Conquer Club

So my question is this:
What if someone isn't that academic, and their grades aren't that great - what colleges are possible/plausible/preferable?

jonesthecurl wrote:So my question is this:
What if someone isn't that academic, and their grades aren't that great - what colleges are possible/plausible/preferable?

More specifics would be helpful, but generally, you might look into trade schools. They run the gamut, from nursing to cooking to photography to trucking to construction, (even diving), etc. Really any "trade".

Another option might be "community colleges". However, I don't know what is available in your state. I know that you can, or at least used to be able to enroll in a lot of programs in CA that basically led to various trades. They operated as either intitial, "get your feet wet" programs for kids heading to the "big U" eventually or as "stand alone" trades programs... I remember seeing diving certifications, fire fighting, journeyman trade programs, even things like basic accounting or architecture. Its really too long a list to give.

EDIT--
Just did a quick search. Here is a link about the schools:
http://home.cccapply.org/colleges/requirements (wikki also has some information)

http://californiacommunitycolleges.cccc ... dents.aspx In many cases, the cost of out of state tuition is lower than in-state tuition out east here. Some even have dorms.

One thing, the quality of these schools varies HIGHLY. if you are seriously considering, ask someone who lives in CA or who has close contacts there. (I am familiar with some, can advise a bit, but its been a while since I was out there).

Phoenix Online

Are they interested in going to college or are you pushing them that way? What do they want to do? My kids will be going to community college first to cut down tuition, and give them a chance to take classes they want to take at reduced tuition until they know what they want to learn about. Tech schools are a great option too if they want to work doing something that doesn't require a degree.

One of my sisters had so-so grades and was burnt out after high school. Instead of wasting time/money at college, she got a job at KMart. After a year she was motivated to go to college. Now she's a controller for a public company, making enough money to let her husband stay home.

I know some people who went to a Community College for 2 years, and then transferred to a University for the remaining 2 years of undergrad.


--Andy

Look into Colleges with Open Admission Policies, which means
that once they have accommodated all the applicants who meet
their academic standards, everyone else will be considered.
Louisiana state colleges have open admissions and I'm sure
there are others out there also.

This basically gives underachieving students a "second chance" at college
and once accepted, all that is required is making the grades to continue.

Otherwise a Community College or uncredited university class audits are
an option to develop academic support to apply to a preferred program.

Click my signature.

Probably here? http://teamcoco.com/conanstate

AndyDufresne wrote:I know some people who went to a Community College for 2 years, and then transferred to a University for the remaining 2 years of undergrad.


--Andy

I did that. Well I went to a 4 year college, 2 year college, 4 year college, 2 year college (AS), ~8 year break, 4 year college (BS)

I've heard that a good career choice for people like that is Stand Up Comedian

Just kiddin brother

Well, it's true enough that I went straight from Grammar to a job myself. I'm not worried if he decides against college, just looking at options.
On the other hand, the youngsters who did the comedy course with me don't seem to have got very far yet in the comedy world... and it's not frankly something you should do if you want to earn lots of money.

Thanks everyone for the advice, I'll be following up all the options except the cc one.

What is considered "Not that great"?

that was being nice. He's bright, and can get an "A" just about anytime he wants, but usually doesn't bother and ends up with C or less in most subjects most of the time. He inherits a lazy streak from me - though I've learnt over the years to give myself a kick up the bum. He hasn't got the hang of that yet.

If he is academic tell him to pull his finger out, if he is not just dont go to college/university, get a trade. Far more worthwhile and valuable to the world. The world called and said we're full of arts degrees and half arsed finance majors.

Lots of good advice here which I wish I had heard in high school--take a program from a tech school or college, specifically a program which has the option of transferring to university. If he doesn't like academics and doesn't put in the effort required, at least he's only spent two years and has a diploma to show for it. If he ends up loving the academics, he can continue on for two more years in a university to get a degree along with his diploma, giving him an edge over the other university grads who have all the theoretical knowledge but without the practical skills & diploma he will have gained in college/tech school.

doing well on standardized tests can make up for bad grades to some extent.

these days (unfortunately IMO) it's very easy to boost your test scores with proper preparation.

jonesthecurl wrote:that was being nice. He's bright, and can get an "A" just about anytime he wants, but usually doesn't bother and ends up with C or less in most subjects most of the time. He inherits a lazy streak from me - though I've learnt over the years to give myself a kick up the bum. He hasn't got the hang of that yet.

Sounds like me. In high school my grades were similar. I ended up going to a community college for two years to find out what I wanted to do and to get my GPA up a bit. While mildly successful, I ended up with I think a 3.1 after 5 semesters...and I just got into Northeastern University, where the averages are higher than that. Grades don't mean EVERYTHING, but it really helps. I spent a lot of time on the essays and whathaveyou on the applications, to show that I really was interested in going there and not just applying for the sake of applying.

