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I did my first 2 years in community college. It's easier to get into your 4 year school of choice as a junior than as a freshman (less competition). Your Bachelor's degree does not say you did two of the 4 years at community college. I recommend community college for students who aren't really sure what they want to major in yet so spend less tuition money until you do know, for adult students who still work a full time job while attending college at night (community colleges are more flexible for adult learners who work full time) and for adult learners who need any 4 year degree to advance at work. Your freshman year is mostly Intro to this and that (2 yr or 4 yr school).
One thing though, if you are pretty sure you will be getting a Bachelor's degree, eventually, check with the 4 year schools first and make sure you take community college classes that are transferrable. A lot of community colleges have agreements with 4 year state colleges about what credits are transferrable. Don't wait until you graduate CC to find out most of your credits won't transfer
What does she want to major in? We did the calculation for our daughter by looking at the curriculum from several colleges for he desired major and compared to CC. We found even though the CC courses would transfer, not all would count toward the curriculum for her degree. The net result would have been two years of CC followed by three years in college, total five years to get a four year degree.
Also, as you noticed, esp for STEM courses the rigor isn't there. In fact rigor was a key part of why we ultimately choose an out of state school for her, even though as you've noted, she could have gone in state for nearly free.
The bold is what we are finding too, but we are very early in our search.
My daughter wants to major in applied math with an eye toward data analytics or actuary science and possibly pursuing an MD after her BS degree (she is considering being a pathologist or medical examiner. I know it sounds like a stretch from data analytics, but it's very similar in many ways. Medical school is hard to get into though so we shall see). Anyway, math classes from a CC wouldn't transfer to most applied math programs and some math major programs.
She's been doing AP classes and has one college credit in history from last year (for colleges that take a 4) so far. She's taking 3 more APs this year and plans to take 3 more next year. A good strategy to keep costs down might be to simply do the AP classes in high school and hopefully pass the AP test with a high enough score to get credit and then do CC classes in the summer that will transfer to whatever college she ends up going to. She might be able to shave a year off a four year degree that way which would end up being nearly the same or even cheaper than two years of CC followed by three at a university to finish a degree.
Again, we are considering CC and haven't ruled it out. But it doesn't look promising for my daughter's interests.
I've met some adults who cannot bear the thought of sending their kids to one -- and this includes middle-class parents of both high-achieving and average students. I know that some community colleges are, shall we say, less than rigorous. (The ones here run the gamut from horrible to excellent). But I also know that CC can be a place where some kids get their academic sea legs after a lackluster high school experience, where some kids get a cheaper two-year education before transferring to a four-year college, or where some can get solid vocational training in any number of fields. Yet the stigma remains widespread I think: community college is for dummies, so if you have to go, you're either lazy, stupid, or poor.
Is that the stigma where you live? Do kids at CC get the same respect that kids get for attending a four-year college?
No matter how you sugarcoat it, community colleges aren’t actually hubs of high achievers. Majority attending one go there because they couldn’t get admission or scholarship to any state or private university. If you are poor than more so because most top universities meet full need of their deserving students if you can get admitted. Average performing middle class students not eligible for enough merit or aid money and parents unable/unwilling to support can avoid debt by attending community colleges.
If you didn’t do well enough in high school to secure admission or scholarship to a good four year college but you have potential then by all means go to community college and work hard. There is less competition there and you can get grades and opportunities which you may not get among high performers. If you do well, you can transfer to most schools for a degree. Most schools encourage community college students and offer seats, aid and scholarships. Just like affirmative action for other underrepresented groups, community college transfers have different criterion of acceptance, not as tough as getting in as a high school freshman. Even some Ivies are now accepting community college transfers to add diversity.
Once you have a four year degree, it doesn’t matter if you came from community college. However, if you are already a good student then you are better off going directly to a selective university where academic environment and peer quality is much higher and nurturing then a non-selective community college.
There are many paths to success, if you work hard. There is a good percentage of community college graduates who find great success.
