Dropping out of university to go to community college?

Transfer Students
1

Hi, I am almost done with my first quarter at university, and while it may be way too early, i want to transfer to a community college. The couple months I have been here has really messed with my mental health. I feel depressed and stressed nearly everyday, and at times i contemplated suicide. I consistently feel like the least motivated and slowest one in every one of my classes, and this is a new feeling for me because I was pretty good in high school. I am taking pretty difficult classes for a freshman, because I completed most of the pre major requirements in running start in high school. I don’t think i utilized my time in running start to effectively explore my interests and what i wanted to do with my life. Going into university, I settled onto the biomedical science major, I thought “I don’t really enjoy this, but it makes money so it’s not bad I guess” but I recently realized that I want more in life than that. I’m pretty young, recently turned 18, and I feel I still have time to explore what I enjoy doing. I think transferring to a community college is a cost effective way for me to explore what I want to do. But I can’t help but think I just wasted a bunch of time and money just to go back to a community college. I’ve been contemplating this for just a few days, and with registration for next quarter coming up real soon, I will probably take one more quarter at university to see how it goes and in my free time I will explore things myself. I fear that after transferring to community college, I won’t find anything I enjoy doing, and I will end up stuck in a dead end job. Please give me any advice.

tldr; I’m depressed and unmotivated in my major at university and I want to transfer to community college to explore what I want to do in life. Im scared im going backwards and I will end up unsuccessful. what should i do???

2

First of all, you need to talk to a live human.

Chatting on a board does not help you with your day-to-day challenges. So, go to the counseling center.

Know that you are not alone. This forum is filled with students, every day, who are going through the exact same thing.

College has socially changed substantially since a generation ago. Now, you spend time on your phone. Before, we had to talk to dorm mates. We had to write letters to our parents asking: “Can you please send me some dollars, snacks, clothes?”

Also, HS students don’t really understand the fast pace and heaping amounts of information that is presented and expected to be regurgitated in some form or other. If you used to get A’s in HS and are barely pulling D’s, this is normal.

I don’t think you should transfer back for at least another year. But you could take a leave to get yourself emotionally ready for the harder stresses to come.

3

I’d have to agree with @“aunt bea”. You should absolutely NOT enter community college in your current mental state. Take a year off, get your mental health squared away, and reenter your current institution with a fresh mindset.

4

Going back to the CC to explore different subjects inexpensively does not automatically mean you end up stuck in a dead end job, so just drop that crazy notion right now.

There also is nothing wrong with exploring different potential majors where you are provided that won’t bust your family’s budget. Go speak with the folks in the counseling center about your change of major. They will have good ideas of ways for you to think about other options. While you are there, have a chat about your loneliness and stress. Find out about taking normal freshman classes in new subject areas instead of just the advanced ones you can enroll in because of your running start credits.