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I've been through college three times - liberal arts as a clueless 18yr old, engineering as a 30 yr old, graduate degrees in geology as a 40 yr old. It was interesting, doing 3 stints in college and seeing the changes each time.
Would I go to college again? Sure, I'd take college-level classes, but not for credit/degree purposes. I can (and have) read textbooks on various subjects but it isn't the same as being able to interact with an expert who understands the field thoroughly.
OLLI offers classes in my area, but I prefer things that are a little more rigorous.
The biggest problem is that class schedules interfere with my vacations, lol. I was eyeing a metalsmithing class at my local college, but my planned November trip would meaning missing a month of a 3.5 month class. I'll have to schedule my vacations around the winter quarter offering.
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Last edited by PNW-type-gal; 07-21-2019 at 11:09 AM..
I didn't graduate from college to begin with. I went to secretarial school and later when I was working went to night school for a while, but in order to seriously pursue a degree program, I had to get past a basic algebra exam, meaning demonstrate that I could do what we were supposed to learn in high school, and I cannot learn algebra. That part of my brain just does not work.
I even took a non-credit remedial class that cost me the same as if I were getting three credits, but it doesn't stay. I would walk out of class thinking I understood, but by the time I got home and looked at homework, it was gone. It was as if I was trying to understand ancient hieroglyphics. Actually, that's probably a bad analogy, because I likely would have been able to learn heiroglyphics, lol.
Got A's in everything else. Literature, Accounting, Psychology, Business Law. Cannot understand Algebra. Once I realized I would never be able to get a degree without that, I became discouraged and quit going to night school. It's OK. I had a decent career and after time, no one realized I didn't have the education I was supposed to have for my job. My assistant manager, who replaced me when I retired, has a J.D.
I bought a used math book a few years ago from a street vendor, thinking that in retirement I might try to tackle it again because it has always bothered me that I couldn't learn something. I might dust it off one of these days.
it isn't the same as being able to interact with an expert
Ya but...Chances are you can get all that information easily on YouTube and attending a class just for that one benefit to ask an occasional (if ever) question seems like a huge price to pay. I wouldn't have written this before the internet - even with libraries available. YouTube makes learning anything so easy.
Formal education was designed to overemphasize the left hemisphere of the brain, and right now I'm in recovery from that, re-opening the right hemisphere of my brain with Eastern Philosophy.
I was one of these college students that kept shifting my career goals, and never amounting to anything. No desire to step foot on a college campus and we have big one here in Tucson.
I respectfully point out that college is only one venue for learning. There are others.
As for what's the matter with me? I'm sick of being judged by others' criteria. Inevitable I realize but not totally unavoidable.
Degrees at this point in my life are pointless.
to answer the OP's question: NO!
I'm with you.
As I see it, all our life experiences, good and bad, can be learning opportunities if we choose to take that perspective, and I do.
I decided I'd had enough of formal schooling after I completed my MS degree long ago. Getting those degrees was very much worthwhile but I was tired of being a poor starving student who wasn't always sure where my next meal was coming from, and praying that my old car and my health would hold up because I couldn't afford to get either fixed (exaggerating, sort of), and wanted to earn some real money.
Not formal classes, but I had to take continuing education courses to maintain my professional license, I also taught, and wrote continuing education courses in that field for many years, and I always thought at least I learned material much better when I had to teach it.
And one of the perspectives I've taken into my old age is that I really don't care what others think of me or what I do, so if they choose to judge that's their issue not mine, LOL. I don't worry about what they do, either.
Can't say that if I were to find a formal course that interested me, I wouldn't sign up for it, I probably would. But additional degrees at this point? No.
I'd love too if the college would be flexible to work with someone who wasn't a young kid just starting out. I've been taking courses all my life to improve my knowledge and adapt to changing technology.
I love the intellectual stimulation of conversation on scientific topics and would love to attend the colloquia in physics or astronomy departments. But as a couple of others have pointed out, older students just don't fit within how the campus operates and how classes run. Last couple of courses I took, I saw that I no longer fit in with the study groups and was excluded from much of what should have been the stimulating conversations.
Biggest irony is I have enough courses and research for a couple PhDs, yet there is no PhD in my field. The courses are a scattering from across several fields based on what knowledge I needed, not how it was packaged at the various universities I've taken them at.
After graduating high school, I took a semester at the local community college. Then I took a class here, a class there until my late 20s-early 30s when I went back full time. I graduated with my B.A. in Early Childhood Education/History. I graduated "With Honors" in History and went on to grad school. I had full intention of going on to my PhD and maybe teach at the college level (like Hubby did). Well, half way through my graduate work, I got pretty burnt out. (It was an independent study program). I withdrew with the intention of going back some day. That was a few decades ago. I have thought about going back-and even contacted the school. But, it never happened. At this point, I really don't see myself going back but you never know. But, I like to keep learning which I do on my own. When I find a subject that interests me, I research it. I would never be a full time teacher like I had once thought I would do-either elementary or college level.
I didn't graduate from college to begin with. I went to secretarial school and later when I was working went to night school for a while, but in order to seriously pursue a degree program, I had to get past a basic algebra exam, meaning demonstrate that I could do what we were supposed to learn in high school, and I cannot learn algebra. That part of my brain just does not work.
I even took a non-credit remedial class that cost me the same as if I were getting three credits, but it doesn't stay. I would walk out of class thinking I understood, but by the time I got home and looked at homework, it was gone. It was as if I was trying to understand ancient hieroglyphics. Actually, that's probably a bad analogy, because I likely would have been able to learn heiroglyphics, lol.
Got A's in everything else. Literature, Accounting, Psychology, Business Law. Cannot understand Algebra. Once I realized I would never be able to get a degree without that, I became discouraged and quit going to night school. It's OK. I had a decent career and after time, no one realized I didn't have the education I was supposed to have for my job. My assistant manager, who replaced me when I retired, has a J.D.
I bought a used math book a few years ago from a street vendor, thinking that in retirement I might try to tackle it again because it has always bothered me that I couldn't learn something. I might dust it off one of these days.
You sound like you needed a good algebra teacher who knew his/her algebra and also how to teach. My husband, the retired biomedical engineer who's a technical whiz with anything electronic also has/had a mental block with algebra (figure that). He blamed it on his high school algebra teacher, who he claims seldom came to her classes sober.
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). He blamed it on his high school algebra teacher, who he claims seldom came to her classes sober.