CCs work really well for the type of student who has potential but slacked off in high school and didn't get admitted to top colleges. They can redeem their mediocre high school performance and transfer to practically any college they want after a year of strong community college performance.
Otherwise, community colleges are to higher education what the Toyota Yaris is to the auto market. It's basic, no frills transportation about as cheap as the industry is capable of providing. It will get you where you need to go, but it won't impress many people along the way or give you much of an experience.
Last edited by redguard57; 10-09-2020 at 09:21 AM..
CCs work really well for the type of student who has potential but slacked off in high school and didn't get admitted to top colleges. They can redeem their mediocre high school performance and transfer to practically any college they want after a year of strong community college performance.
Otherwise, community colleges are to higher education what the Toyota Yaris is to the auto market. It's basic, no frills transportation about as cheap as the industry is capable of providing. It will get you where you need to go, but it won't impress many people along the way or give you much of an experience.
The bold is what we are finding too, but we are very early in our search.
My daughter wants to major in applied math with an eye toward data analytics or actuary science and possibly pursuing an MD after her BS degree (she is considering being a pathologist or medical examiner. I know it sounds like a stretch from data analytics, but it's very similar in many ways. Medical school is hard to get into though so we shall see). Anyway, math classes from a CC wouldn't transfer to most applied math programs and some math major programs.
She's been doing AP classes and has one college credit in history from last year (for colleges that take a 4) so far. She's taking 3 more APs this year and plans to take 3 more next year. A good strategy to keep costs down might be to simply do the AP classes in high school and hopefully pass the AP test with a high enough score to get credit and then do CC classes in the summer that will transfer to whatever college she ends up going to. She might be able to shave a year off a four year degree that way which would end up being nearly the same or even cheaper than two years of CC followed by three at a university to finish a degree.
Again, we are considering CC and haven't ruled it out. But it doesn't look promising for my daughter's interests.
She sounds like a solid student with high ambitions, her kind is better served at good four year universities. Top students can save their time/money and become more competitive for good colleges with college level AP or IB courses. They often can get full merit scholarships and course credits if not too picky with college choice. Community college route is of no value to them. She’ll only get frustrated if sent there.
If you're social circle consists of high-achieving students/parents who constantly talk about top colleges, SAT's, ACT's, rankings and stuff like that then community colleges will be looked down upon.
However, if you're apart of any other social circle then Community College will probably be looked at positively or at least neutrally. I had a friend who was a 1st generation college student from an immigrant family and him going to community college was a pretty big deal!
I think CC can be a great choice as long as you play your cards right and use it as a stepping stone.
With this all being said, I don't think most people see Community College's as bottom of the barrel. I would say that sketchy for profit schools take the cake on that.
My oldest daughter went to a California CC because despite being a straight-A student who was the valedictorian of her (admittedly small) private school, she had no idea what she wanted to major in. (My husband and I are adamantly against paying through the nose for kids to go to university to "find themselves.") We heard many, many good reports of the CC path from friends and acquaintances whose kids had done the same thing and transferred to various universities with great success. In fact, a couple of my doctors told me they also started off at a CC and they recommended it.
The California community colleges are excellent and have a guaranteed admissions program with the UC and CSU schools. If a student completes their GE and a set list of prerequisites for their desired major, while maintaining a certain GPA, they are guaranteed admission as a junior to one UC/CSU school. Our daughter is transferring as a Materials Science & Engineering major. She's had five semesters of advanced mathematics, four semesters of chemistry, and three semesters of physics, plus all of her GE, at a cost to us of basically pennies compared to what we would have paid at a university. The quality of instruction has been excellent and the CC is equipped with new and top-notch science equipment. Several of my daughter's CC professors also teach concurrently at UCI.
Of course if you are in a state where CCs are not so stellar, the experience might be entirely different. Here in California, they are deservedly popular.
Is there still a stigma attached to community college?
There is no 'shame' to attending a community college, though there should be for those who negatively downplay and discourage (any type of) education as a whole.
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