Official I hate being a community college student thread.

Transfer Students
21

<p>Yes, I did, but Berkeley's expectations are much higher. I wrote lengthy papers at my cc, but they were assigned less frequently. Also, it seems that the professors here show little mercy when it comes to the end of the term. During the week before finals, it is not unusual to have three papers, two projects, and a presentation all due within 5 days time.</p>

<p>I'm not complaining about the English Department or questioning my love for the topic. It's just that it's the week before finals, which means every professor on campus expects final assignments in by this friday. The entire university is holed up in libraries and study rooms trying to get it done. I know this is normal, but what can I say? It's a big change...</p>

<p>Good Luck with Berkeley, by the way!</p>

<p>Looking forward to December 19th,</p>

<p>Izzie Bear</p>

22

<p>
[quote]

cram for scientific exams

[/quote]
</p>

<p>haha. It's like saying grass is greener on the other side... I am having to do a lot ochem craming, and i'd rather be writing and reading. lol</p>

23

<p>You have presentations? I thought most classes were lecture-based.</p>

24

<p>Some people have presentations. I'm not one of them. I was just using an example....</p>

<p><3,</p>

<p>Izzie Bear</p>

25

<p>You can give presentations in discussion....</p>

26

<p>Alright I guess I'll just and agree with Izzie here. Enjoy the CC workload! It's a lot different than it will be when you enter a university. At the moment I'm responsible for over 55 pages worth of essays, as well as an exam worth 60% of my final grade (which is not the worst, many people have finals worth 75% of their grade). Also as Izzie said, expectations are much higher at the university than they ever were at my CC. I actually generally have less work, but what I do have is worth much more and is graded much more harshly.</p>

<p>If you're curious, I'm a History major at UCLA.</p>

27

<p>Hm, I've had CC workloads that are similar to that. I've written hundreds of pages in the last two semesters. I guess it depends on your professors at the CC etc. </p>

<p>I'm sure the university level is a big step up, but I've heard that transfer students generally expect it to be harder than it is.</p>

28

<p>I don't remember where I saw the figures but I read a study found that transfer students who make it to the 4 year university level actually, on average, perform better than those students that have been there from the beginning</p>

29

<p>chunkphat, I was actually thinking over this the other day. It surely cannot be that CCC GE courses are on a comparable level of difficulty, could it? What could be the reason behind their performance? High expectations?</p>

30

<p>"It surely cannot be that CCC GE courses are on a comparable level of difficulty, could it?"</p>

<p>Why not? I know many people talk about CCC being easy, but I really don't think it is always easier than a University. It really depends on the professor of course. And obviously the preparation we get at the CC level is sufficient for upper-division work, so the CC stuff has to prepare us somehow; if it prepares us easier, that seems like a really great thing?</p>

31

<p>Well I can't talk about how hard the lower division classes are here, since I'm only taking the upper division classes now. I have seen a big difference between difficulty between my CC classes, and classes here. However that difference for the most part is simply higher expectations by the professors as well as work that is weighed much more heavily.</p>

32

<p>I think it is the whole expectation thing. At CC, an English teacher would assign a novel, and it would take us about a month to filter through it. At Cal, an english professor will assign a novel on Thursday, and expect that you have read it and come to class prepared to discuss it on Monday. While reading a short novel (~ 200 pages) isn't too hard to do in a few days, it starts to get overwhelming when you have several hundred pages of reading over one given weekend.</p>

<p>Also, the style of lecture is very different in CC. It is slower paced, and incorporates tamer theories. At Cal, the professors are utterly brilliant, but tend to cover a wide range of theories and ideas that are often difficult to swallow. It's hard to keep up at times because there is just so much thrown out at you - and yes, it will all be on the next midterm. But you know you're getting the real deal. On the last day of lecture, the class will actually give the professor a standing ovation before the end of the hour. This never happened at CC, no matter how loved the instructor was. The professors here give intellectual performances here, but those performances are often pretty intense.</p>

<p>However, as much as I sometimes miss the freedom I had at CC, I absolutely love Berkeley and wouldn't change my coming here for the world. Difficult or not, it's so rewarding.</p>

<p><3,</p>

<p>Izzie Bear</p>

33

<p>
[quote]

I don't remember where I saw the figures but I read a study found that transfer students who make it to the 4 year university level actually, on average, perform better than those students that have been there from the beginning

[/quote]
</p>

<p>there is lower drop out rate for cc students. but thats mostly b/c they already went thru most undergrad classes.</p>

34

<p>There are numerous studies that point to transfer students doing as good or better than peers. </p>

<p>Izzie--It does seem that the most difficult work is the most rewarding.</p>

35

<p>I'd also however assume that for people who start at a CC there is a higher overall dropout rate during the first two years.</p>

