<p>Does anyone have any firsthand experience with this? My D filled out the application, but I was wondering if anyone knew anything more than waht was sent to us by Miami.</p>
<p>Sure do. And if there is any one place that son has felt that UM hasn't held up their end of the bargain, it's here. I'm sure that MC has helped others, but mine wasn't one. He did the whole huge application, got accepted into the program, and received a contact name very quickly that summer. That's where the "help" stopped. Contacting the person was a nightmare. (Perhaps because the person was on the RSMAS campus??) He called and e-mailed for well over a month with no response. When he finally did get ahold of this person, he was told..."When you get on campus and get your schedule, come see me." So he did.....but his freshman schedule and the hours that he needed to be at RSMAS couldn't be worked out. (He would have had to come and go from the RSMAS campus 3 times a day, and with traffic to Biscayne...wow!!) He then went to the MC office, and they basically said..."We gave you your contact, and if you can't work it out, your on your own now." And by this time in August, all the "good" on-campus jobs were taken. (At least this is what he tells me.) His idea of good or not, I'm not sure. LOL</p>
<p>Consequently, he didn't work that first semester of his freshman year. He found a job 2nd semester on his own (worked in the admissions office of the Law School) ...reported it to MC office. Went to a couple of meetings, and apparently never heard from them again till the next summer. They wanted to know if they could "help" him again with finding employment for sophmore year. His reply...."Thanks, but no thanks." He found his own employment for sophmore year on his own.</p>
<p>Personally, I think, if your child has held a job before (mine started working part-time his freshman year of HS...and ended up working as much as 38 hours per week his senior year of HS) that they don't need MC. If this is their first job seeking time, or they don't have a resume', or if they haven't ever been out in the "business" world, MC would be helpful and provide guidance. If, however, they are experienced in the working world, MC does not provide any new or better opportunities.</p>
<p>Thanks so much, I am sorry it didn't work out for your son. My D will probably "try" this, if accepted. Othan than babysitting and a couple of weeks working at an ice cream parlor, she has no job experiece, so this may be helpful. She wants and needs to work once she is at school, so hopefully this will work out for her. Thanks again for the info.</p>
<p>My S's experience was quite different. He was accepted into the program and as a result got a job in the Wellness Center, which is apparently a much envied position that only Miami Commitment (MC) kids get as freshmen. He was in contact with them before he even got on campus, interviewed during orientation and got the job. I imagine it varies widely based on where and with whom you work. </p>
<p>S said that the other stuff was not much help to him but he had quite a lot of work and interviewing experience already. He is also very good around adults. I expect it could help someone with less experience, who is shy, etc.</p>
<p>He also thinks that having it on his resume can only help. I do think it is worth doing and S would do it again if we turned back the clock.</p>
<p>wish....is your S going to keep the same job next year or did they help him find a new and different one? I'm so glad it worked out for him!! I think you probably hit it right on with varying widely based on where and with whom. I know they tried to set my son up in his expected major (marine science) out at RSMAS, which would have been really great for a freshman, and maybe that was what the big problem was. That it just is pretty tough for a freshman to get out to RSMAS, since it has such odd hours, and that the shuttles out there run more infrequently......</p>
<p>Hi, I am jsut looking into this program as well. I am not sure if it will be too taxing for a freshman to work and study at same time. Can a student do the MC progrm at any time, like in the 2nd year of college, or is it only open to freshman? Did your son find it too taxing to work and study during his first year?
My son is majoring in communications and he will probably want to do some voluteer work at the TV station, so classes, EC and MC may be too much. I am not sure...
any ideas??</p>
<p>If I'm not mistaken, Miami Committment is for incoming freshman only. They cannot join later. </p>
<p>I think the job issue is purely a personal one depending on the student. Since mine had always worked he did have a somewhat pretty good idea of time-management. I would think some kids would struggle though that first year...especially if they have never had to deal with issues before. (i.e. giving up what they WANT to do vs. what they HAVE to do.) Remember that there is so much new stuff a freshman will be dealing with. Laundry, getting enough sleep, making friends, etc., and the biggest hurdle is time-management. These kids are all so bright I don't think the classes themselves freshman year should give any of them problems.</p>
<p>On the other hand...mine has found that working freshman and sophmore year was much easier than working this past year. When in the beginning lower-level classes he found he had plenty of time to study, work, and still have a social life. This past year as a junior and taking all upper-division classes has been rough on him. Bigger papers, more tests, studying for MCAT, making sure to keep his GPA way up for admissions to Grad/Med school and work is taking a toll on him. But then again...he's getting a taste of the real adult world also....and his current job has given him a lot of contacts which are ending up as being very valuable down the road. :) It's all a balancing act. And if they can learn to balance quickly...they'll be fine!</p>
<p>Thanks! We just had a family chat and son is willing to give it a go. If he feels he cant handle all the work and study he wont continue. But we will throw in the application and see what happens. Yankee girl, our kids seem to be heading in very similar programs!</p>
<p>Ndd...sure seems that way. I assume their paths will corss since they are both comm majors and now both doing the MC thing.</p>
<p>S had no trouble doing MC and everything else. He started doing 9 hours a week, but then cut it to just 6, preferring to add hours as time allowed by agreeing to take someone else's shift if he had the time and wanted to. He could often study while he worked (like when he was checking IDs, giving out towels, or on call in case someone needed a table moved or something). </p>
<p>He recently became a Tutor as well, but found that through his advisor, not MC. He may or may not go back to the Wellness Center next year. It will depend on how many tutoring hours he gets. He also will be a Peer Counselor for which he will be paid to offer help and advice to incoming freshmen.</p>
<p>As for how much time they need to devote to academics, he found the workload very do-able. He took an extra 3 credits this term and managed, but said he probably wouldn't do that again. He went to a very writing intensive prep school and arrived with solid writing skills. (At one point he said he wrote more in a week in HS than he does in a month at Miami.) He said that not everyone arrived as prepared as he was, especially if their HS A's were as much due to grade inflation as their efforts. So much may depend on the individual kid, their background, how much writing they did in HS and what courses they are taking. </p>
<p>But as he told us over winter break, the kids that seem to get in trouble, regardless of their HS prep, are the ones who don't keep up with the work on a weekly basis and party too much on a nightly basis!</p>