University of the People is almost completely free. At least that way, you don't feel like you wasted 30k plus.

Yeah, a community college or trade school for a couple years might be something to consider. A community college will provide him with a college education at a fraction of a university, but with smaller class sizes (more similar to high school) so it gives a lot of flexibility and allows someone to learn if they want to go to college or not without putting them in debt. Plus, community colleges usually have a system in place to help students transfer to an in-state university a bit easier and more accustomed to the college lifestyle.

As a non univ or college person, I don't suggest that route to many. (especially if you want to do reasonably well for yourself). There are plenty of trades that offer excellent options for the future, depending on talents outside the classroom.

IcePack wrote:As a non univ or college person, I don't suggest that route to many. (especially if you want to do reasonably well for yourself). There are plenty of trades that offer excellent options for the future, depending on talents outside the classroom.

yeah, and he may well end up not doing college (like me - I did some professional exams a coupla years after school, while working, and in fact was working on a part-time History degree much later just because I was interested when the curlson and then his sister came along and interrupted my education).

As I say, we're examining options. College in US, or Uk, or not at all.
You're all being very helpful, without too much of the usual cc sarcasm.
We had a long talk today with some of the staff at school too. Lots to ponder.

The number of people who go to college and actually graduate
is a lot less than you might expect, but even a few years of
higher education is a good thing. Particularly if you can get
into courses that really interest you and not just taking all the
required classes. The social aspect of diving into a larger pool
of people that share common interests is also a good thing.
I received my degrees long ago and still see and maintain contacts
and friendships with people I met during those years.

IF he has a good idea of where he wants to be after school, can
also be a big plus, since you can focus on courses that are aimed
in that direction. One aspect of College is discovering new things
that might not have even been on the table before hand and
that very well might reshape his future plans.

Most schools are only going to transfer a certain number of credits,
which is also something to consider if taking courses elsewhere.

Gilligan wrote:

jonesthecurl wrote:that was being nice. He's bright, and can get an "A" just about anytime he wants, but usually doesn't bother and ends up with C or less in most subjects most of the time. He inherits a lazy streak from me - though I've learnt over the years to give myself a kick up the bum. He hasn't got the hang of that yet.

Sounds like me. In high school my grades were similar. I ended up going to a community college for two years to find out what I wanted to do and to get my GPA up a bit. While mildly successful, I ended up with I think a 3.1 after 5 semesters...and I just got into Northeastern University, where the averages are higher than that. Grades don't mean EVERYTHING, but it really helps. I spent a lot of time on the essays and whathaveyou on the applications, to show that I really was interested in going there and not just applying for the sake of applying.

Yeah, grades are not everything, I had average grades, but aced the SAT (99% for college bound seniors at the time in math, lower 90's for english).

However, I don't know if all states really have true community colleges. PA really doesn't. Even to go to a small adjunct means paying over $500 a CREDIT.. not a class, but a credit! It is cheaper to pay out of state tuition in many other states and attend there.

Don't forget private schools.
Private schools tend to be pricier, but often offer better scholarships, particularly for kids who are not quite average. Having lived in the UK can easily be one of those "not average" points.


University of the Phoenix and a few other online programs might work, but tend to require the student be motivated. Something tells me that does not meet the description of the child in question. They are really for people who either want or need to work and still want to attend school with a flexible schedule.

ONe thng, it tends to be easier to study things that are interesting. Having an interest is key.

jonesthecurl wrote:Well, it's true enough that I went straight from Grammar to a job myself. I'm not worried if he decides against college, just looking at options.
On the other hand, the youngsters who did the comedy course with me don't seem to have got very far yet in the comedy world... and it's not frankly something you should do if you want to earn lots of money.

Thanks everyone for the advice, I'll be following up all the options except the cc one.

Ship him to Mexico. Have him go to a foreign friendly university like the one I went to. In 4 years he'll have more perspective of life, will have plenty of beer in his stomach, and tuition must be around 4k per semester in a nice enough university, i can guess living would be like 1k per month. Preferably in a place like Guadalajara.

jonesthecurl wrote:that was being nice. He's bright, and can get an "A" just about anytime he wants, but usually doesn't bother and ends up with C or less in most subjects most of the time. He inherits a lazy streak from me - though I've learnt over the years to give myself a kick up the bum. He hasn't got the hang of that yet.

If he's bright, then maybe he will eventually want to go to college. New Jersey has Rutgers and some other state schools (most of my cousins went to Trenton State). Pennsylvania has some pretty good state schools as well. It should not be a big deal to get into one of those schools.