<p>As for everybody talking about which is more difficult, CC or Universities, it's one of those things that you just need to experence to understand. Izzie makes some very good points when he points just how different the lecture style is. I've had a couple weekends this quarter where the reading amounts have approached 1000 pages. I've got one history class for example where on most nights we get roughly 50 pages of reading per book. However we've got 8 different books in that class. Normally she only assigns 5 or 6 of them per night, but that is still a great deal of reading which, unlike at my CC, I actually have to read in order to keep up. Most professors also have higher expectations from you, so you'll have to step it up a notch in that regard.</p>

<p>While the work is harder then it ever was at the CC, I still am thrilled I decided to come here. I've been here for almost 3 months now and they have been 3 of the best months of my life.</p>

36

<p>You seem to suggest that other students like yourself have to be holed up in their rooms reading 24/7 in order to succeed. But the school has a social life, does it not? How do students manage that?--that is if you are serious about the reading being extensive and necessary to succeed.</p>

37

<p>That's the thing that is really surprising is that I have found the time for a social life here. I think what it is more then anything is you just need to learn how to manage your time well. If I worked 24/7 I'd very quickly burn out. It's all just how you manage your time. Also at the CC I had homework on a regular basis, whereas I've almost never got things to turn in here. Most weeks my only work is to keep up on the reading. What's interesting is that I always thought I was a quick reader before hand, however since getting here I've actually become better at reading. It's one of those things where I never really would have expected to improve in, but due to necessity I have.</p>

<p>The reading (at least for History) is necessary to succeed here! The lectures tend to be very dense and move very quickly, so any advantage (such as having the readings done before class) provides a big help since you know what to look for.</p>

38

<p>
[quote]

While the work is harder then it ever was at the CC, I still am thrilled I decided to come here. I've been here for almost 3 months now and they have been 3 of the best months of my life.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Thats really great hear. I hope to have same expirience next year....</p>

39

<p>Nikkei, here's what I think...</p>

<p>Take a look at the average # of years most people tend to spend at a CC. Now take a look at the average age most of the people at a CC are. Last, take a look at the actual transfer rate of the people that transfer (and better yet, those that transfer to a UC level or higher).</p>

<p>I'm going to jump out on a limb and say that the first two numbers would tend to be higher than the same numbers at a UC. I would also tend to say, proportionately, transfer numbers are relatively small. Furthermore, I would even be lead to believe (without evidence obviously) that the people actually transferring tend to be younger than 25. Since none of that had any evidence (because I'm too busy to look up some info) it might not make a whole lot of sense. I'll get to the point...</p>

<p>On an educated hunch, I believe that the people transferring to higher institutions are mostly a highly-motivated, young, community college elite (such as the folks on this board). Obviously we all care about transferring enough to the point of going out and spending free time on discussion boards such as this one (unless some wanted to help hopefuls or some just enjoy talking about transfers). I don't believe the average community college student does this. I also don't believe the average community college student transfers!</p>

<p>I feel I receive a great education at my community college. While the professors are not Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Stanford graduates, they still come from great schools (e.g. UCSD, USC, etc.) I would rate the courses as "semi-challenging" but I balanced that with a heavy courseload. Transferring with 70 units in the Fall will put me in a position to take 12.5 units 3 out of 4 quarters (for two years) and graduate. So the course work may be more demanding at UCLA (or UCSD or UCB or USC), but I am not frightened one bit. To be blunt, I think it will be a cakewalk. If I have picked one thing up from community college (and obviously I've picked up more), it is that failure is not an option (and failure to me has been anything below a B). This mentality will carry over to a 4-year university when I transfer.</p>

<p>I know I'm dragging on (you can stop reading any time), but every time I think a UC school will be difficult, I think about the alleged "grade inflation" (at some, not ALL, schools) and how nothing will be done about it until well after 2008 (my graduation). Check out this website: <a href="http://www.cybercollege.com/plume3.htm%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.cybercollege.com/plume3.htm&lt;/a>. "In 1966 at Harvard, 22% of all grades were A's. In 2003, that figure had grown to 46%. In 1968 at UCLA, 22% of all grades were A's. By 2002, that figure was 47%.". Let's say the top 5-10% of a community college could transfer to UCLA (I consider myself in this percentage and I would guess most of you would as well). Would I consider myself in the top 47% of students at UCLA??? Absolutely. And A's comprise 47% of all grades. Obviously some students may be getting all A's while some are getting a mixture of A's and C's, but this just goes to show you that the level of education may not be THAT much more difficult than a community college.</p>

<p>IN FACT, I would tend to say amount of all grades that are A's at many community colleges would be less than 47% (by far). Now this could be because people at community college are less motivated than those at 4-year institutions (maybe not). As for me, I performed at the 5-10% level in high school, I perform at the 5-10% level at a CC, and I will continue to perform at the 5-10% level at a 4-year. For anyone in a similar situation, I'm sure you will do the same.</p>

40

<p>I think the University work is probably at a different level with different expectations. In other words, students can work to the different expectations, just as they worked to whatever expectations were set for them at the community college level.</p>