<p>Help! We have a MAJOR dilemma and have to reach a decision after Thanksgiving holiday.</p>
<p>DS is a first-semester Freshman at a highly-selective LAC. Budget and faculty cuts have eliminated most of the classes in which DS was interested, and now classes that were taught annually are being rotated to an every other year status. The department has lost its director and is now administered by a professor in a completely unrelated field. </p>
<p>DS is ready to bail from the LAC and enroll at our local community college and take courses in his major, as well as continue to fill core requirements. He has only 4 classes (one semester) remaining until he earns an AA degree. If he continues at the LAC he will not earn an AA and there is no guarantee the school will improve its programs; they are only hiring adjuncts (from the community college, no less) or just eliminating classes. Not only that, the longer he stays there, the further he falls behind his peers in taking classes in his major as well as having to go back and make up core requirements later, should he decide to transfer out say, a year from now. </p>
<p>It is too late now for DD to apply (as a Spring 2012 transfer) to the state's flagship U, itself a highly-selective school, which was his second choice. </p>
<p>Dilemma is this: does DS continue at the LAC another semester, frustrated by taking classes which are going nowhere (and costing us an additional $10K) and then apply to the flagship U for next fall? Does it look bad if he withdraws from the LAC in the middle of the year to pursue classes he REALLY needs at our local comm college? Should he withdraw from the LAC and enroll in a mediocre state U for a semester (which means he will have to start all over again becoming situated in a new school 120 miles away)? Will that look better or worse or the same as a comm college? The LAC has an unusually high turnover rate (1/3 the first year) and Admissions Departments elsewhere are quite aware of this fact. </p>
<p>In many cases, state flagships are relatively friendly to community college transfers, although they prefer to take transfers who are ready to enter their major as juniors and complete their bachelor’s degrees in two years from then.</p>
<p>So an option is to go to community college for three semesters and then transfer to the state flagship as a junior.</p>
<p>If you don’t mind mentioning, what major, and what schools?</p>
<p>At his current LAC , does he have any possibility of enrolling in one or two classes he needs at a neighboring college just for next semester? Both my children’s universities allowed students to do this for some classes.</p>
<p>Pull him out after this semester, take needed courses at CC, & apply for State U for fall (or summer, if possible!). He should be able to discuss this move in his application essay. It’s an unfortunate situation :/</p>
<p>Second opinion of post #4. Finish semester, go to CC get AA, transfer to state U ASAP.
If possible jump to state U for the summer session. I don’t think state U will care he quit LAC when the reason is that the courses aren’t available. If his grades are good at LAC it will speak for itself.
If the LAC doesn’t have the courses he wants it’s a given that he has to move and sooner the better. Might be able to get an application in by TG and still make it depending on deadlines from schools.</p>
<p>Just now applying for D’s schools, she is a senior. It does seem like LACs, Honors colleges, and specific programs can change and be downright misleading. Is it wrong to ask what school we are talking about? New here, don’t know the rules, but it might help some of us who are making choices now…</p>
<p>I know a student who was in a similar position. Went to selective private u. Immediately realized it was not for her (grades were good, atmosphere not to her liking). Came home after one semester. Enrolled in the local branch state u. for Spring sem. while re-applying to state flagship (had originally been her 2nd choice) for Fall semester. She was accepted for fall, graduated from the flagship after three years there and is now attending Med. sch. there. </p>
<p>I would say…come home, do the spring sem. at the CC while re-applying to flagship for Fall 2012.</p>
<p>Bet there wasn’t any discussion during admissions process that intended department would be downsized and CC adjuncts brought in. You can do significant research, visit schools, speak to students and faculty, and still find yourself in this situation.</p>
<p>Friends’ DS in similar situation: enrolled at state flagship, but only via initial acceptance into “General Studies” program instead of undergrad B-school for accounting major. In 1 1/2 years, he’s been denied admission to undergrad B-school twice, and shut-out of classes which relate to accounting intent. He’ll have spent two years by May without forward progress towards his academic goal. (And he turned down a large scholarship at another school which had immediately accessible accounting major - much to his parents’ chagrin.)</p>
<p>If he’s certain about his major, while remain at current LAC if academics/faculty are lacking? Rather transfer to a stronger program.</p>
<p>"I would say…come home, do the spring sem. at the CC while re-applying to flagship for Fall 2012. "
I second the motion. OP, can you please let us know what college/ major after you are finished with this semester?</p>
<p>annasdad, the OP has 9 posts thus far. 2 are from a mom’s perspective (who switched saying she was worried about her DS to worried about her DD), the others are from a female college student point of view.</p>
<p>OP, assuming you’re just looking for advice and not a ■■■■■, I suggest you quit this “highly selective LAC” and go to a community college. Sounds like you’d have to leave eventually, and the sooner the better.</p>
<p>“Bet there wasn’t any discussion during admissions process that intended department would be downsized and CC adjuncts brought in. You can do significant research, visit schools, speak to students and faculty, and still find…the same situation”.</p>
<p>That is correct. We had no indication of the status of how things were going to be until after DS moved into the dorm, at which time he discovered the toilet leaking onto the floor, the air conditioning system broken, and the wired internet service in his room not working (and took two weeks to fix!). That was a prelude of things to come. It’s a shame because this school is always rated as a top LAC, has an admirable reputation for graduates, and is listed in Colleges…Change Lives. Further, my DS is on a substantial scholarship. But is it enough to keep him there? Not when he has to take “filler” classes just to round out his schedule, without a single class in his major (or minor, for that matter). The bottom line is, will the school give him what he needs? Unfortunately, no. Even the community college and mediocre state school is offering more. :(</p>
<p>Well, it is hard for people to give more specific suggestions without knowing the major and schools involved, though if you don’t want to mention them for privacy sake, you’ll have to accept that others’ suggestions will be more general and limited.</p>
Most schools require students to take courses in various fields to fulfill their “general ed”, “core”, “basic”, “liberal arts”, etc, etc. These are not “filler” classes, but classes to help make a student a well rounded educated person, as a BA/BS should do. These classes are often taken in the first and second year.</p>
<p>Most schools will also, at least that I know of, try to give every student the courses “they need” to graduate on time. I cannot speak for very large (15000-whatever students) institution. At my school, if you need a class to graduate, you will get it.</p>
<p>If it is Eckerd- that is a pretty small school which impacts the donor/alum pool and they don’t meet 100% of need.
It seems they have had ongoing enrollment problems although rolling admissions may have increased their applicant pool.
A lot of schools are having to raise fees in this economy but others especially public schools are having to cut services-
which if your son is attending the New College which is a public school, that wouldn’t be surprising ( budget cuts) although they do seem to meet more need than Eckerd does along with a lower acceptance rate although both schools are listed in the CTCL guide.</p>
<p>If he is a freshman, there should be a lot of classes that may not be in his major but will fulfill distribution requirements.
I would advise him to stick out the year.</p>
<p>Funny…you have a son at a selective LAC…yet in your other posts you are a female freshman student at an ‘in state’ school that you hate for reasons other that course selection. ■■■■■ post or what? If you need real advice, why not just be honest?</p>
<p>An AA has no value unless you never get the BA. </p>
<p>My advice: find courses to take in the spring that would satisfy core requirements for the state flagship and makes forward progress toward the degree their and then transfer for the fall. There is no field in liberal arts with a prerequisite tree so deep that delaying the major by one semester would prevent a timely graduation.</p>