First a little background info. Son was always the youngest in his class due to his birthday, He had some health problems and ADHD, so by the time of his junior year in HS, he just wanted out. We were able to get him to graduate early by adding one online HS course. His grades were mostly good, except for one D in honors geometry. He did well at other math and science, but I think that course was just too fast paced for him, compounded by absences due to health issues. ACT score was a 29. He decided he wanted to go to the local technical college to become an auto mechanic. He did well at school and likes his job, but has now realized his career options are pretty limited. He is helping his gf with her college math, and is starting to think he should go to college for a four year degree. His interests are in things like chemistry and engineering if it is hands on.
Has anyone been through something similar and have any suggestions for what to do? I am leaning towards him going to the local CC to beef up his math and science courses since he missed his senior year. I see that our local CC has a pre-engineering track. I am a little concerned that if tried to go straight to a four year college, he might get overwhelmed. Or should he pursue something like engineering or chemistry at a lower tier four year schooll? I don’t anticipate he will never be a student at a top engineering school.
Hopefully someone will come along from Missouri, but in my state my recommendation would be to go to CC two years taking pre-engineering classes that will transfer to your public university. He might even still be able to work alittle and take classes if he’s not in a hurry. Also since he is not married and not 24 he is still considered dependent for college financial aid office, the finance question may come into play. Taking the basics at CC won’t cost as much as the uni. I would counsel him to pick the university he is considering for engineering (or chemistry) and then look at the classes available at the CC and see which ones will transfer over and fulfill the curriculum requirements at the 4 year. 21 is not “too old” to do this by any means. In Michigan the universities have on-line “matching” programs to the CCs so you can see which CC classes equal which uni classes for purposes of transferring.
DH went back to college at age 28 to get an engineering degree. He started at the local community college which had an articulation agreement with the four year school where he completed his bachelors. He elected to do,their co-op program so he actually woke every other semester until graduation. He got his degree at age 31.
DH did have some college classes that he had taken when he was younger. Is there any chance that any of your son’s technical school courses could satisfy a general ed course or two? Worth asking.
Since your son has worked already, he might like the co-op option. In addition to the money earned, it also provides work experience. My husband liked it a lot…even though it extended his college work by about a year.
Sounds like he had issues with geometric proofs. That isn’t all that unusual because geometry is so different from the remainder of the math sequence. If he’s finding ‘college math’ (calculus?) fairly easy I’d enroll him directly in university instead of CC. We have several friends in a similar situation who regretted the CC route. His ACT certainly indicates he can handle Missou or something equivalent. If he is a bit slow he should consider taking a light load and going year round.
My concern is that to succeed in engineering he will need a thorough and complete understanding of math, which he may not get at the local CC. I’d speak with the CC and discuss transfer options to a 4 year college, most states have a well defined path.
In Michigan, the CC math classes are comparable and sometimes ‘better’ than the big uni classes which are often taught by TAs who have trouble with English or profs with the same situation in lectures that can approach 300. My third took is Calc I and Calc II at the local CC summers in a class of 20 with a great English speaking prof (with a Dr. degree). His university engineering allows a small number of ‘outside’ credits to transfer in for a full time enrolled freshman/sophomore. Obviously junior year transfers are taking their first 2 years at a CC. My sib took 2 years at a CC then transferred to UofM Engineering. States are different but I would never presume that the caliber of a prof at a CC is “less than” that of what a student gets as a freshman or sophomore at a big flagship. But again I suppose different states would be different, but I find it hard to believe.
The OPs son can find out how many CC kids transfer to the state unis and in what majors.
Absolutely think he should start at a CC to get his feet wet and confidence back in math. I would consider calling/researching UMSL, UMColumbia, etc - whichever one is in your backyard and see if they have an articulaltion agreement with the CCs, or just be sure classes transfer. I am familiar with those and going to cc for some classes is a good way to go. Certainly the math at the CCs would be fine and he can validate his commitment for going back to school, while getting his groove back. And you save some money…At 21, he is not that far behind, I am sure you are proud of him striving for more! I didn’t get my UG till 25 cause I left my 4 year after 3 semesters and worked myself through the rest, there are plenty of others in his position! Good news is with a CC is you can pretty much jump in at any time - he could probably start in January term! If he gets started at a cc, remind him to get familiar with app cycle at a 4 year he may want to go to. He should be looking into that NOW incase if he ends up being serious about a 4 year school and wants to do that next fall. The admissions people should be helpful at answering those questions. Good luck - tell him it is way easier to do that in his 20s than it will be in his 30s or 40s - so go for it!
