level like Coverdells. Additionally, depending on who you went through to initiate it (and where it is held today), it may be FDIC insured.

You did a great job at planning. I wish more people knew about the 529 option. Congrats and best wishes to your son for his future success.

[Dappleganger]

15. This is what our son is doing...

he registered a week ago at his community college. They have a guaranteed admittance to a decent 4-yr. university which is local when he finishes. It'll save us a lot of money (which we're barely scraping together as it stands) and give him the opportunity he needs. He was a decent student so hopefully he'll do fine.

[Generic Other]

18. You made a wise decision

The smartest students are usually the ones who get the most value for their tuition monies.