Question (sorry, related thread #6 on the topic)

[kylara]

I am going to give you my feedback. I spent over 7 years working at community colleges in Florida. Since I worked in student affairs, I know about the admission standards for the Universities.

My suggestion would be to do your first two years at a Florida Community College. The articulation agreement is that if you graduate with an AA from a community college in FL, you will get accepted to one of the ten state universities (note, that doesn't mean you will get into your first choice or the program that you prefer at the college).

Also, going to the community college will give you smaller classes. You will not have freshman classses of over 100 students as you would at the Universities. If you go to Valencia, I would suggest you take the Student Success class...it is a study and life skills class that prepares the students for the college career.

If your choices are UCF or UF, I can tell you for a fact, you will not get accepted with a 2.0 GPA. Both of these colleges have many more applicants than they have space.

As for getting an AS degree, check with whatever community college you might attend, there are some AS or AAS degrees that have articulation agreements with a particular University to help students with AS degrees go on for further education. AS degrees are not bad, the typical graduate actually makes more with an AS degree than an Bachelors in the begining years of their career. However, over time, if the AS graduate earning potential and advancement slows and falls behind if they haven't gotten any further education beyond the AS degree. Many AS students get the AS, then go back to the community college part time as they work to finish up an AA. This way they can work and continue on for a Bachelors part time and keep themselves in the running.

Also going to a community college will give you some time to decide what you want to major in and get some extra curricular experiences under your belt.

If you have any questions regarding the community college or Universities in FL, feel free to ask, and I will try and answer them.

 

[Tracey1974]

I am going to give you my feedback. I spent over 7 years working at community colleges in Florida. Since I worked in student affairs, I know about the admission standards for the Universities.

My suggestion would be to do your first two years at a Florida Community College. The articulation agreement is that if you graduate with an AA from a community college in FL, you will get accepted to one of the ten state universities (note, that doesn't mean you will get into your first choice or the program that you prefer at the college).

Also, going to the community college will give you smaller classes. You will not have freshman classses of over 100 students as you would at the Universities. If you go to Valencia, I would suggest you take the Student Success class...it is a study and life skills class that prepares the students for the college career.

If your choices are UCF or UF, I can tell you for a fact, you will not get accepted with a 2.0 GPA. Both of these colleges have many more applicants than they have space.

As for getting an AS degree, check with whatever community college you might attend, there are some AS or AAS degrees that have articulation agreements with a particular University to help students with AS degrees go on for further education. AS degrees are not bad, the typical graduate actually makes more with an AS degree than an Bachelors in the begining years of their career. However, over time, if the AS graduate earning potential and advancement slows and falls behind if they haven't gotten any further education beyond the AS degree. Many AS students get the AS, then go back to the community college part time as they work to finish up an AA. This way they can work and continue on for a Bachelors part time and keep themselves in the running.

Also going to a community college will give you some time to decide what you want to major in and get some extra curricular experiences under your belt.

If you have any questions regarding the community college or Universities in FL, feel free to ask, and I will try and answer them.

Excellent advice!

 

[golfgal]

And by the way - the guidance counselor - I'm so nervous about seeing her, because this embarasses me. I know I'm smart enough to have a 3.5 or even 4.0 . I'm so frustrated! I can try and try and try and even with all that effort, I'll have a 2.2-2.7 or something.

Also, I probably will delay Driver's Ed until next year because I'm trying to raise grades, it might be a good idea to forget about driving for now, since that will just be something else to worry about.

Perhaps I should just follow what I obviously like to do - hairstyling. This is so embarassing, but i have my mom buy me cheap dollarstore Barbies and I practice haircutting on them. Well, at least it's some form of practice. But I never get bored playing or styling their hair, and hairstylists don't earn a huge base pay, but in a resort, spa area like Orlando, the tips could be HUGE.

I would disagree that the tips at a resort will be 'huge'. People don't spend money on vacations on hairstyles, etc. You are better off getting into a nice salon that caters to the locals. Hairstylists at a nice salon can make pretty good money if they are good at what they do. You don't want to work for a place like Cost Cutters though and to get into a good salon you have to go to a good school so it is important to get those grades up for that as well.

Since you are young I am going to give you some latitude with your attitude but frankly, I think you have a lot more work to do then you think. Your grades are horrible and if you really are getting A's and B's in all your classes except 2, you can't have a 2.0, it would be higher then that. You REALLY need to meet with the counselor, embarrassing or not, and get on the right track. From the tone of your posts I think your biggest problem is that you sound lazy, sorry. You want the grades but you don't want to work for them. It isn't unusual to have 3-4 hours of homework each night and having maybe an hour tells me you aren't doing all you can be doing.

If you are really struggling in math, working your hardest, paying attention in class, asking questions when you don't understand something and you are still failing, you need a tutor. You are going to have to take math in college no matter where you go and if you don't get the basics down now, you aren't going to pass math in college.

