I can't express how great college is compared to high school. You have so much freedom to do what you want, when you want and how you want. My sister is a current senior, and with her and other high school seniors still searching for their perfect college home, I began thinking of all the things high school always said about college that never actually happened. Some of the things they said about college were true. Some things they neglected to tell us, but some were just like "I don't know what college you went to, but mine sure isn't like that (because WKU is the best)." Here are some of those statements:
1. “In college, the professors won’t help you like we do”
The phrase “If you don’t ask, the answer will never be received” is very applicable for this situation. No, professors don’t hold your hand and offer as much help or extra credit like they may have in high school, but do not confuse that with college professors don’t want to help you. They are more than willing to help students. It’s their job, but as a student, you must seek the help from the professors on your own. The choice is yours.
2. “Take as many AP classes to help get you out of college classes.”
AP classes can be beneficial for getting you out of general education classes. However, the credits you receive from them vary from college to college, and I’ve found that some of them are not as helpful as others. AP classes are a nice way to understand what harder work is like in high school and they were a nice GPA booster.
I transferred about 20 hours of AP credit over to college with me and only about 6 of them were actually worth anything towards my degree. I look back at high school and get mad thinking about the amount less stress I could have had thanks to AP classes (or IB if that’s what your school did). On the other hand, if your high school offers dual credit classes through a community college, those are actually beneficial and can help wonders in college.
3. “You will never have snow days in college, so enjoy them while you’re here.”
I guess if you embrace the cold and attend a school in a town that actually knows how to deal with snow, you’ll never have snow days. However, I attend a college in Kentucky that looks at snow and goes, “I don’t know what to do.” Therefore, students wait around to receive the greatest text messages from a god (Skipper, Bob) telling us classes are canceled for the day. When we’re really lucky, we get out for a week because I mean it when I say Kentucky doesn’t know how to handle snow.
4. “They will never take attendance in college.”
Yes, it is true; some classes such as large lecture classes don’t take attendance. However, I’ve attended more classes that take attendance then ones that do not, and the smaller classes that take attendance make it part of your grade. The large lecture classes like that sometimes offer extra credit just for attendance.
5. “You will use MLA format all the time during college.”
Yeah you do, but it just depends on the teacher and on the class. I’ve used MLA, APA, and Chicago in the three semesters I have been in college, and let me tell you, I was very confused when I was teaching myself how to write in the different styles. #Blessed for Purdue Owl.
6. "College Professors don’t care if you succeed or not."
A teacher’s job is to teach their students the materials they need to know in order to be successful. Whether or not you take their knowledge and apply it is up to you. However, saying that a professor does not care if you succeed or not is quite false. In college you have more responsibility for yourself. Yes, it is ultimately up to you as to what you do in college, but again, never be afraid to ask for help. Teachers are willing to help if you are willing to help yourself.
7. “High school is the best four years of your life”
Whoever said that clearly did not experience what college had to offer, and I am sorry.
