University/College Problems

Bologo

Bologo

Have fun with birds and bees.
is a Contributor Alumnus
Hi Smogon. I'm posting this thread because I know a lot of people in here are in university/college and I want us all to be able to discuss our problems with it so we can help each other out.

--

I'm gonna cut right to the chase (and I'm sorry if this sounds like a rant of some sort). I'm in my third year of university, and ever since last year, I've hated it...a lot. I'm actually only doing second year courses right now because of how bad last year was (I failed 3 courses last year...). I didn't used to hate it, at least not in my first year.

Basically, I went into university with the intention of becoming a math teacher and maybe a science teacher as well. But last year, for the first time in a long time, I started challenging my career choice, because quite frankly, after thinking about it, I'm not sure I'd be a great teacher. I don't want to be one of those teachers who doesn't know what they're doing. That, and I'm incredibly unmotivated about all the volunteering needed to get into teacher's college, which is kind of important. But yeah, after that, and the combination of making no friends at all in that year, I lost pretty much all my motivation for university.

I tried switching programs for a semester to try and salvage the teaching thing. I thought that maybe trying out two different subjects to teach would be a breath of fresh air. Unfortunately, I ended up doing MUCH worse that semester to the point where OSAP basically said that they're paying for these courses, and I'm failing them, so they're going to put me on probation.

This year, I thought I'd give university one last try with the program I started off with (math/chemistry), since I did alright with this in my first year. Needless to say, it hasn't started off well, and I'm pretty much screwed if I fail anything this year. I haven't really skipped class at all this year, which is an improvement over last year, but it's not really helping. I still get absolutely nothing out of any of my classes, and all of the work makes me really angry because I feel like I'm basically working towards a degree that won't get me anywhere besides teaching, which I barely even want to do anymore.

So yesterday, I decided to go and ask someone in the office of undergraduate studies what I should do, and I explained the story to them. They suggested looking at some career choices on those career search websites. I'd never really looked at these sites before, but I figured I might as well give it a try.

Basically, I actually found a couple of careers I'm quite interested in, and the training for them is all offered at Algonquin College, which is still in Ottawa. I know college training gets you lower pay than university training, but I only really want a career for the rewarding feeling, and not necessarily a massive paycheck. So I'm thinking of dropping out of University and applying for College instead, since it seems to have careers that I like a lot more, and the programs are shorter and cheaper, which is nice for someone who hates school. Hell, with the rate I'm going in university, I have at least 3 years left if everything goes well, which I'm not counting on. The college programs are mostly 1-3 years though, which means I might actually finish earlier than if I were to stay in university.

The problem with this is that I'd have to not only pay for my rent and my tuition, but because I'd be leaving university, I'd have to pay OSAP money every month. Plus, I honestly feel like I wasted the last 2.5 years of my life because if I leave, it'll mean that nothing came out of it at all...That, and I'm just hoping my parents won't be mad because I already did a program switch before and it didn't work. I don't imagine they'd be mad since they'd rather that I'd do things I enjoy (and therefore wouldn't fail). It's still something to take into account though.

I'm thinking that I might just try and get through this semester of university before making my final decision though...because I don't want something stupid to happen where I end up not being in school at all.

--

Anyway, sorry that was so long. I'd appreciate any advice on my dilemma, but I'd also like you guys/gals to post anything that's bugging you about university or college. Whatever it is, there's probably at least one other person in the same situation since a lot of us are around that age. :]
 
I know it might sound cliche but negative experiences are still experiences - you might have spent 2.5 years of your life doing something you don't really enjoy, but at least you know you don't really like it that much, which is much better than if you were to realise that you hate your career choice after spending several years working, thinking it'd get better eventually.

If you aren't happy with your course choice, then I would recommend switching it again. There's little point in learning something you're not planning to utilize later on, so you might as well switch courses, if you're sure don't enjoy it and can cope with the financial repercussions.
 
Well, I actually ended up dropping all my courses today because tomorrow's the last day to get 100% financial compensation when you drop a course (and when that means getting >$3000 back, I figure there's no point in wasting my time). My parents were actually really understanding, so I was really happy about that.

Dealing with OSAP is going to be a pain though, but at least I won't be on probation with them anymore so hopefully they'll still fund me when I go to Algonquin college.

I admit that I did feel kind of bad basically getting rid of a year's worth of courses in just two clicks though. But it's all for the best.
 
