I'm moving to London in September to study Media and Communications at Goldsmiths College.

It's like 3 hours train ride away from home and tbh, I can't ****ing wait to get out of here.

I'm taking a gap year because I have no clue what to do (and my grades will probably be mediocre, so I can retake them). I don't want to waste time and money on a subject that I'll get bored of quick or one that takes me nowhere. I'm a mess.

When I was in college I went to a local community college for the first two years. Big tip for those living in California: if you qualify for the Board of Governors' waiver, tuition at community college is $1. You automatically apply for the waiver when you do your FAFSA. Even if you live outside of CA or don't qualify for the waiver, community college is way cheaper than university. You'll be taking the same exact classes as you would at university (and 90% of the credits should transfer). There's really no downside to community college except perhaps missing out on the first two years of university experience. But in all reality, is that worth thousands of extra dollars in tuition and rent every semester?

University is very expensive no matter where you go. I was paying $15,000 to $20,000 a year in tuition, rent and school supplies and I got off fairly lucky. Another good thing about community college is you can save your financial aid money. My first year of college was basically paid from the money I hoarded from my extra financial aid.

I got a Bachelor's of Science in Computer Information Systems and a minor in Japanese just a few months ago. Looking back on it, I kind of wish that I had gone for Computer Science. I was intimidated by all the programming and mathematics involved in that major but now that I'm studying those subjects independently, I love the challenge.

College was a really great experience for me. I met so many of my close friends, learned a lot, and got to really experience LA, my favorite city on Earth. God willing, I'll be moving back at the end of the year.

Not so great: student loans. I'm strapped with about $11,000 worth right now, which is about half the average. Job prospects are also kind of crappy right now, about 50% of college grads are working in jobs below their skill level, that number goes even higher is you only include recent grads.

Did you go away for University? No.
Was it expensive? Yes.
what did they study? Huh?
what to expect at University? I honestly don't know. High School >

I advice to go to a 2 year community college and earn a transferable associate degree in arts or science. Then transfer to a 4 year university.

Advantages to doing this include 1) saving tuition cost 2) closer to family and support if going to local community college 3) trial and error with classes and deciding what field/major you want to study 4) credits/courses transfer and grades do not, helpful if you did not so great your first 2 year, not helpful if you did extremely well.

Disadvantages include 1) unless you enter community colleges with agreements with other universities, transferring won't be easy 2) re-settling to a new institution/environment again 3) universities often far away from family and friends

Also for those who do not want to do the community college route then here's another option to save on college tuition and to lower student loans (for those without financial aid or "family aid"):

Enroll into a 4 year university immediately after school but take a half to full load of credits in the summer at community college(s). Again like I mentioned before, credits and courses transfer but grades do not so you need "C" marks to transfer from community college to your university. Doing this is great to knock out your General Education courses out of the way earlier and hopefully graduating in 3 years to continue onto graduate school or working.

Advantages to doing this: many people have trouble transferring from community colleges to universities if those universities are selective with transfers.

I visited the college I'm going to today, and it's just solidified my belief that I made the right choice.
So pumped for two months.

GoodT Choice.

In Canada at least, University is reserved for "better" professions, so like, people studying to be doctors would go to a University, while people studying to be a chef or a technician typically go to college.

This isn't ALWAYS the case, but you definitely can't go to college to be a lawyer or a doctor here. But some of the "college professions" can sometimes be studied in University.

This thread needs to be more on and poppin.

Are any of y'all rushing?
I'm staying in a private dorm right beside the frat houses and across the street from the sorority houses, so I don't know if I'll get enough of the Greek life as is, but I know a lot of my friends are so I'm torn.
Have any of y'all gone to orientation?
When do y'all move in?

So many questions girls.

I just finished my freshman year of college. I recommend staying in your home state, that's what I did. It's about a 1 1/2 hour commute, so I live on campus. It's great. You meet so many new people and make friends quick. Don't worry about choosing a major because you have time to decide. It can be dramatic like high school at times if you let it be. Just don't let "those" types of people into your head and do your own thing. It's a big year of transformation. You become an independent, confident adult but you also have more fun than ever before.

I go to Penn State and I love it, but the only thing is the cost 12000 a semester is a lot but I guess in the end it's worth it