College returns, monetary and otherwise

[mickeyluv'r]

rjthkids, I'm glad you got the education you wanted, and you are correct when you say that UMass Amherst probably would not have been the right choice for you. It is not the place for everyone, but for those of us who went there, I say with confidence that NOBODY got a better education than we did. While you didn't put down UMass, there was an implication that where you went was better for you. Maybe it was, but many of us who went to UMass felt that we got the best deal.
Before college, I thought I wanted to go to a small private college with a famous name...my parents said it wasn't worth it to come out of school with thousands of dollars of debt on your back. They were right, and a within a week of arriving at UMass, I knew it was the perfect place for me....
UMass had a far broader choice of top notch professors that the small Ivy league schools around it, and yet we were still given the opportunity to take classes at any of these schools (The five college system). If you wanted to change your major after you arrived, UMAss offered us a myriad of quality choices, unlike small schools. We were able to take a very diverse sampling of courses, and to exchange ideas with a broad range of fellow students.
There was always something amazing to see or do at UMAss. Music concerts, plays, art shows, sports events, social events, political events...I always felt that I was in the middle of everything. At the same time, UMass is surrounded by beautiful natural surroundings. So while we were reading great American writers such as Emerson, we could look out our window, and see the very trees they were writing about - MA trees. We discussed our learning with people from all over the world - fellow students at UMass.
It was an incredible feeling of immersion in education, knowledge, nature, and society. I know a number of people who have gone to different institutions, and know of none who speak as highly of their college experience; none who can boast of such a rich experience as we had at UMass.
Last, let me emphasize what has been perhaps the most important thing that I gained from UMass, my friends. UMass works very hard to foster an environment where undergrads can get to know each other, where young people are encouraged to overlook their differences and communicate with one another. That philosophy has carried over into everything that I have done since, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Simply put, no amount of money could outwiegh the value of the knowledge and experience that I gained from UMass. I'm certain that all of my UMass friends feel the same way, and we stayed underbudget at graduation!

 

[Debbie Jean]

rjthkids, I'm glad you got the education you wanted, and you are correct when you say that UMass Amherst probably would not have been the right choice for you. It is not the place for everyone, but for those of us who went there, I say with confidence that NOBODY got a better education than we did. While you didn't put down UMass, there was an implication that where you went was better for you. Maybe it was, but many of us who went to UMass felt that we got the best deal.
Before college, I thought I wanted to go to a small private college with a famous name...my parents said it wasn't worth it to come out of school with thousands of dollars of debt on your back. They were right, and a within a week of arriving at UMass, I knew it was the perfect place for me....
UMass had a far broader choice of top notch professors that the small Ivy league schools around it, and yet we were still given the opportunity to take classes at any of these schools (The five college system). If you wanted to change your major after you arrived, UMAss offered us a myriad of quality choices, unlike small schools. We were able to take a very diverse sampling of courses, and to exchange ideas with a broad range of fellow students.
There was always something amazing to see or do at UMAss. Music concerts, plays, art shows, sports events, social events, political events...I always felt that I was in the middle of everything. At the same time, UMass is surrounded by beautiful natural surroundings. So while we were reading great American writers such as Emerson, we could look out our window, and see the very trees they were writing about - MA trees. We discussed our learning with people from all over the world - fellow students at UMass.
It was an incredible feeling of immersion in education, knowledge, nature, and society. I know a number of people who have gone to different institutions, and know of none who speak as highly of their college experience; none who can boast of such a rich experience as we had at UMass.
Last, let me emphasize what has been perhaps the most important thing that I gained from UMass, my friends. UMass works very hard to foster an environment where undergrads can get to know each other, where young people are encouraged to overlook their differences and communicate with one another. That philosophy has carried over into everything that I have done since, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Simply put, no amount of money could outwiegh the value of the knowledge and experience that I gained from UMass. I'm certain that all of my UMass friends feel the same way, and we stayed underbudget at graduation!

All of what you said is absolutely correct. And I will add one more thing... I graduated from UMass Amherst and went on to do my graduate degree at Harvard... so obviously their admissions officers recognized the quality of studies I had achieved.

