I feel like more and more college students take their education and parent's money for granted. I go to two schools; a community college student by day, cosmetology student by night. I thought I had seen spoiled when I spent a day down at cosmetology school with all the day girls; but I'm actually relieved to report that it's not only cosmetology students.
I feel like students who really work in college are the ones who are working to put themselves through college. When parents put kids through college (for the most part) they don't appreciate their education as much. I watch and listen to kids talk about skipping class, not doing their homework, totally blowing off their finals!? What are their parent's paying for then? Failure is what they're paying for. The girls down at hair school spend all day at school, not even a handful of them have jobs, and they all go shopping when they get off school. Their moms and dad's pay their tuitions and they spend their money while they "work" for their certificate. They complain the whole day about getting out so they can go get their hair done and party that night, so they can show up the next day hung over and do it all again. Must be nice.
I have a friend who totally doesn't give a shit about school. He goes to school so his parents wont hassle him. But he doesn't go; he gets stoned and forgets he had class two hours ago. His parents are paying good money for all those F's that are going on his college transcript. And I know there isn't anything worse than having an F on a college transcript. My friends going to the "Universities" aren't any better. They only went away to school to experience the "true dorm life." Translation get belligerent, throw up off balconies, and sleep through your first class the next day. They don't care because they didn't pay for it.
So maybe I'm bitter because I have to work for what I have up in my head. My car payment isn't getting lower, gas prices are getting higher, and I'm still making the same amount of money. I can't wait to finish school for good. I hope the kids winning money for scholarships are nothing like the people I go to school with. I hope they work hard. I hope they are truthful. I hope they give a damn about their education. Because I do, and I definitely could use the money to help pay for school. When did students get so lazy?
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
People go to college for different reasons. Obviously there are those who go to party, those who just want to continue being supported by their parents, and those who want a serious education. Some people just don't grow up by the time they get to college, but it's only going to get them in the end.
Honestly I have to admit, I have been both. The party girl and then the hard working bust you ass college student. I spend my first year, (never failing a class) but just barely getting by because I went out and partied six to seven nights a week. Funny thing was, I was paying for it myself. And this wasn't chump change to attend the university i was at. Now I'm attending a different university, living with my folks, working as a server at night, going to class taking 14 credit hours and have an actual good GPA. This fall I will be transferring again, living on my own (again), still busting my ass. And all in all, I can't help but say, I miss those party days. But in the end, I hope to get the job I want and be able to live comfortably and happy without working myself to death.
Hey a large number of people go to college or university to find somebody successful to marry. That's why they generally don't care about class.
And its hard to really care about college too much when u know taht the final result will pretty much be a degree taht says you graduated. It just indicates taht u can do the work, no mater if they're actually learning anything. Other's who party go to network and make connections. For the most part, the grades don't really matter, because the degree only indicates that you graduated and if you graduated with any type of honors. If you graduate from harvard, most firms will still take you, even if you barely graduated. You still had the ability to get in.
Yes people who have to work to get through college tend to value it more, but the question is will what they learned help them in life. Maybe, maybe not. Time will tell
I sort of resent your basic premise here; that people who have their education paid for don't appreciate it. I hope you understand that not everyone is like that. I realize how lucky I am that my parents pay for my tuition and my housing. But them paying for my education isn't what motivates me to attend class and get good grades-- the thought of being successful is my motivation.
I also know a few people that pay for their own tuition and still slack off like crazy.
I disagree with Reboloke (below) and agree with dsharma here. My mom pays almost all my expenses by her own choice (she had to put herself through college, and wanted better for her kids, so she promised to make sure I got my bachelor's). I currently have a 3.98 GPA and will be graduating summa cum laude come May (with, I believe, the highest GPA for my degree). I made a 36R on my MCAT, which puts me in the 95th percentile of all MCAT test takers. I work on this site at least 20 hours a week (though I'm doing work probably only 2/3rds of that time, and work 10 hours a week in a pediatrician's office so I can pay off my credit card, which I used to help me fund my medical school application fees. My mom was willing to pay it all for me, but I took the initiative to do it myself.
~C
Check out the latest entry in the Between The Lines column!
Want the highest rated list to change? RATE those blogs, then!
I think the difference between what you're talking about and what I'm taking about is the larger goal.
If your goal is "go to college" or "get a degree" because society or your parents tell you to, you don't have to work very hard academically to achieve that goal. If this is your goal and your parents are paying for it you probably won't care too much if you're barely passing or have to retake a few classes. In this situation, if you have to work to pay for college you're going to see exactly how much that degree is worth, and be more likely to take you're academic work seriously.
If your goal is "get into med school" or "become a doctor" you have to work hard to achieving that goal. In this case it doesn't matter whether you or your parents are paying for it because the academic work is hard enough and long enough that you'll appreciate what it's worth even if you aren't paying for it.
In general I think people value the things they work for in some way more then things that are handed to them, but there will always be exceptions.
"Excellence is the result of caring more than others think is wise, risking more than others think is safe, dreaming more than others think is practical, and expecting more than others think is possible."
i didn't say that was true of all college student who have their ways paid for. i said it's true of most of them. and i stand by it. i know what it's like to have school paid for, and what it's not like. and i know i worked and cared a hell of a lot harder when it was my turn to pay. i don't think all people who have their ways paid for take it for granted; i know their are people who appreciate it. i think it's just a little different when it's your own money. and for those who pay for their own tuition and still slack off... well it's their own money they're pissing away. it will come back to them.
*this was in response to dsharma... i don't know why it posted down here*
It was posted there because I responded to her comment first.
~C
Check out the latest entry in the Between The Lines column!
Want the highest rated list to change? RATE those blogs, then!
i'm still new to this thing. as you all can probably tell....
"When did students get so lazy?"
I think you answered your own question. When people (students) don't really have to work for something they tend to take it for granted. If mom and dad are paying for college the student isn't going to be as worried about having to retake a few classes as they would be if they were spending their own hard earned cash for every class.
"Excellence is the result of caring more than others think is wise, risking more than others think is safe, dreaming more than others think is practical, and expecting more than others think is possible."
I agree with you on this. I just enrolled in a school that costs about 30000 dollars a year if you live on campus. I dont have a good relationship with my father, and I earn more money than my mother a year. It's going to be hard for me, and sometimes i just think " if those kids' parents would just adopt me for 3 years"... I know a girl whos parents are paying for her education and bought her a car. They bought her a Toyota, she told them she wanted a BMW and refused to drive it.
But on a positive note, I know that when this is all over I will be very proud of myself. It's like the time my dad bought me my first car; the head gasket blew and he said (paraphrased) "whatever". I had no transportation, and he really didnt give a damn. I saved up and bought a new car that i'm in love with and literally shits on what he bought me. The day he saw the car and realized that i no longer depended on him was the greatest day in our relationship.
"Prefiero morir parada que vivir la vida en mis rodillas"