College grads make more than HS grads. I want to live a comfortable life, and have some security. A college education will give me that.
I’d rather be traveling I guess, or anything other than school. I’m not really a classroom type person. I feel like I’ve spent all my time in school trying to get the best grades possible in order to get into a good college rather than learning things I actually want to learn. I can’t image college being any different. Attending only to get that high paying job afterwards.
Your feelings are understandable. How about you seriously consider a gap year?
Deposit somewhere and defer.
Apply either to CityYear or a year abroad through CIEE, AFS, YFU.
The former would get you out of the classroom, doing something useful for society. The latter would satisfy your desire to travel or live elsewhere (although you’d still be in school all day long - you may want to target your country of choice based on how long the school day is. In the UK, for instance, students tend to be in school 8:30-4:30, in France from 8 am to 6pm.)
You shouldn’t be attending college just for what’s to come, but for what it is, all the wonderful opportunities concentrated on a campus, right at your fingertips.
@Almostout2k19 - You said “Attending only to get that high paying job afterwards” Do you think that there won’t be any competition for that high paying job.
“I feel like I’ve spent all my time in school trying to get the best grades possible in order to get into a good college rather than learning things I actually want to learn. I can’t image college being any different.”
You really, truly, need to think about taking a Gap Year. You need a break from that kind of thing, and a chance to de-tox from what looks to have been a negative experience in high school. College can wait a bit. You will be a much happier person, and consequently a better student, if you have a clear goal for your learning that is not simply to land some random “high paying job”. Here are a few organized programs to look at. Your own home town probably has paid jobs and volunteer opportunities as well.
Our son went to college right after high school, even though he had serious doubts (which he didn’t share with us). His freshman year did not go well, and he needed a year and a half before he was ready to go back. I can’t imagine going to the “best” college possible if you’re not even sure you want to be in college at all. For many of us college is a hoop we have to jump through to get where we want to be, but you need to be ready to make the jump first. One caveat about City Year is that only about one in four who apply are selected. It’s not a good idea to apply thinking that it’s anything close to a sure thing.
There’s competition everywhere, I think I’ll make out fine
My parents think that once I take a gap year I’ll end up never going back to school. When I brought up doing a gap year they said I should just continue straight through and get it over with.
Join the Army for a couple of years,. Be all you can be.
I think that’s a very fair comment about school. I hate what high school is doing to my kids. They loved to read, always had books on the go, discussed books, enjoyed books, now they’re so sick of looking for themes and motifs and deciphering ‘what the author is really trying to say’ that they rarely read for fun any more.
What do you want to study? What are you genuinely interested in learning about?
I travelled a lot when I was young. A lot of people said that must have been amazing and it was but I wasn’t very smart back then (not that I’m much smarter now) and, consequently, I missed things that better educated people wouldn’t have. I think most people would get more out of travelling after college not before.
I think a gap year is only good if you have a plan and you really don’t sound like you do. That’s not a criticism. I truly wish you all the luck in the world, you have some great options. Pick one and don’t look back.
One thing that college should give you is the chance to really do courses out of interest, which most US colleges allow you to do easily even while you are taking the courses for the “high paying” major. I have to tell you, and many other parents here who have interviewed job hopefuls will back me up, it is quite easy to tell the difference between job applicants who are enthused about their work and those who are just in it for the money. I hope you can find something that both interests you and leads to a high paying job. Many people manage this, there’s no reason you shouldn’t. Put all that hard work into something you want to do.
Separately - it seems a lot of doing what you’re doing is because of what other people think you should be doing. Your parents think this, your classmates think that, and your own desires seem to be buried somewhere under all that. You are clearly not happy, and I think that goes further than the “normal” high school stress. And, I don’t want to get too personal, but it sounds like your parents tend to criticism/undermining you (like not believing you’d study after a gap year) rather than supporting you in what is best for you. I would encourage you to seek and talk to a counselor
@Almostout2k19 Yup - you’ve worked your butt off. I get it. You’re exhausted. You’ve been performing well. A gap year might be good. If that’s not an option, I think Mount Holyoke would be best. A Bachelor’s degree from a solid Liberal Arts school is part of the currency you need in the job market. Any clue what you want to do when you graduate? I think at this stage most LAC have good career guidance depts and can help you integrate your major, your passions, internships, research, study abroad all with a career. Why not environmental science/biology, and spend time outside? Env engineers make decent coin these days. Take some classes that interest you. Philosophy, Literature, English, etc. Liberal schools require you to broaden your capabilities. Try some school clubs that are actually fun and not just resume builders. Outing club? Equestrian club? I think Mount Holyoke would have the kind of professors that inspire the life of the mind and practical expressions of it. I think there’s more light and joy and the end of the this tunnel than you think.
Astronomy is what I was learning towards
Have you tried any of those “What color is your parachute” type books and tests to help you identify your skills and interests? College astronomy is very heavily advanced math and physics based, and you didn’t note that you had a background in AP Physics C, BC Calculus, linear algebra,or similar courses. While of course you can persevere through a college, it seems a shame to waste that once in a lifetime opportunity, as well as a lot of time and money, on begrudgingly surviving the experience.
What major(s) have you been admitted to?
@Almostout2k19 Have you investigated just how many yrs of education you will need to pursue a career with an astronomy degree? For someone who is so burned out of education as a high school student, UG, grad school, post-doc is a long path of academics forward.
I just read through most of this and am a bit skeptical - or maybe the OP just reminds me of Sadness from Inside Out. Did she ever acknowledge that she was actually accepted into Penn State’s Honors College? If so, why are we still talking about it? It’s the perfect situation for someone hoping to benefit from the huge resources of a state flagship and the individual attention of a smaller environment. The only friends that would look down on such a situation are those too ignorant to know better.
I did take AP Physics last year. I got a 5. Still not really clear on what I want to do yet career wise, but I know I want it science related. Physics is my strong suit.
The deadline was March 15th, but if you really want a smaller secular LAC in a city with astrophysics, Agnes Scott might be willing to take a late application. It would not satisfy your desire for prestige.
Penn State is one of the largest universities with about 46,000. Even though I’d be taking honors classes, I still feel like i’d be a small fish in the bigger scheme of things. My high school has over 900 people in my graduating class, and I feel so small. My mindset in September when I applied was different. Many of the students in my high school are also attending Penn State this year next fall.
It appears you took AP Physics 1, which was based on the high school physics course. That course bears very little relation, in rigor, to AP Physics C, which is calculus based, and offers 2 different exams, mechanics and electricity/magnetism. AP Physics C would be the relevant course for astronomy, as would BC calculus at a minimum. Many Barnard applicants would have taken all 3 of those AP exams if they claimed an interest in astronomy. Not to say it is impossible for you, but understand you are already behind the curve in preparation for that field. Not sure why you want a more competitive school where you would enter much less prepared than many of your classmates