 

[Forevryoung]

I am graduating in a few months with a BA from the University of Maryland. I love it here- a very small major in a huge school. I know everyone in my department.

I am graduating with a "useless" degree in hearing and speech sciences and will need my masters in speech language pathology to make the difference in the world that I see myself making. I am looking at UMASS at Amhearst as my top choice for grad school although their standards and ranking is way up there.

I take the GRE's tomorrow at 8am (the SAT's for grad school). They will (partially) decide my fate and how much money I receive from a grad school. I need lots and lots of prayers and PD.

 

[iggbees]

I am graduating in a few months with a BA from the University of Maryland. I love it here- a very small major in a huge school. I know everyone in my department.

I am graduating with a "useless" degree in hearing and speech sciences and will need my masters in speech language pathology to make the difference in the world that I see myself making. I am looking at UMASS at Amhearst as my top choice for grad school although their standards and ranking is way up there.

I take the GRE's tomorrow at 8am (the SAT's for grad school). They will (partially) decide my fate and how much money I receive from a grad school. I need lots and lots of prayers and PD.

deleted by me.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I'm glad to hear of others who also enjoyed the UMass experience! The Happy Valley is a unique place in the world! I hope you enjoy your time at UMass. Be certain to enjoy a burrito for me at La Veracruzana in Noho...oh, and a beer at the TOC lounge (if it's still there).

 

[MrsPete]

Whether or not a college experience is "worth it" involves far more than just money. Some people don't understand that college is about more than money.

I agree that college is more than four years of career preparation; however, we also have to live in the real world. The folks who collect student loan payments expect real cash, and they're not too interested in the student's enlightenment. I think we must look at a college degree in both ways: education is worthwhile as a goal in and of itself, but it also needs to be valuable in a pay-the-bills manner.

 

[canwegosoon]

First of all I want to start out saying how impressed I am with everyone's life histories here. I am so suprised to find out what some of you do and what your degrees are in.

Second, for those that continue their learing through non-tradition means, just keep going. My dad who is 70 yrs old is trying to finish a degree in Business (he went to 3 colleges, and keep getting side tracked..the war, family, and business). So you never know

As for me:
BA: Pyschology(minor math, 20 years ago)- Owned a hotel and volunteered 10 years on an ambulance squad. Was also first person in my family (mother/fater's sides) to graduate from college. Also took realestate course and started my own realestate investment company. Got out of the hotel business, moved, had twins 8 years ago and have stayed home most of the time, taking odd jobs at night to help finances.

BA: Marketing/MGT/Education(5yrs ago)- Taught 1/2 year and paid for my course work, now I sub, and looking to do a MA in Literacy. I have used my teaching knowledge every day. I volunteer a lot, and people are very suprised at how organized everything is, and how I have a (lesson)plan and schedule for everything. . I love it, but really want to focus on tutoring and students with reading issues. I still continue with realestate investments and home rentals. (funny how that realestate course really paid for it's self)

 

[rjthkids]

While you didn't put down UMass, there was an implication that where you went was better for you. Maybe it was, but many of us who went to UMass felt that we got the best deal.

But it's true, and not just an implication. I didn't want to go to UMASS Amherst. I had no interest in the UMass system. I knew plenty of people who went there, I was accepted and could have gone for free, UMASS was not what I wanted in a college experience. I got the perfect college experience and just what I wanted right where I went. Not every college is perfect for every student. I am glad when I hear other people who went to UMass say it was the best college experience they feel they could have gotten. That means that you went to the perfect school for you! That is why there is a myriad of college choices.

The value of a college education is so intangible and unmeasurable. It is also very personal. It is just impossible to say one school is better than another or that a cheaper school is better or worse than a more expensive school. It isn't that simple, as rjhkids so eloquently explained.

