High School vs College

Most people seem to enjoy college more than high school, but I don't feel that way. The classes are harder than high school but you don't have to take classes in areas you don't enjoy.

I can't speak about the parties, I never go for the parties.

 

I'm also a senior, and from being a practical hermit for my entire life, I look forward to the simple freedom I'll have living on campus and going to college. I can be as gay as I want and no one shall stop me! >:-D

 

Hey there.

It depends on the college. Small colleges can feel like a continuation of high school, especially if conservative. Large colleges require that you are responsible for your own education.

Yes, college is harder, but with the proper amount of dedication, it's totally doable. If your major has "weed out" courses, then it is harder than a major that does not. The single most important thing, imo, is that you pick the right major, for you, or it can be very emotionally draining. BTDT.

You budget your own time. You can really fuck up college this way by getting lazy, socializing too much, getting in with the wrong crowd, or partying too hard. I didn't have that problem. I'm more of an introvert.

Mostly, it's all about maturing. At the end of it, you should definitely be an adult. You already are going in, but you should be more worldly at the end of it.

Colleges have personalities. Pick a college and pick a major that fit you very well, and it should be a great experience. If the college is close to home, don't use old high school friends as a crutch, but keep only the best ones. If you go to a college that doesn't fit you and/or the major is not compatible with you, it won't be a good experience.

Hope this helps some.

 

For me, high school and college have been far different.

In high school, I was lazy and didn't care. But I've busted my ass in college because I enjoy the classes. I would say that the difficultly of classes in college really depends on the subject and professor. But as a political science/communication major, the classes aren't exactly easy, especially for the former. You just gotta work your ass off, and then work your ass off some more. Do not miss classes, and pay attention.

Good luck in college.

---------- Post added 9th Nov 2013 at 12:00 AM ----------

Not always true, unfortunately.

I've had to take a decent number of classes that I hated because of common core requirements. But even if you don't enjoy the subject, you can still learn valuable critical thinking skills.

 

The classes themselves aren't harder - I found them easier because of the somewhat quicker pace myself - but the workload tends to be heavier, and more self-directed. I was one of those kids that gets concepts quickly, so I got lazy when it came to homework and studying, and that bit me in the ass in college. If you're one of those kids that's good about homework and studying, you should do fine, as long as you can manage your time well.

As for parties, I don't know much about high school parties or college parties. I'm something of an introvert. But I'm pretty sure it varies from campus to campus and group to group.

 

The biggest difficulty will most likely be the self-motivation factor. Unlike high-school, you won't be coddled, you won't have constant reminders and teachers chasing you down when you miss assignments, you won't be easily able to have the cosy little chats with teachers to ingratiate yourself. It'll be more formal, teachers will have less to do with you personally, and you'll be forced to work out your own schedule and will have to be time aware; no teachers rushing you off to class and no bells.

At least in Canberra's public schools we have two years prior to uni (years 11 and 12), which run on a similar basis to university, while having a lot of the aspects of high school. I'm not sure how it is where you are, but the jump from one to the other might be quite large.

 

In high school, they want you to learn. They practically require you to do it and spoon-feed you info. If you're a capable student, you might have no trouble just doing the classwork and you can ace the tests.

In college, not so much. You might get a good teacher who fosters enthusiasm for learning, but even with the best teachers, you still have to be responsible. They aren't there to give you the info-- they are there to guide you as you learn the info yourself. You can't hack it in college without reading the book and studying a lot. Trust me; I tried, and it didn't work out so well.

 

I remember thinking that community college felt a lot like "High School II" initially, especially considering the change in atmosphere after visiting our town's university campus. That said, there are a few important factors that tend to come up whenever this conversation takes place. For me, anyway, some of the perks include: being treated more like an adult and less like a child to be babysat, with a greater degree of respect and responsibility involved in the teacher-student relationship; the flexibility in being able to choose your own classes and times, something very important when you consider how many people have jobs, families, and other responsibilities outside of school; the sheer diversity you'll find in most schools, concerning age, nationality, goals, experience, involvement, etc. It's like it's own small town, at times.

"Harder" is subjective; a lot more material is covered in a shorter period of time, so if high school was more like a warm up, then college is an extreme work out, so it's a lot easier to slip up, especially considering how easy it is to get sidetracked. As far as parties go, it depends, since a lot of the ones I'd been to involved both high school and college age students. Technically, the kids weren't supposed to be there, but they always seemed to find a way in. I didn't step out of my comfort zone until several years into my studies, so take this experience with a grain of salt...

