<p>I'm most likely going to go to a community college next fall, which I'm really upset about because I really wanted to go to the colleges I got rejected to. All anyone's saying is, "Look on the bright side, you'll save money!" As shallow as this sounds, I don't care. My parents are paying for college for me, and we are not a financially unstable family, nor do we have anything against student loans. We would find a way. Plus, I don't JUST want a degree from college, I want an experience. Going to a community college will not do that for me. I'm trying to be optimistic but it's impossible. So please, if you can think of any benefits to community college thats not financially related, please tell me.</p>
<p>A compromise might be this: since CC will lead to your eventual transfer to a 4yr college down the road (where you can have the full "college experience’), why not look at other 4yr colleges now to serve as a replacement stepping stone that CC is currently occupying? </p>
<p>I’m sure there are 4 yr schools near you that are still accepting apps. These 4 yr schools will be able to provide you with more of the residential “college experience” than your CC will and which you hope to attain once you transfer anyway.</p>
<p>Lucky007 -</p>
<p>What did your guidance counselor say about your college list? Is the only dead-on safety on that list your local CC? If it was, did you have any pretty-darn-secure nearly-certain safeties on your list, or was your entire list made up of matches and reaches? If you have a budget, and you know your grades and exam scores, then revisit the college-matching search engines, and see what comes up. Many colleges and universities continue to accept applications well into the summer. You have time.</p>
<p>As for advantages of CCs, in addition to low price, one specific advantage is class size. The maximum size for all classes at our local CC is 25. That means no big lecture classes AT ALL. It also means that your instructor is your instructor. No giant lectures taught by professors but with discussion sections and grading done by graduate students. Not to mention of course that the advising center on campus is full of staff members who will work with you so that you can achieve your specific goal of transferring to a college/university that is a good match for you. If you want a residential experience, some CCs do have dorms, or offer joint housing with an adjacent college/university. Read up on the CCs in your state and see if any of them offer that.</p>
<p>I’m not sure where you’re located but I was initially upset to be “downgrading” to City College of San Francisco after an unfulfilling year at San Francisco State University, but it turned out to be a very enjoyable three years of my life and I was accepted to my dream school due to my turnaround at CCSF. I am not there now due to finances ($40k a year), but since I am finally be considered to be independent this year, I’m hoping that I’ll get enough aid to attend Mills or the other three schools I’m applying to (Smith, Mt. Holyoke, and Bryn Mawr). Don’t look down upon community college just because you couldn’t get in to the schools you wanted. This will be a chance for you to figure out what you’re good at, clean up your act, and also save money, even if you don’t think you need to save money. I am lucky enough to be from the Bay Area and attend one of the best community colleges in the country. My professors actually cared about the curriculum because they weren’t in it for the money. I took courses that pushed my boundaries and met so many different types of people due to the amazing diversity on the campus. If I could’ve gotten my BA from City College, I would have.</p>
<p>And like happymomof1 mentioned, the class sizes are much smaller than those offered at the big state schools and you get a lot more out of working with people who you start to bond with and start forming community. Although CCSF has more students than SF State, it feels like there is more opportunity for community-building inside the classrooms because the class sizes are much smaller and most of the people going there are working-class and can’t afford to fool around like some other folks getting money from their parents.</p>
<p>One more thing I’d like to add is that if money isn’t an issue, I would suggest moving away to go to school. I still wanted to stay in San Francisco after my flunk year at SF State so I made sure that I did. Some people move across the country to attend community college just so they can get a start on supporting themselves and feeling independent while taking classes that interest them at a very affordable price. If your parents are willing to pay your rent in a cool city like SF or New York, use it as an opportunity to move away and find independence.</p>
<p>you can have a second chance at getting into a top college</p>
<p>I’ve heard from others that compared to 4 year universities, at a community college, you have a better chance of having a teacher that actually cares about students learning. At the university level, the focus of a lot of professors is more on research. Education of students comes second. Also, I think the smaller class sizes provide a better learning environment with more teacher-student interaction.</p>
<p>T26E4, from Harvard to CC, you truly are EVERYWHERE…</p>
<p>When I was a college student in my (low population) state, the state merged the community colleges into the state schools. You are asking what advantages CC has over just the financial advantage while you prepare to transfer… one is that there are a variety of (many very interesting!) vocational courses in CC that you can toss in as electives. You can go as far as earning a certificate on the side (i.e. fallback way of making money), get a skill that you can use personally (for instance auto repair/maintenance) or some are even fun (I took welding and EMT - Emergency Medical Technician class). Vocational classes are scarce in 4 year colleges.</p>
<p>My teeny resume:
-Community College Student for the past two years
-Currently looking to Transfer to tier one university
-Was in the exact same spot you are in now (was rejected, have the money, etc)</p>
<p>Pros:
-Yeah. You score a few brownie points with your parents by saving money
-Small class sizes means you’ll definitely be able to create close bonds with professors (I had a few professors OFFER to write me letters of recommendation)
-It’s relatively easy to get involved/ create extra curricular activities that will look AWESOME on your application to transfer
-Hate to admit it, but it does give you time to develop that mature persona that universities will like to hear
-I was able to take advantage of whatever resources at school (internships, volunteer work, scholarships, etc) and there weren’t too many people competing for them</p>
<p>Cons:
-Students/ peers might not be that inspiring. Most of them tend to be slackers, but by getting involved in school I did meet a few people like me
-Low expectations from you (but if you’re driven this won’t be a problem 
)
-Hit/ miss with the classes you take. Might learn a lot in one, not so much in the other (ratemyprofessor will take care of that)</p>
<p>It’s still possible to transfer to an excellent university 
. The easy A’s, ample opportunities to take leadership positions, and experiences you have will help to prepare you for your transition.</p>
<p>Best of luck!</p>