Just got a new roommate who is black AND against drugs. fuck
 
You should switch (again) and pursue what you feel you may like better... trust me on this one, been there and now i'm full of regrets :/

Edit: i'm glad you did =)
 
Faint said:
Problem: $$$

But all middle class white families are fucked by financial aid.
Click to expand...

Is that actually true? I didn't know they went that in-depth with their searches to even look at stuff like race.
 
hmm.. you're in quite a dilemma, honestly I suggest cutting your losses with teaching and pursuing a different career. If you continue with this teaching job, it will only get worse and you may end up regretting this opportunity later. Teaching isn't all that great anyways, it's a daily chore and the pay is relatively low unless you're a university proffesor. I suggest taking some time off and thinking over things, it's your choice to continue this semester but after that take a gap year, clear your head and come back when you're rested and your mindset resolved.
 
Bologo said:
Is that actually true? I didn't know they went that in-depth with their searches to even look at stuff like race.
Click to expand...
He was joking, but they care about income and then there are various scholarships for people of certain races (namely blacks and Hispanics). That basically means whites and asians don't get anything extra, and financial aid for the middle class is pretty low without it.
 
Bologo is Canadian so that type of bullshit won't really apply to him. The college will likely cost you less in tuition than your university. 2.5 years is nothing in the grand scheme of things. You were going to be unhappy for a long time if you stuck on your current path.

And yeah, in MrE's boat but with the added issue of most of the jobs I'm interested in being over the border and lol work visas.
 
Anyways, Bologo, I would normally advise students who want to drop out to wait a semester or two; usually it's that they can't cope with the schoolwork to an extent or don't exactly know what they want to do, in which I advise to take a a lesser courseload with some variety thrown in for direction. You however have already kind of taken that route, that university probably isn't for you and college is where your heart is. If you're truly set on that career, I would definitely make that call and get out. My friend spent two years and a bit at the U of Vic doing computer science courses and dropped the hell out when he realised he wasn't very interested in what he was doing; he's now at BCIT studying something what he wants. Just my two cents
 
I have been in a similar boat myself during my first two years as an undergraduate student. I entered into a Computer Science program that was considered to be one of the very best in the country and did fairly well at first. However like you I started to lose motivation at some point through the program (and I hated staying up until 3 AM to fix a segfault for a homework assignment) and even failed two classes. At the time I originally thought it was just because I was finding the work too difficult, but in reality I was just losing interest. I later took a severe weather class as an elective and thought about switching over to Atmospheric Sciences. As it turns out, the instructor for the class was also the academic advisor for the program and was a very cool guy. I officially switched over in my third year, and was no longer really struggling with my coursework. However even that wasn't enough, as classes alone cover a broad range of material and can be pretty dull. So my advisor recommended that I should get involved in something related to my field outside of class (This is something I didn't really do in Computer Science).

To that end, I chose to get involved in academic research, specifically in the realm of global warming and climate change, which I felt was an important and interesting topic to study despite what some conservatives might tell you otherwise. Through this I developed a good relationship with one of my professors and was able to devote my time to something that was truly interesting to me. Not only was the fundamental science of climate change relatively fascinating to me, but also the actual process of conducting the actual research. Any of you who wish to get involved in scientific research, take note: Knowing how to write code is a very useful skill to have! Ironically enough, this turned out to be yet another reason I have come to enjoy doing research, as I have used my ability to write code for a more meaningful purpose. With all of this experience, I plan on continuing this through gradschool and eventually get a Ph.D.

So in a nutshell, regardless of what choice you make, the key is to get involved in something. Even if you end up doing so out of an obligation, you won't really know if you like it or not until you try it.
 
Don't worry about OSAP, I've been on probation for the last 2 years (dropped out too late 3 years ago and got all Fs) and they still approve me each time I apply. I just have to write some bs about how I changed and I'm a good boy now :)
 
Isn't this what a campus psychologist is for? O.o

EDIT: Okay so I realize that was a sort of close-minded statement. I neglected non-psychological/emotional problems, like work scheduling and whatnot. I'm actually not sure if I picked the right major. I'm doing game design, but there are no business courses in the major (I feel like there should be at least one), and there are no real academic subjects outside of math and cultural anthropology (which makes no sense to have, but whatever). So a lot of times I don't feel like I'm learning much, except some math and java coding. I'm not sure if I'm not really learning anything and my classes are too easy or if I'm just not used to not learning science/history and my vision of what academia should be is being challenged.
Does that make sense?
 
