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In college, basically everything came naturally to me, so I spent minimal time studying. But in the real world, you are expected to put hours in. I think that is perhaps why my college experience was so different from others here. I was used to having a lot of free time in college, so the real world is hard for me.
Location: RI, MA, VT, WI, IL, CA, IN (that one sucked), KY
41,936 posts, read 36,957,550 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mitsguy2001
How many hours per week did you work as a biologist, and how long was your commute? Were you working fixed hours or flexible hours?
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Those things varied wildly over my 20s depending on the job and what state I lived in. I never really had what is now called "flexible" hours though. I don't see that as relevant. You seem, for some reason, to think if people weren't working ungodly hours that prevented them from having a social life that they weren't in professional jobs. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is a choice.
Meeting a lot of new people, enjoying fun activities with them, having stories to tell years later about the fun, having a big social circle, and all of those things.
Can anything that comes after college compare or compete with the kind of social life a big d1 public school can offer?
Not everyone has this experience while in college. There are a host of issues (financial, family, mental health, etc.) that prevent a significant number of students from having what is perceived as a stereotypical "normal" college experience.
Those things varied wildly over my 20s depending on the job and what state I lived in. I never really had what is now called "flexible" hours though. I don't see that as relevant. You seem, for some reason, to think if people weren't working ungodly hours that prevented them from having a social life that they weren't in professional jobs. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is a choice.
That is great that you had the choice. Not all of us have a choice, which is why for some of us, college gave us more free time than the real world. If you have a choice, like you do, then you can have a better experience in the real world.
But those of us in "professional" fields spent our 20s working and having no free time.
I've been a professional as well. Physicist/Aerospace Engineer 35 years. But I too had more time in my 20s to enjoy myself that either while in college or later in life. My typical work week during that time was 50-60 hours with surges to 7 days a week at times. But, when I was off, I was off. My time was my own to do as I wanted. Once I got married and had kids, then the work hours remained the same, but now my time was theirs.
I suspect much of the difference is you seemed to have an easy time in college. Most of us work our tails off doing homework and projects. Wasn't uncommon for me or my friends to be doing studying or homework past midnight and up again for an eight o'clock class.
I've been a professional as well. Physicist/Aerospace Engineer 35 years. But I too had more time in my 20s to enjoy myself that either while in college or later in life. My typical work week during that time was 50-60 hours with surges to 7 days a week at times. But, when I was off, I was off. My time was my own to do as I wanted. Once I got married and had kids, then the work hours remained the same, but now my time was theirs.
How did you have less free time in college than what you described in the real world? Or were you working while going to college?
Meeting a lot of new people, enjoying fun activities with them, having stories to tell years later about the fun, having a big social circle, and all of those things.
Can anything that comes after college compare or compete with the kind of social life a big d1 public school can offer?
Most of those persons are 18-21 years old though, and are in a lot of cases, even though they cannot see it ... very, very immature.
I was borderline ignorant, racist, sexist, neurotic, pretentious. And I was never that shallow, but a lot of my friends were really, really shallow towards the opposite sex. It's par for the course at that age. I can still remember a lot of really dumb stuff me and my friends used to say.
I can see it now, double the years later.
I realize there are some very mature college students, but many are not. Late 20s and 30s was more fun. I had a much better grasp of the 'real me' and I had money to go out and do things and people are more mature.
Also, as fun as it is to cut class, smoke pot and play video games in a rented apartment on your parents' dime, it's pretty darn irresponsible. Though that part of college was fun for me, I wouldn't let my kids do that (don't have any).
All in all, it was a lot of fun, but in retrospect I'd rather have those years back to really figure out what I could enjoy doing as a career.
I speak as someone who had a terrible college experience but for all the people in here that say the 20s are fun and great, while I do agree to some extent, what I do wonder is in the real world how do you replicate the environment where you are around a lot of people who are:
1. On the younger end of life
2. Not tied down with kids and marriage
3. Want to have fun
4. Want to make new friends
I found kids at my university to be very snotty and stuck up so making friends was not easy. The frat you were in had a big impact on how cool people saw you as and I was stressed out as well.
Looking back at it though, what depresses me is knowing that I won't get that chance to be around a large volume of people in their 20s who are single, looking to make new friends, party, and have fun in life.
What I missed the most about college is being a part of a clique or large social circle, you don't get a chance for that kind of a community once you're done with college.
Location: RI, MA, VT, WI, IL, CA, IN (that one sucked), KY
41,936 posts, read 36,957,550 times
Reputation: 40635
Quote:
Originally Posted by mitsguy2001
That is great that you had the choice. Not all of us have a choice, which is why for some of us, college gave us more free time than the real world. If you have a choice, like you do, then you can have a better experience in the real world.
Everyone has a choice.
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