Another possibility is that you have a learning disability of some sort. A counselor will be able to help you discover if that is the case or not.

Get an appointment with the counselor and they will help you get to where you want to go.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Your grades are horrible and if you really are getting A's and B's in all your classes except 2, you can't have a 2.0, it would be higher then that.

Dang it...I missed that!!!

So fess up OP. Can't have a 2.0 with the grades you are describing.

 

[kdm31091]

Since you are young I am going to give you some latitude with your attitude but frankly, I think you have a lot more work to do then you think. Your grades are horrible and if you really are getting A's and B's in all your classes except 2, you can't have a 2.0, it would be higher then that. You REALLY need to meet with the counselor, embarrassing or not, and get on the right track. From the tone of your posts I think your biggest problem is that you sound lazy, sorry. You want the grades but you don't want to work for them. It isn't unusual to have 3-4 hours of homework each night and having maybe an hour tells me you aren't doing all you can be doing.

If you are really struggling in math, working your hardest, paying attention in class, asking questions when you don't understand something and you are still failing, you need a tutor. You are going to have to take math in college no matter where you go and if you don't get the basics down now, you aren't going to pass math in college.

just checked the school grades website. Right now:
Biology - B
Animal Science - A
Spanish - B
History - B
English- C
Math - F

Didn't list a GPA but I think it's not as bad as I thought.

I don't think you understand about homework. We don't GET "3-4 hours worth". I can complete every last scrap of homework within 30 minutes. We just don't get that much in my school. You might not believe it, but that's how it is. On the rare "busy" night it's 1 hour or 1.5 tops.

Who said I don't wanna work for them? I DO ALL MY WORK, it's the tests that usually screw me up in most classes. Ask any teacher - they'll say that all my homework is always done in full, all my classwork done, etc. I participate, I pay attention, I take notes, I highlight significant points. It's the tests. Studying is hard for me, no matter what kind of help I get.

As for math in college, well, there doesn't appear to be geometry on the course list. It's a lot of algebra. Algebra is my stronger area. I did get C's in that, at least, and I could comprehend most of it. Geometry is a mess though.

Anyways, not thinking college will be an issue since I want to go into hairstyling or cooking, neither of which are traditional college things. I hate to be an "advice waster" but for now I don't think I'm going to college anyway; I hope geometry isn't a feature of beauty school, LOL!

 

[golfgal]

just checked the school grades website. Right now:
Biology - B
Animal Science - A
Spanish - B
History - B
English- C
Math - F

Didn't list a GPA but I think it's not as bad as I thought.

I don't think you understand about homework. We don't GET "3-4 hours worth". I can complete every last scrap of homework within 30 minutes. We just don't get that much in my school. You might not believe it, but that's how it is. On the rare "busy" night it's 1 hour or 1.5 tops.

Who said I don't wanna work for them? I DO ALL MY WORK, it's the tests that usually screw me up in most classes. Ask any teacher - they'll say that all my homework is always done in full, all my classwork done, etc. I participate, I pay attention, I take notes, I highlight significant points. It's the tests. Studying is hard for me, no matter what kind of help I get.

As for math in college, well, there doesn't appear to be geometry on the course list. It's a lot of algebra. Algebra is my stronger area. I did get C's in that, at least, and I could comprehend most of it. Geometry is a mess though.

Anyways, not thinking college will be an issue since I want to go into hairstyling or cooking, neither of which are traditional college things. I hate to be an "advice waster" but for now I don't think I'm going to college anyway; I hope geometry isn't a feature of beauty school, LOL!

I "get" homework since I spent many years in school as a student AND as a high school teacher. It may only take you 1/2 hour to complete the 'problems' or 'questions' assigned but the part about the homework you are missing is the review of the material. Social Studies for example, go back and reread the chapter a couple times/week, then go over the sample questions in the back of the chapter and answer them, then check your answers and figure out what you got wrong and WHY.

For math, re-read every lesson, every night since you really struggle with math. Do ALL the sample problems, then check them. Go to the back of the book and there are usually supplemental problems for each section, do those. I think what would help you the most, however, would be a tutor. Talk to your math teacher, tell him/her that you just don't understand what is being taught and ask for help. He/She should point you in the right direction either before/after school help with the teacher or a list of students/tutors that can help.

The rest of your grades are fine and with those grades you can get into pretty much any state school and some private schools you may like IF you can get your math grade up to even a C--they want to see you are progressing.

Also, if you love to cut hair the that is what you should do. You almost seem ashamed of that as a career choice. My SIL is a stylist. She makes about $50/hour cutting hair-she has her own salon and very little overhead. There aren't a lot of people on this board that make $50/hour doing anything. She only works 3 nights/week now but when she was working full time was bringing in well over $50,000/year.

 

[kdm31091]

Also, if you love to cut hair the that is what you should do. You almost seem ashamed of that as a career choice. My SIL is a stylist. She makes about $50/hour cutting hair-she has her own salon and very little overhead. There aren't a lot of people on this board that make $50/hour doing anything. She only works 3 nights/week now but when she was working full time was bringing in well over $50,000/year.