Hey dude, I'm actually from Ottawa and I know quite a few people who transferred to Algonquin College after their first year in university. Even though there are some stigmas about colleges in Canada, Algonquin is still a good school. It's no secret that you get a better education from university, but simply put, university isn't for everyone. Canadian colleges are still a good form of higher education because they let you focus in on a particular job market and develop specific skills. I would keep in mind though that a Bachelor's degree affords you more flexibility after you graduate, whereas you're pretty much confined to a really small set of jobs if you graduate with certificates from college. As long as you're comfortable with the field you're studying and can see yourself working in that field for the rest of your life (sounds daunting... I know), then things will work out just fine.

What you're going through / went through is completely normal. I'm in my second year at Queen's majoring in Math, and I'm constantly asking myself what I want to do with the rest of my life. The fact that you took a step back to reevaluate everything is actually something that's incredibly important, and a lot of people don't do this until it's too late (ie: they graduate and realize they don't want to be in their field of study). As long as you're making your decisions without being pressured by others and that you're fundamentally happy with these choices, then you have nothing to worry about! Good luck with everything, and I'm sure it'll all work out.

And yeah as ala mentioned don't worry about OSAP. It's a pretty lax system. Just do your best to avoid troubles like sending in your applications late or getting on probation.
 
I have a sort of similar problem. I kinda wasted 2 years of uni life by not knowing what career I should follow. I'm also current not in any university for this semester due to moving to a different state and was too late to apply. So its like I have wasted 2.5 years. I have decided to go with computer science but I don't really know if its something I should do. Classes aren't a problem for me since I a studious person(in fact I am devastated for not being in school this semester) but knowing what career I wanna do for the rest of my life is hard.
 
zacchaeus is sore that he isn't as privileged as he would have been if not for those darned liberals.

i've been at a pretentious american music school for the past two years. i started off with a dual degree in music performance and music business, with the usual plan of a 'dream' and 'fallback'. unfortunately, i didn't take the music business 1 class until just now (freshman aren't allowed, and it wasn't offered last semester) and i'm realizing that a) it blows; and b) it isn't nearly reliable enough to even be a backup plan. so now i've done a bunch of cognate classes in economics and accounting and it's clear that there's no way i'm going to complete a degree in music business.

my new plan is going to keep me year an extra year or so, but i think it's a good one: i'm going to do minors in music business and economics (i'm ~2 classes from each already) and i've declared another b.a. in computer science. cs is actually very interesting (and easy, for now...) and actually is a reliable way to get employed. this minimizes the classes i've wasted and still keeps me on track to be a musician or have an income.

it's unfortunate that i didn't make better use of my first year, but that's the way it goes.
 
Let me tell you how many theatre departments work.

You audition to get in, after months of auditioning and the department picks 140 of the students they think will be the best fit. Despite having sat in on these auditions I still have no idea the weight of marks versus the in person talk.

You get in as a general theatre studies and then at the end of first year you get to audition again to more specific streams. I decided long ago that I would not enjoy just being an actor so I set my hear on a sort of directing/collective creation degree. Essentially I am given one or two weeks to create a small piece based on a certain theatre form with my group. As an actor you can't really be creative and make your own work, which I didn't like.

I also tried to do a minor, which was a challenge unto itself, maybe for a second teachable subject if I decided to do that. But more because you need to focus on something else in your studies otherwise you go crazy. At first I wanted French, my placement test to get in didn't go as well and I was placed in the intermediate level. The sad truth is that public school just cannot prepare you the same level French immersion schools do, and the university degree starts at that level. Also the French minor is an extra course more than normal ones, and I was already considered a course behind. Did I mention that my collective creation classes and their related classes eat through your free choice credits? I felt I could never catch up, and I realized I didn't want to seriously study French. If I want to go to France or Quebec if I brush up a bit on my language I'll be fine, and that was what I really wanted. With fulfilling my general requirements I also took a political science class which I really enjoyed, so now I'm a poli sci minor.

I've also been lucky enough to take summer courses to help ease off course loads during the school year for rehearsals. In two summers I took 2 full year courses (1.5 first summer, and .5 the next with a summer job). If you can afford it do it, summer courses are the best, the campus feels empty and warm and since it's condensed you aren't struggling to remember readings from 4 months ago.
 
im a failure at college (much like HS, but its hard to fail HS) and im droppin out again at the end of this trimester in 3 weeks.

im basically my close family's biggest disgrace and i dunno what the fuck ill do.

oh and ive switched careers once already too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top