Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Grew up in a small town and attended a small high school. I did not do anything spectacular as the same group of select kids maintained for themselves and participated in the spectacular stuff and the regulars did not stand a chance unless it was due to a real talent. In college I made a goal to do everything I never was able to do in high school. I made the dance squad, cheerleading squad and participated in some intercollegiate sports. The only thing I didn't do was maintain the 90 pound weight that I did in high school.
I had much more of an opportunity to "stretch my legs" intellectually. I was lazy my first few years of college and spent most of the time chasing women. I had a bad breakup, nearly flunked out, worked for a semester, and came back with new political views. I learned I wasn't welcome in my previous major anymore once my new views were known.
I ended up completing most of a new major in about nine months. I only graduated when I did because of some administrative help from professors and the department in getting through the bureaucracy.
I felt like I was ready for college as early as my junior year of high school -- not because I was the smartest kid in my class, but because I was very mature for my age.
I was fully invested in my studies and already thinking seriously about my career. I craved a long-term relationship. I wasn't into partying or drinking.
I think I should have aimed to enjoy high school a bit more and not taken it so seriously (e.g., joined more clubs, dated different girls, made more friends), but what's done is done.
High school was great. But I spent too much time socializing and not enough time studying. I graduated with a great GPA, but it should have been better. Wasted opportunity.
College was great. Some of the best times of my life in terms of sheer fun. I studied a lot and enjoyed it. My motto was "work hard/play hard." If I could have a do-over, I would pick a different major. Oh, and a different boyfriend.
I graduated from high school in 2013, and I graduated from college in 2018--I ended up spending an extra year due to switching majors from Biochemistry to Finance. Both experiences were incredible, but college definitely has the edge!
When I arrived at my high school back in 2009, few people knew me: it was a Catholic school, and I was a public school kid. People in that school knew each other from the local parishes and Catholic elementary schools. Despite doing some things that I cringe at years later, I did end up becoming popular. I was a lot more awkward and shy back then, but I transformed into an outgoing person by the time my junior year rolled around. Senior year was the best: I was crowned homecoming king, I was playing quints in the drumline, nearly everyone in the school knew me, and the events leading up to the Class of 2013's graduation were awesome! I left high school feeling wonderful.
I started my first semester of college in August 2013, a few days before my 18th birthday. Within a few weeks, I had a group of friends, people used to ask me to play pickup sports with them (either volleyball, football, or basketball), and I started partying. I would also meet the woman who would become my best friend that first semester. As college progressed, I partied more, changed majors, grew as a person, traveled abroad for the first time, became an RA, and was accepted into a top 50 business school. I ended up graduating with my BBA in Finance last year, with a Financial Analyst position lined up with a starting date that would come 11 days later.
Both experiences were amazing, but I think the thing that really made college for me was that my love life essentially began there. In HS, I was overweight and acne-ridden. Though I was pretty tall (I'm currently 6'2"), I was obese, awkward, and, looking back, casually misogynistic with a "nice guy" persona going on. I always wondered why girls wouldn't go out with a guy like me, but now I slap myself for being so stupid and unaware! I would eventually shed the latter aspect when I gained close female friends and learned the errors of my ways. I eventually lost my virginity and had my first girlfriend at 19. Sometime in January 2016, I reached 300 pounds, prompting me to go on an 18 month weight loss journey where I dumped 104 pounds. By the time it was over, I was at 196 pounds and had some visible muscle! This set the stage for not only the best dating/hookup stretch of my life in 2018, but also meeting my current girlfriend earlier this year!
Overall, I just had more experiences that shaped me as a person in college. The good times were numerous, the beer/whatever alcohol I was drinking before I turned 21 (I didn't discriminate as long as someone else was buying) was continuously flowing, and the memories I have will forever stay with me.
I liked high school and college. However, I would pick college over high school because I left a small town, which meant I got away from my parents for the first time in my life. College enabled me to discover myself, learn about people from different places and cultures, and grow up.
In high school I was in band and I played in marching and concert band. I was a drum major my senior year, and became popular throughout the whole student body. All in all, not a bad time there but college was better.
Why isn't elementary school a choice? That was pretty low stress.
Don't even start with elementary school! That was even worse than my bad high school! I hated the classes that went 1st grade to 6th grade.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
That was pretty low stress. 
