Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges • Hacker News Board

Re: Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges

#21

Post by ourmandave » Sun, Apr 08, 2018, 1:10 PM UTC

CuriouslyC wrote: post #16

I went to a community college and transferred to a prestigious public university. In my experience, if you find a good community college, the high volume classes tend to be better than they are at a big school. There are usually less than 50 students (vs up to 400), the teachers actually enjoy teaching, and the material is easy enough that the teachers understand it just as well as top tier professors. Honestly, Cali…

All the CCs in my area have direct transfer agreements with their state universities and some private colleges.

For state uni's they have a two year plan where all the credits transfer and you start as a junior.

A lot of the out-of-state uni's also list courses on their websites that will directly transfer so you can check if you're planning to attend later.

Re: Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges

#22

Post by Dowwie » Sun, Apr 08, 2018, 1:12 PM UTC

MOOCs have been developing en masse for the last 6-7 years. What, aside from the obvious associates degree at completion and an accelerated pathway to a bachelors degree from a 4-year program, does community college provide that MOOC micro-programs do not? It seems reasonable to assume that MOOC service providers are establishing pathways to undergraduate programs just as community colleges do. Are the value gaps narrowing?

Re: Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges

#23

Post by _m8fo » Sun, Apr 08, 2018, 1:16 PM UTC

Dowwie wrote: post #22

MOOCs have been developing en masse for the last 6-7 years. What, aside from the obvious associates degree at completion and an accelerated pathway to a bachelors degree from a 4-year program, does community college provide that MOOC micro-programs do not? It seems reasonable to assume that MOOC service providers are establishing pathways to undergraduate programs just as community colleges do. Are the value gaps nar…

Which MOOCs give you credit that transfer to a 4 year university?

Re: Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges

#24

Post by arenaninja » Sun, Apr 08, 2018, 1:16 PM UTC

For me community college was the pathway to the middle class. I went to several community colleges in the Los Angeles area (due to affordability, proximity, availability of classes) and then transferred to the UC system. I had 0 support besides the Cal Grant/Pell grant and my part time job

My kids will be strongly urged to go to community college, and I recommend it to everyone I'm close to. I may have missed out on college friendships, but I moved away after college anyway. I had about $13k loan debt at the end of 4 years, and I paid that off 2 years later even though it took me 9 months to land a job (because I didn't study CS and went for web development)

Re: Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges

#25

Post by paulie_a » Sun, Apr 08, 2018, 1:19 PM UTC

CuriouslyC wrote: post #16

I went to a community college and transferred to a prestigious public university. In my experience, if you find a good community college, the high volume classes tend to be better than they are at a big school. There are usually less than 50 students (vs up to 400), the teachers actually enjoy teaching, and the material is easy enough that the teachers understand it just as well as top tier professors. Honestly, Cali…

In Wisconsin you could transfer all classes from the two year schools to the 4 year schools and the pricing was definitely much better. I don't know for sure if that is still the case though. But it also had the advantage of being taught by the actual professor and not some TA.

When I transferred to a private school I was a bit older so they really gave some leeway in how they transferrey credits. I am guessing they would not have done the same for a 19 year old though

Re: Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges

#26

Post by sokoloff » Sun, Apr 08, 2018, 1:19 PM UTC

swiley wrote: post #13

If you go to a four year university with no credits at all and you're not getting a full ride, you're doing it wrong.

While I support other choices, I went to MIT all years without a full scholarship and would absolutely do it that way again.

Re: Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges

#27

Post by bitxbitxbitcoin » Sun, Apr 08, 2018, 1:24 PM UTC

CuriouslyC wrote: post #16

I went to a community college and transferred to a prestigious public university. In my experience, if you find a good community college, the high volume classes tend to be better than they are at a big school. There are usually less than 50 students (vs up to 400), the teachers actually enjoy teaching, and the material is easy enough that the teachers understand it just as well as top tier professors. Honestly, Cali…

I would recommend this path in Virginia, as well.

Re: Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges

#28

Post by seanmcdirmid » Sun, Apr 08, 2018, 1:25 PM UTC

CuriouslyC wrote: post #16

I went to a community college and transferred to a prestigious public university. In my experience, if you find a good community college, the high volume classes tend to be better than they are at a big school. There are usually less than 50 students (vs up to 400), the teachers actually enjoy teaching, and the material is easy enough that the teachers understand it just as well as top tier professors. Honestly, Cali…

Washington state has this property also (good CCs, transfer priority, curriculum designed for transferring). They’ve been renaming many of the CCs as colleges recently, but the same still holds.

Re: Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges

#29

Post by seanmcdirmid » Sun, Apr 08, 2018, 1:28 PM UTC

sokoloff wrote: post #26

swiley wrote: post #13

If you go to a four year university with no credits at all and you're not getting a full ride, you're doing it wrong.

While I support other choices, I went to MIT all years without a full scholarship and would absolutely do it that way again.

Ya. I did the same and would do the same again at UW. I have nothing against the CC approach, but there are many valid approaches.

Re: Middle-Class Families Increasingly Look to Community Colleges

#30

Post by maxerickson » Sun, Apr 08, 2018, 1:30 PM UTC

CuriouslyC wrote: post #16

I went to a community college and transferred to a prestigious public university. In my experience, if you find a good community college, the high volume classes tend to be better than they are at a big school. There are usually less than 50 students (vs up to 400), the teachers actually enjoy teaching, and the material is easy enough that the teachers understand it just as well as top tier professors. Honestly, Cali…

Every community college system will seek to make their credits as transferable as possible, it makes the schools vastly more attractive.

The 4 year places generally impose limits on how many credits they will recognize from a transfer, for the obvious reasons, they want their cut and they don't want to be a rubber stamp for some other program.