This is exactly what I was trying to say. Saying I didn't want to go to UMass Amherst is not a slight on anyone who went there and loved it. Nor is it a slight on anyone who chose to go to Harvard that I didn't want to go there either. A cheaper school is no better or worse than a more expensive school, or a large school better or worse than a small school, depending upon what you want out of a college experience. I think the important thing is for people to go into college having a good enough knowledge of themselves to know what would be the best fit for their personality, their talents, their passions, interests, desires, etc. etc. While yes, we live in a "real world" and our loan holders expect "real money" in return, there are a myriad of ways to make college financially feasible and unless money is the most important factor for someone going to college (and for some people it is) then I always encourage people to look for creative ways to fund their college education. 90% of my college education was paid for through scholarship...I traveled to West Africa for a little over a year and didn't pay a dime for it, not even air fare. I was blessed to go to a school with a large endowment and I benefited from that. Expensive schools does not automatically have to equate expensive-to-attend.

 

[DisneyGirl]

I have a B.S. from a "cheap" public school, and a J.D. from an "expensive" private school. There is absolutely no way I will pay for my children to go to a similar private school over a public school for undergrad (Harvard and Yale excepted, and if they want to pay for it themselves, that's fine).

If I had gotten my undergrad from the school I got my J.D. from, it wouldn't be worth half what my undergrad is in the field. I see people who have degrees from local community-type four year schools, all the way up to Harvard and Yale, all working in the same field and job, with the same salaries. My observation is it has no bearing on where you went to school; everything comes down to your personality, "technical" skills, communication skills, and primarily (in my opinion) the ability to work well with others in a team environment to provide the best product for the client/customer.

Oh, and I still use both of my degrees

 

[mill4023]

Well, I spent about 10 years going to school full-time/part-time, off and on and ended up with a BS in General Science. The only jobs that seemed to qualify me for were sales jobs, which is definitely not me.
So the next year, I went back to school, spent 2 years, and got my Computer Science degree in 2001. I've been a software developer since then, so yeah, I'm still using my degree. Who knows if I'll still be doing the same thing 5 years from now. I am not particularly enjoying my job right now, but I think that has to do more with the employer than the field.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I agree with much of what has been said here, I just didn't want anyone to think that public schools aren't as good. I think, to quote what many of my professors said, "A college education is what you make of it. You get out of it what you put into it." You have to find a school where you feel you can make a valuable contribution; that's an important process.
I will also stand up for trade schools. They work very well. The real reason local (and national) politicians put them down is because they cost more per student. So called "college track" education is actually less expensive per student, but that doesn't mean that their output is any less important. Indeed, it is an element of our edcation system that is sorely lacking these days, an element that faces further erosion under the NCLB Act.
In my high school, I know that assumptions about who I was helped me along the way. At UMass, there were no assumptions. I had to prove who I was. It was scary at first, but later refreshing, and a great preparation for the real world. That should be one of the objectives of any school.

I feel strongly that any education is something that is useful, and something that gets used, in a way. If you never use calculus again, the fact that you exercised your brain to understand it is something that will benefit you. Continuing your education in any fashion is exercising your mind. Perhaps the people who change career paths are the ones who are using their education the most (instead of those who keep doing the same thing year after year.)

Last, anyone who becomes an active parent is using their education. If you go straight from college to being a stay at home parent, then you are still getting something from that education. One of the most important indicators in a society is its percentage of educated women, even where few women are employed outside the home. Educated women make educated mothers (and the same is true for educated fathers), thus creating more productive offspring.

 

[grumpymakesmehappy]

I have a BA in History with a double minor in Geography and International Studies. As soon as I graduated, I went to work for my parents in their turfgrass business as a sales rep. We're farmers and proud of it!!!!

 

[MyGoofy26]

I've been going to school off and on for a number of years. I've had to take the occasional semester off or just go part time since I'm paying for my education myself. Even with student loans, I can't always make ends meet so I have to take time off to get my finances in order before going back. It's been a loooong ride, but I'm finally almost finished.

In December I'll have my BA in Communication Studies, and in May I'll have my BA in English with a certification in Professional Writing and a minor in Entrepreneurship. Supposedly the job market is looking good for grads with degrees in liberal arts, they're quickly becoming the most desired of graduates because of the adaptibility of the degrees. . . I have my fingers crossed!