Check out http://www.mst.edu/. I’m guessing they have articulation agreements with CCs in Missouri. I’ve heard of folks who have gone and were happy with it, and they seem to have a hands-on approach.
It is great you are willing to do the research to help your son figure out his best options. Once you have gathered some data- as suggested here- it will be time to discuss what you have learned with him. He sounds like a responsible adult. It will be up to him to decide if he should plunge into one of the universities or start with a CC. He is not the same boy who finished HS. He should discuss this with people at the CC he could attend and other professionals.
Since he is helping his girlfriend with her college math he may have a better idea of how he could handle different types of colleges. Remember that not all college math courses teach the same amount of material, or at the same pace. Starting at the school he intends to get his degree from may prepare him best for the upper level courses???
Sounds like you have a great son, good luck to him.
I used to work at a 4-year university in Kansas. We had a relationship with a technical school - students who earned a certificate at that school could also earn an associates degree at our institution at a heavily discounted rate through an articulation agreement. Perhaps there are similar programs closer to you?
I think that the CC is a good idea, especially if they have a pre-engineering program. And then the state U using the agreement between the two. Or some other school that seems like a fit. Has he looked at Wentworth Institute?
I just want to mention the social and emotional aspects of being a little older and going to school with 18 year-olds (or 20 year-olds once he is at the state u.) In some ways, it is harder being 21 and being around 18 year-olds than being 35, or at least I found that to be true.
One of my kids is in a similar position and chose between either a public that is mainly commuter, where people work and live in their own apartments (or home), or an adult learner/extension/continuing education school where ages are mixed and, again, people have worked and are grownups. Online classes have also been helpful.
CC does tend to have mixed ages to some degree and many if not most work. A residential college would be different socially, but you know whether that would fit him or not.
I have worked with several very good engineers who started college later for various reasons. I’d start the CC route to get a academic track record started and then switch to a 4 year school. But do realize that engineering is a tough program and having a full schedule of all engineering classes is very challenging and not recommended. Those last “2 years” may actually take 3.
Thank you for all of the support. I do know that some of his technical school courses will transfer to at least some of the state universities. He has an associate’s degree from an accredited technical school, so he has taken some Gen Eds that will qualify. For some reason, Mizzou doesn’t list his technical school on their website for having classes transfer, but UMSL does. I know our local CC has agreements with the state schools. I think we need to dig out his HS transcript, his technical school transcript, and ACT scores and have him sit down with an advisor at the local CC. I think it may also be worthwhile to have him visit a couple of schools on his days off to get a feel for what he wants. He usually has Mondays off, so he should be able to visit some schools without taking time off work. From there he will need to figure out if he is ready to jump in full time or if he wants to take some night classes to test the waters while he works. He and I had a pretty long talk about all of this on Sunday and I told him that his dad and I are willing to support him while he goes back to school. His older sister dropped out of school and worked for a while until she was ready to focus on her education with our support, so he knows we are being sincere. I think helping the gf with her homework is what might have convinced him that he can do this.
My husband completed his engineering degree doing night classes. There are some colleges that have course availability for those, like your son, who are employed and have technical degrees. The nice thing for DH was that many of the students were just like him. A little older, working, and wanted to get their degrees!
Here’s a tip that I didn’t know when DD was taking a long and winding path through college… do research about independent student status. I know that 24 was the key age, but I didn’t realize that there can still be parent support too. Maybe I would have encouraged her to stay another year and get the comp sci minor she considered.
I recommend that he check out Engineering Technology programs and compare and contrast them with pure Engineering programs. At this point his focus should be the academic aspects, so even meet with program chairs, people with these different degrees, etc.