 

College is whatever you make of it. There is no limit to how hard you push yourself, how hard you party. You're not stuck in a veritable prison all day like high school. You go to class a few hours a week and it's your responsibility to apply what you've learned and indeed learn a lot on your own.

They aren't going to slow down lecture so that every kid can understand every concept and ask unlimited questions. You go to office hour if confused, or hire a tutor. A lot of classes are designed to weed out the people who won't be making a career of that particular subject.

 

I think it depends on where you go. Community Colleges tend to just be more boring and tedious. But the bigger 4 year schools tend to be just as hard, but a lot more fun.

For me though, high school was definitely more fun. I had friends who I saw all the time and occasionally went to parties and the work was generally more easy (for me anyway) but in college I was just more bored, more work, and less fun. But again, that's me.

 

I would say the major difference for me was having to write my assignments down and setting reminders on my phone that my homework or project is due. Also every professor varies there are some that are easy, laid back, and understanding and then you have professors that are hard and not as understanding. The scheduling can be difficult too, if you plan on having a job or a want a specific class. At my school when you register for classes you are put in order by your class. Meaning if your a senior you get to register first, juniors second, sophomores third, and of course freshman are the last to register for classes. So plan ahead your schedule, which class you want to take that semester, and even the professor you would rather have.

Check out ratemyproffesor.com it gives rating for proffesors from different school and states. Also the website rates them in easiness, overall quality, and if the professor is hot (don't know why they have that).

Other than that college is different for everyone and can either be a good or bad experience for you. Put yourself out there and join some clubs; you would be surprised just how diverse college can be. Hope you enjoy college as much as I have so far and good luck choosing which one to go to.

 

The biggest difference I've seen is that college isn't as hard as people say it is, but it is harder than high school. College takes a lot more effort than high school does, but it's not impossible.

 

I really enjoyed my time at college. It's where you meet some of your really good friends. I don't think I am friends with anyone from school but made loads at college. You are usually picking subjects people are interested in as well so you gel really fast. I also enjoyed the age differences in the classes, interacting with older people as well as people of my own age.

 

You really have to budget your time in college. If you wait until the week a paper is due to get started you will feel very rushed. If you do an all-nighter for an exam you will probably not get a good grade. Once in a while I did luck out on an exam after studying all night but don't depend on that. I also bombed a few tests badly.

Community college can be fun if you get involved in clubs and student government. It also looks good on your resume.

 

That completely depends on where you go to school and what sort of classes you took in high school. I go to college in the states, and there are a lot of general education requirements I have to take that have little (if anything) to do with my chosen major, such as science, math, history and computer competency (which is a bit of a joke in and of itself).

---------- Post added 9th Nov 2013 at 07:08 PM ----------

As to the OP, some of the main differences I've experienced is the workload. There is a lot more reading and studying to do in college. For some classes/instructors, just going to class and taking excellent notes might be enough, but generally speaking if you don't do the readings, you will fall behind fast.

I'd also like to point out that your college experience will depend completely on where you go to school and which classes you take. Some posters here have said things like "there's no hand holding", but again, it depends. Metaphorically speaking (of course), I've had instructors who drag students kicking and screaming to water and push their heads in it the water to make them drink and force them to do well in school. Other instructors are content with giving you a map to water. I've been to two colleges and have never met an instructor that wasn't willing to help a student who was falling behind, though.

Even though the work is harder and I'm busy all the time, I much prefer college to high school. A lot of that is the social aspect, not just taking classes that, for the most part, I'm honestly interested in. There are more social groups and clubs, and I am meeting a lot more people who are like me in college. In high school, most people absolutely hated learning or being active in the community. In college, I'm surrounded by people who honestly love to learn and are just as involved in the community as I am.

 

I liked college 1,000 times more than high-school. There were so many different classes to take, and being in a college town was a lot of fun, having come from a rural area, and a counter-cultural punk-rocker sort. Finally, I could meet others into similar things, see bands play, and have some fun. I had a great time, it not a bit wild, but I still got good grades. If I had the money, I would have just stayed in college forever. The classes never seemed all that hard, and I loved writing papers, oddly enough, and my creative writing classes. I studied English and Psychology, pretty big University, Michigan State.