<p>I am in a community college right now [one of the top in California] and people who have transferred from my college to Excellent Universities have told me the JC was more of a pain!</p>
<p>I wouldn't debate that either! Get this: my classes at my JC meet twice a week, (some thrice a week), and are 2 hours long for each class. Some range up to a full 3 [w/ a 15 minute break in between].</p>
<p>the workload we experience is insane.</p>
<p>although overall, I wouldn't say that JC's are "harder period" than Universities, there are some parts of JC's though that are without a good challenge for the students.</p>
<p>I guess they REALLY want to make you work your butt off at Community Colleges so you can pass through University easily with your hard-working habits that you obtain at the JC.</p>
<p>It is certainly true that some community colleges are tougher than some 4 year schools. My friend, an adult, is taking some course at one and she said that the drop out rate for a class she was taking was tremendously high, and apparently it is planned that way. Though she found the material easy, she said that it was presented succintly and the prof was there at the exact time the class started and was out the door when it ended. Not at all interested in helping. Very much from the book teaching, and anyone who needs some extra help or nurturing would have a tough time of it. Whereas at some colleges, LACs in particular, the attention given to struggling students is wonderful. However, there are courses at ccs that do not give the material a thorough and in depth coverage, and when that happens, students are not prepared for the next class. I have seen this happen many, many times. It is NOT advisable to take a heavy duty prereq class at a cc when a lot depends on the mastering that material and you are going to a rigorous college, unless you are sure that the course can do the job. So many times, I saw CMU kids take a summer course at a local or community college, and get wiped out the next term when they tried to build on it at that university.</p>
<p>Santa Monica College has the toughest science classes around. SMC had 523 UCLA transfers and 900 total UC transfer last year. Everyone there says that Bio is harder there than at UCLA. All the teachers have Phd some from even MIT. Most have taught at top schools like Berkley and UCLA.</p>
<p>2003-04 SMC
TRANSFERS TO UC BY CAMPUS<br>
UC Los Angeles </p>
<p>529 </p>
<p>UC Irvine </p>
<p>93 </p>
<p>UC Berkeley </p>
<p>91 </p>
<p>UC San Diego </p>
<p>62 </p>
<p>UC Santa Barbara </p>
<p>62 </p>
<p>UC Riverside </p>
<p>26 </p>
<p>UC Santa Cruz </p>
<p>22 </p>
<p>UC Davis </p>
<p>15 </p>
<p>TOTAL </p>
<p>900 </p>
<p>The Santa Monica College Advantage for Student Success! </p>
<p>2003-04
TRANSFERS TO UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA<br>
RANK
SCHOOL
TOTAL </p>
<p>I don't think 4 hours per week is exactly rigorous. That's usually the standard for general ed. courses at my university. My science courses take up about 9 hours/ week. I also took a summer course at a JC, and it was certainly one of the easier courses I've taken in college. Anyway, not to bash you or anything, but perhaps you should re-think this after transferring to a University.</p>
<p>I agree that many CC's will load up students with more hours of busy work to try to dispel the notion they are easy.</p>
<p>For instance...all of my science classes, quarter system, are 5 and 6 units. In fact most of my GE classes are 5 units...that is a lot of class time with a lot of busy work.</p>
<p>On avg, classes at UC's, serious classes, OChem, Bio, are 4 units.</p>
<p>I don't actually know how people know where their CC ranks... Every CC (including the one I go to) claim to be the best in the nation/state. </p>
<p>While it's not acidemics, I do know without a doubt that my CC does have the best football team in the state(CA), but don't know much about it's ranking beyond that.</p>
<p>My CC makes all the same claims..you know what..I don't care. In 8 months I will be at a real 4 year school, and I will easily forget my time at my CC..I hate it and can't wait to move on.</p>
<p>i happen to enjoy my cc, and find all of the honors classes and many of the regular classes to be quite engaging and challenging. though i do note that many cc's claim to be the best, the honors program at mine certainly at least appears to live up to that claim, as evidenced by the statistics below from a recent class and the fact that all of the honors program in the region are based upon the one at my school.</p>
<p>a few other less known and less selective schools also, and in the past 2 years we've had 2 acceptees to Harvard. im pretty sure this is the best record for an honors program at a cc.</p>
<p>Well I too have taken honors classes, and regular classes at the CC, and we have similar numbers with regards to xfers to the ivies...and I am not impressed. But I am looking at the whole system. My CC seems to be more interested in my money than my education.</p>
<p>And being surrounded by unmotivated slackers starts to take its toll as well. There is a reason people are at a CC and usually that reason is not because they were highly motivated HS students. =P</p>
<p>I would rather deal with academic snobs than with coasters trying not irritate mom and dad and get the boot.</p>
<p>So to reiterate for the OP, yeah I feel CC is harder than college for a myriad of reasons. But to summarize my rant, my CC is harder because I believe iron sharpens iron, and when you are around a group of people who don't often push themselves, it makes for a far less engaging experience...I am sure the inverse has its own downside, but I think it would be preferrable to that I see every day at my CC. And supposedly we are the best in California. =P</p>
<p>QUOTE FROM WEB SITE: "BLAH BLAH CC consistently ranks #1 or #2 in the state for the total number of students who annually transfer to UC and CSU campuses. In addition, BLAH BLAH CC's transfer rate to four-year public universities is almost double the average transfer rate of California community colleges."</p>
<p>The stats that i posted indicate that Santa Monica College had 900 people transfer to UC while the next college had only 579. ALso 529 UCLA transfer is amazing.</p>
<p>I can say this much: my CC is not the best in the nation. However, I have heard claims that my college offers some of the better vocational programs in the area, and we have a bigger performing arts center than Cal State Hayward.</p>
<p>we all know community colleges are humiliating (lol i go to one myself), it's just the work/time that may be longer though....</p>
<p>but I was COMPARING my CC to a moderate university (UCSB, UCSD, UCD, UCSC) in terms of academics, where it may be the same and/or harder/easier...</p>
<p>BUT, don't get me wrong, "University state" schools can easily be much more of a challenge/workload.....(ucla, and well recognized "u..." across the nation, these are without a doubt more challenging (except for somethin like univ. of montana lol...).</p>
<p>It seems like the community colleges within close proximity to a UC admit more students than usual. My community college (DVC) has the highest transfer rate to UC Berkeley in the state...and I guess the country, for that matter, and that's around 300+. </p>
<p>The transfer rate can be swayed because of the number of students transferring to university. I know that at my school, there are a number of students there for associates degrees and career training. And while there are a large number of students attending community colleges around California, Santa Monica college, from what I understand, is by far the largest.</p>
<p>yearofthepig- not every cc has an honors program, and the ones that do have different standards for acceptance. you should speak with someone in the admissions office at your cc to find out if yours has one and how to get in if it does.</p>
<p>as for the cc experience, i have found that most of the regular students and nearly all of the honors students at my cc are at least somewhat motivated, and they show it through class participation. also, every one of my professors, whether the director of the honors program or an adjunct, has been extremely accessible and ready to answer questions. sure, there are a few exceptions on both ends, but overall both faculty and fellow students are very good here. also, i know for a fact that the difficulty of work for regular classes is equal to a mid-level SUNY school, because i have a number of friends that attend mid-level SUNYs and we have compared assignments, and the honors workload is as heavy as any SUNY, even Binghamton (the top state school in NY), and is comparable, from what i have heard from folks who have transferred to ivies and tier 1's, to the workload at those type of schools. i guess it all depends on the cc you attend.</p>