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View Poll Results: Colleges should eliminate most General Education requirements so the students can concentrate on the
Yes 5 11.63%
No 34 79.07%
Maybe cut down the Liberal Arts General Education requirements to just a few classes 4 9.30%
Voters: 43. You may not vote on this poll

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Old 08-25-2013, 03:29 PM
 
24,488 posts, read 40,990,659 times
Reputation: 12919

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Absolutely not. College is not a training school.
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Old 08-25-2013, 03:38 PM
 
Location: Louisiana to Houston to Denver to NOVA
16,505 posts, read 26,102,931 times
Reputation: 13275
Most of these classes have nothing to do with that persons life, it's a ploy on the public to make us think we need it. The government makes money on each class you take, if you take out loans, so it makes sense for them to make you take chemistry or anthropology which you will never use again (at least in the depth that the professor teaches). College is a scam and most of us have fallen for it.
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Old 08-25-2013, 03:49 PM
 
5,730 posts, read 10,088,466 times
Reputation: 8051
Quote:
Originally Posted by North Beach Person View Post
Yeah, we wouldn't want college graduates to have any knowledge about anything other than their major. Being well rounded is overrated.
Too bad the BS classes your forced to take don't provide anything but excess money for the universities, and nothing like well rounding...
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Old 08-25-2013, 03:54 PM
 
24,488 posts, read 40,990,659 times
Reputation: 12919
Quote:
Originally Posted by annie_himself View Post
Most of these classes have nothing to do with that persons life, it's a ploy on the public to make us think we need it. The government makes money on each class you take, if you take out loans, so it makes sense for them to make you take chemistry or anthropology which you will never use again (at least in the depth that the professor teaches). College is a scam and most of us have fallen for it.
^ lol.
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Old 08-25-2013, 03:59 PM
 
24,488 posts, read 40,990,659 times
Reputation: 12919
Quote:
Originally Posted by Themanwithnoname View Post
Too bad the BS classes your forced to take don't provide anything but excess money for the universities, and nothing like well rounding...
The bachelors of science (and arts) courses outside of the major provide students with the basic foundation of various subjects to complete their education. Research at the masters and PhD level extends across several disciplines. If you don't have a foundation in those disciplines you won't be well prepared.

Good universities have enough endowment that tuition has little impact on their finances. That's why they give away so much in scholarships and financial aid to the point where students attend for close to nothing.
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Old 08-25-2013, 05:19 PM
 
Location: NYC
2,427 posts, read 3,970,695 times
Reputation: 2299
absolutely not

Quote:
Originally Posted by I'm Retired Now View Post
Another relative who is a Computer Science Major told me the same thing.
just how successful is this relative?

in my experience one thing that commonly differentiates the most successful software developers is that they communicate and write very well

joel spolsky, a stackexchange.com founder, agrees. note how 3 of his seven tips for success in this field have nothing to do with writing code and that #1 is "learn how to write"

Quote:
Without further ado, then, here are Joel's Seven Pieces of Free Advice for Computer Science College Students (worth what you paid for them):

Learn how to write before graduating.
Learn C before graduating.
Learn microeconomics before graduating.
Don't blow off non-CS classes just because they're boring.
Take programming-intensive courses.
Stop worrying about all the jobs going to India.
No matter what you do, get a good summer internship.
from Advice for Computer Science College Students - Joel on Software
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Old 08-25-2013, 05:21 PM
 
Location: Middle America
37,409 posts, read 53,268,292 times
Reputation: 53066
Quote:
Originally Posted by I'm Retired Now View Post

They think that they had lots of time to study liberal arts in High School and due the cost of college it should be shorter and career related.
No. For those who want shorter length, career-related training, there are vocational programs, career colleges, technical institutes, etc.
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Old 08-25-2013, 05:23 PM
 
Location: Foot of the Rockies
90,316 posts, read 120,193,363 times
Reputation: 35920
Quote:
Originally Posted by North Beach Person View Post
Yeah, we wouldn't want college graduates to have any knowledge about anything other than their major. Being well rounded is overrated.
Right. Being able to write a coherent paper is over-rated as well. I tried to find the accounting degree course requirements at the U of CO and/or Colorado State but I couldn't find them, all in one place. However, judging from my own experience in college all those years ago, and the experience of my kids just about 8-11 years ago, not all the coursework the first two years is totally unrelated to the major. Some courses are in fact, pre-reqs/co-reqs for the major coursework.

I can understand wanting to get to the "nitty-gritty" part of one's major, but these courses are necessary.
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Old 08-25-2013, 05:25 PM
 
Location: Middle America
37,409 posts, read 53,268,292 times
Reputation: 53066
Quote:
Originally Posted by Themanwithnoname View Post
Too bad the BS classes your forced to take don't provide anything but excess money for the universities, and nothing like well rounding...
...and also, apparently, nothing like the ability to spell or write coherently.

Dumbing education down anymore than has already occurred would only be a continuation of the same mistake. As it is, higher ed has already done a pretty thorough job of lowering the bar overall.
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Old 08-25-2013, 06:53 PM
 
219 posts, read 429,157 times
Reputation: 540
The fact that these people want to rush through the degree program, taking only what they currently feel is relevant and useful, only shows the same personality flaws that will hold them back the rest of their lives (short sightedness, impatience, poor work ethic, etc.).

I got something out of every one of my gen ed courses, as well as electives. Not all necessarily helped me in my career but they made me a better educated person overall (aka well rounded). College is not meant to be a job training program. Think of it as job training and you rob yourself of the experience.
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