<p>I'm going to be a junior next year and I don't have many plans for the summer. I'm planning to prep for classes/tests that I will be taking next year, mabye do some research, volunteer at the library, and that's mostly it... I want to become a better public speaker and develop strong time management, leadership skills.</p>
<p>There is an oral/communications course at a local community college but it is 4 times a week, 3 hrs per day for 4 weeks... Also, what if I get a bad grade in it? What will colleges think? I'm just scared of taking courses at a CC and doing bad since the time is so short and you barely have any time to consume the information. What will colleges think of me taking a speech class anyways? That I'm not a good speaker/communicator?</p>
<p>Would it be better for me to explore other options to develop those skills? I could try to find more volunteer opportunities right?? What do you guys think is the best method into developing those skills I listed above? What do you guys think I should do to make the most of my summer? Thanks for your advice/opinions!!</p>
<p>Community College you will be better off graduating with a degree then just a diploma because your chances of getting a good job instead of those crappy ones during college will increase.</p>
<p>Why is the course that short? Is it a summer course?</p>
<p>My community college does not allow high school students to take summer courses for this very reason. You can take one a semester during the academic year, but not continuing education courses (like in summer or over the winter session, or on weekends). I tend to agree with them -- you should be out enjoying the summer! -- and also do not recommend taking an intensive course for your first attempt at college-level work.</p>
<p>Having said that, they would not think that you're a bad speaker; they would think you're doing a good thing by working on an important skill area. I don't need to take public speaking, but I'm planning on doing it anyway since it can be so helpful in life. Maybe try it in fall instead?</p>
<p>Yeah it is a summer course. I'm pretty sure that the professors don't try to cram a year's worth of material into 4-6 weeks right? I also want to take classes like Chemistry that will prep me for AP chemistry next year. Will this be a good idea? I don't know how hard it will be for me and how I fast I will be able to understand the information. Will getting a C (or B) affect my chances of getting into top colleges? I mean, if they see you have a C, then they would assume that you're not ready for college courses right?</p>
<p>Koda: They do cram a semester's worth (not a year; there are no year-long courses in college) into the shorter time period. They have to, otherwise they're not giving you the full course. I'm taking a math course right now, and we're doing in one night what we would normally cover in a week (plus a little extra) during a normal semester. </p>
<p>Summer courses are good for some people and a terrible match for others. You need to be absolutely sure you want to spend that much time in class and doing the outside work as well. You need to be someone who's dedicated when it comes to studying to make sure you don't fall behind. You need to be sure you're not going to get bored sitting there for three hours at a stretch learning about a subject that may not be of great interest to you.</p>
<p>If you are going to take a course like chemistry, contact the professor teaching it to obtain a copy of the syllabus, and then have your high school's chemistry teacher examine it. It's entirely possible that what's going to be taught in the college course will be different than what will be taught in your high school course, meaning the college one may not help you out as much as you think. I know that in our chemistry department, they do not take high school enrollment in our General Chemistry I unless you have already completed high school chemistry, because Gen Chem is beyond what you will be taught. The only chemistry course you can enroll in is Intro to Chemistry, which is nearly developmental (like a 101) and therefore redundant for you as a student since you're going to get it in high school anyway. They do it with physics and bio as well, and I believe some of the math courses. So, if you're taking it for AP prep, you might want to consider doing that to make sure it will really be of use to you.</p>
<p>Colleges don't expect you to be ready for college courses yet; if you were, you wouldn't be in high school. They just like to see that you tried and that you pushed yourself. If you think you'll enjoy it and be able to keep up with the work, definitely consider taking a summer course. If you think it might be overwhelming, wait until fall or spring to take a college course that runs on a more normal schedule. And again, don't worry about the grade -- this is one of those things where it really is the effort that counts.</p>