AWESOME! But I figured an owner always has to be there? How is she only there 3x/week? That's such a great arrangement though!

 

[poohandwendy]

Also, if you love to cut hair the that is what you should do. You almost seem ashamed of that as a career choice. My SIL is a stylist. She makes about $50/hour cutting hair-she has her own salon and very little overhead. There aren't a lot of people on this board that make $50/hour doing anything. She only works 3 nights/week now but when she was working full time was bringing in well over $50,000/year.

I am not going to disagree that if he loves doing hair, maybe he should go that route. BUT, huge but here, just like anything else, in order to be successful you have to work your butt off.

This next part is not aimed at you golfgal, because I know you know it isn't simple. It's for the OP.

You don't just start a salon and the money pours in. I work in a salon (my best friend is the owner). My sister is also a stylist. It's imperative that you build a clientele somewhere before opening your own shop (unless you are independently wealthy and can afford to run a shop at a loss for a few years).

It takes several years to build a decent clientele, especially regulars who would be willing to follow you to a new location. Even the most loyal client is not going to follow you an hour away. You also have to consider that you wil, inevitably, lose some clients when you leave your current location. And you must begin with a salon that will not force you to sign a contract that you will not work within X miles away after leaving because you will lose your clients if you do (if you plans are to start your own business).

When you open a shop, you simply cannot be sick or miss work. Most of your clients are booked ahead and you should be booked almost solid or you will not be able to pay your bills. And when you are booked solid, where do you put people if you get sick and have to miss a day or two? You can and should have another stylist, BUT...not all of your clients will be willing to have that person do their hair and your stylist will be busy too, so how will she take your clients if you are sick?

There IS overhead with hair salons. retail products, color, perms, equipment, utilities, insurance, shampoos and other basic products, good hair cutting shears run several hundred dollars minimum, disinfectant products, dryers, sinks, an accountant, bookkeeping, keeping up with regulations, continuing education, licenses, regular advertisements ($$$). The list goes on and on and on.

Basically, it's a very competitive business and it takes BLOOD, SWEAT and TEARS and a whole lotta time to gain a good clientele and/or run a successful salon. Remember, 90% of your regular clients will come to you because they are attached to you personally. Your skill is important, but skill means nothing if you don't have the people skills for clients to want to spend an hour or two with you every few weeks. I have seen many hair stylists struggle because they just do not have the people skills necessary.

I am not trying to dissuade you at all. I am just touching on the basics, there is so much more involved it would make your head spin. Just be realistic. That $50k really could take a minimum of 5 -10 or more years before you have reached it. Also, if you start out when you are not living with your parents, it will take even longer to gain a full clientele because you will need another job to pay the rent, meaning you will not be able to devote the time necessary to gain a clientele. You can't just start in new hampshire and then relocate to florida later (unless you have someone to cover the bills for a few years). You need to start where you want to be the rest of your career.

If you go that route, get your cosmetology license and take it a step further and take business management classes and specifically salon management classes.

 

[golfgal]

My SIL has been a stylist for about 15 years. She went to the Horst school in Minneapolis and was one of their top students. She got a job at a top salon in the Minneapolis area and rapidly built up a loyal clientel. Over the years she has managed salons and taught at the school but she is now mostly a SAHM with a salon in her basement so she picks her hours. The only way she is so successful is because of the hours she put in building her clientel over the past 15 years. It is the same as any job you have to do the time at first to make yourself successful.

 

[poohandwendy]

My SIL has been a stylist for about 15 years. She went to the Horst school in Minneapolis and was one of their top students. She got a job at a top salon in the Minneapolis area and rapidly built up a loyal clientel. Over the years she has managed salons and taught at the school but she is now mostly a SAHM with a salon in her basement so she picks her hours. The only way she is so successful is because of the hours she put in building her clientel over the past 15 years. It is the same as any job you have to do the time at first to make yourself successful.

Exactly. That is what I was trying to emphasize, the work involved in becoming successful. You have to stand apart from the rest and really put alot of time and effort in.

In some states, you cannot have a home salon. That is another thing the OP should look into when researching this type of career.

 

[kdm31091]

Well, I can work for someone to begin with and see how I even like doing it. Then if I really love it, I'd go for my own saloon in a few years.

 

[budbeerlady]

I will admit to not doing so well in high school, I didnt know what I wanted to do and really didnt care much. I ended up at the local community college just to do something with myself, I loved it, I did well enough to be on the dean's list while I was there. I worked my bottom off, I worked part time to pay for school and I am very proud of my time there. After the 2yrs there I had no problem transferring to another college.

Take your time, I hate the idea that at 18 I had to know what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. What I do now has NOTHING to do with what I went to school for. Seriously, Natural Resources Managment isnt related to dealing with beer unless you really stretch it. I hated math, did poorly but now I do all variables of math constantly on my job.