Should I get my GED rather than finish high school?
More than 40% of people who drop out of high school do it because they think the GED will be easier. The GED looks like a shortcut. And in a way, it is. In a 7.5 hour test you earn the academic equivalent of a high school diploma, which requires 1,080 hours of school per year.The academic standards required to pass the GED are higher than the standards required to pass high school (The GED Testing Service tests a sample of graduating seniors to confirm this). Still, whatever your reasons for dropping out of high school, passing the GED test can only provide the academic equivalent credentials.If you want to earn a GED so you can get into a four-year college later, keep in mind that college involves many hours of listening to lectures, participating in discussions, doing homework, presenting projects, and other school-related activities you can’t simulate in a 7.5 hour test. The GED Testing Service says that over 60% of recent GED recipients are currently enrolled in college. But having a GED instead of a high school diploma could affect how competitive your application is.A high school diploma can demonstrate several important qualities a GED can’t, such as:Commitment/perseveranceWork ethicSocial skillsHigh school is hardly the only place you learn these skills, but if you have a GED, you may have to draw on other experiences (such as volunteer work or a job) to demonstrate these qualities. A great application essay or interview becomes extra important.Still, the GED Testing Service claims that over 97% of colleges and employers accept a GED. So while dropping out to get a GED may not be a better option than finishing high school, it’s still certainly an option.I would recommend you carefully consider your reasons for dropping out and think about what those reasons might communicate to future employers or college admissions offices. If you want to get a GED because you think it will be easier, you’re perpetuating a stigma that GED recipients have to overcome.Starting college early could give you a leg up on “fixing your grades,” but if you never graduate high school and want to go on to a four-year college, you may have to fix more than your grades.
Is it a bad idea to take a semester off of college to figure out what i want to do with my life?
Getting through college isn't a race. if you feel like you need some time off, go ahead. It is better to finish school later with the required classes (and smaller bill) than to waste time and money on classes you may not end up needing. Remember to enjoy life, you only get one!
Do school grades determine your future?
Ok a couple things to address here so I'll bulletpoint it. 1. Don't EVER feel ashamed of being smart. As a fellow smartypants in middle school (all A's since like 3rd grade) I know that kids get mad over getting lower grades, but thats just how kids are. I faced the same thing, and eventually either you'll get used to it or your classmates will. Hell me and my friends used to joke around with it, and I became the "smart" kid stereotype of the class, one I embraced and therefore took away the power for kids to make fun of me for it. 2. You are WAY young to be thinking about college. Once you get to Freshman year of high school, that's when you should start to think, not worry though, about colleges. Junior year is when you really start to worry about college. 3. Frankly, being hardworking is worth 10x more than being smart in my opinion. I know I'm a smart kid, but frankly I'm pretty lazy and was able to get great grades all up til high school, and then when I actually had to start to study and work more, I stuggled a bit in the beginning. You, on the other hand, have the determination and habits already down to fly through your school years. I think you'll do very well in school, hell, you'll do well in life if you're determined. 4. Don't worry too much about time especially in middle school. This is one of those things that just happens to get better and better as you grow older and smarter. Trust me.
Bachelor's degree useless?
I just finished a 4-year degree in engineering, AND have military experience as an aerospace mechanic, AND live in Conecticut - a hub of the aerospace manufacturing industry (think Pratt & Whitney, Sikorsky, Hamilton Sundstrand, Lockheed Martin in MA, Northrop Grumman in NY, and many others). Despite it all, after 5 months I've received a meager number of calls. This is a slap across the face, a big middle finger, a 'shove it up the ***' remark - not from the aerospace industry, or from any industry, but from a system that encourages you to sacrifice a substantial portion of your life and finances under deluded pretenses. Who benefits? Not me or those like me who are qualified and need a job; and not the industry, which is saturated with interested applicants (although sure, they can afford to lower the salary, but considering we're among the highest paid in the world, that is not a concern). It is the financial industry who benefits, and it is the academic industry who benefits - and yes, academia IS an industry, and many universities are wealthier than defacto corporations, while at the same time drawing federal, state, and corporate support. We're brought up believing there is a world of opportunities out there for us - if ONLY we'll spend a minimum of four years racking up a big debt which benefits only the universities and colleges and financial corporations. But when we're done, we understand: there is no world of opportunities like we thought, and the jobs available to us are barely different from those that would've been available to us had we spent these four years working as a technician somewhere. My message is this: Bachelor's degrees are largely useless, unless they come with 'connections' which get the privileged classes hired to privileged positions. These degrees, and the 'value of an education' comes across, to me, as a means of assimilating us into the prevalent social hierarchy of the privileged white collars and the struggling blue-collars, while creating the illusion that we too can succeed if we try. And while they're at it, 'the value of an education' has become nothing but a gimmick through which big-name and small-name universities, colleges, and trade schools exploit the struggling masses to turn a profit without providing the expressed service of providing a better life for the exploited. Who agrees?
Why do people go back to school for a second bachelor's degree?
To begin a new career. The popular myth that a bachelor’s degree in one field (ie BA in any Liberal Arts or Humanities) will qualify you for a Master’s degree in EVERY OTHER FIELD no matter how radically different it may be (ie nursing, computer science, or electrical engineering) is exactly that: a myth. The fact is that while you can get a Master’s in a different field than your Bachelor’s (like English to Business Management), it often not the case in a science, health, mathematics and engineering. You will need to either a) start with a second bachelor’s or b) take prerequisites classes, pass the GRE or GMAT and hope your GPA is high enough so a University will accept you into their program. Route b) will often take 4 years to complete (adjusting for Pre-Reqs, tests, applications and Masters), while route a) will perhaps take less time if your second college accepts all the credits from your previous degree (mine’s did, but some will not accept all of them) and less money. It usually sucks, but hey: if you struck out with the first degree and you want to get into a field that is in HIGH DEMAND and PAYS A DECENT SALARY then it needs to be done.
How do I get into college if I didn't graduate high school?
I made some mistakes earlier in my life, and now I'm trying to get my life together. People are trying to get me to go to college, but they don't realize I haven't graduated high school. I want to take up computer science, but I don't know if any college will accept me since I didn't graduate high school.