Like leaving the party at 9 p.m.
June 30th, 2008 by Kim
I caught an HPU advertisement on the radio this evening in which one presumably high school-age guy is talking to a friend, who is already in college.
“What are you doing this summer?” College-Age Guy asks High School Guy.
“I’m going to be at HPU, with you,” High School Guy replies. “I really want to get a head start on college classes.”
Good for High School Guy. He’s probably the ambitious type; maybe he’s getting a jump start on his education so he can finish in two or three years and go on to get a J.D. or a M.D. (In which case, he’ll become either Very Eligible Lawyer Guy or Very Eligible Doctor Guy.)
I assumed that the ad was a message to those about to enter college that taking summer school can be a good way to finish college in less than four years. And indeed, with the rising cost of education, more and more students are opting for that route.
Others, like this questioner, might do it because graduating earlier from college would mean graduating earlier from law school, a master’s program or medical school. A female friend, whom I had lunch with last week and is currently at JABSOM, said she purposely chose to go right into med school after college rather than taking a year off because of concerns about how soon she could do other things — like start a family — after earning her M.D. Although she did her undergrad in four years, I imagine there are many other med students out there who are willing to blitz through their college years for an earlier graduation from med school.
On the other end of the spectrum, however, there are those who take five, seven, even 10 years to go through what would normally be a four-year undergrad program. These career students belong to the Facebook group called “Graduating College in 4 Years is Like Leaving the Party at 9 p.m” (UHM Chapter). For many, reasons beyond their control dictate this extended undergrad experience — money, having to split work time and class time, being able to get into the right classes to finish your degree.
Or maybe, as freshmen, they want to major in Economics, then as sophomores, they want to major in Hawaiian Studies or Old English Poetry; then, they graduate with a a double major in Greek Philosophy and Communications, and a minor in Food and Restaurant Management.
But for others, maybe it even comes down to this: College is fun!
I grad from college in four years, and even that felt short. So, I guess it’s hard for me to understand why, in the absence of things like real money or time concerns, students would want to finish college early.
My dad often tells me that he can’t understand why college students wildly celebrate graduation, when they will leave the best years of their lives behind. I’m not sure if I’d call my college years the best of my life, but considering they were filled with meeting tons of great people my age, making lasting friendships, never waking up before 9 a.m., taking fascinating classes with incredible professors, having a party option every weekend, exploring New York and Boston and actually having spring, summer and Christmas vacations … yes, I’d say college was pretty darn awesome.
But maybe that’s just me. I wouldn’t want to stay out ’till 4 a.m., but I’d hate to leave a party when it’s just getting started.
Tags: academia, college, graduate school
June 30th, 2008 at 3:36 am
I can think of one reason for wanting to escape in 4 years…..$$$$$. Unless you’re covered fully by scholarship attending a school of higher learning, especially if you’re a non-resident, will cost you or your parents a pretty penny.
ie. here at ASU’s campus: (other programs are similarly priced).
Morrison School of Management and Agribusiness Professional Golf Management, B.S.
resident - $3,152 for fall ‘08
non-resident - $9,575 for fall ‘08
Room/board for the entire year - $4,200-6,000
Required meal plan - $1,881 a semester
Books - ????
You’re looking at ~$15K a semester and tuition is going up in ‘09, again…..this is a public institution.
June 30th, 2008 at 5:46 am
I bet in ten years you’ll look back at your college years and realize that it really was some of the best times of your lives. No worries about the rat race, kids, mortgages etc…
June 30th, 2008 at 5:49 am
Guess it depends how you make use of your time. My wife and I grad college in 4 years each….we both managed to fill it up with tons of fun times and exciting new experiences. I wanted to get out ASAP because this was during the dot-com era and lots of startups (and incumbents like IBM, Boeing, Accenture, etc) were recruiting. My wife got into JABSOM and ended up liking it better than undergrad….
Can’t say that I had too many friends who took a long time to finish college. But, oddly enough, the ones who did were art/music majors.
June 30th, 2008 at 7:23 am
One advantage of taking a break is qualifying as a non-traditional student for scholarships. That’s how it worked for me. I applied for and was awarded scholarships for all but my first semester at UH-Manoa. Sure, I was graduating from college 18 years after graduating from high school, but I DID IT–and that was 14 years ago. Spent a lot of time surfing, clubbing, enjoying life in Hawaii, getting a lot of wild oats out of my system before getting married, working the career and getting to be a mom. No regrets.
I HEART UH!
June 30th, 2008 at 8:00 am
Took me 7 years for my undergrad (2 years after the parental scholarship ran out, I really concentrated) … 2 years for grad (on my dime … actually thousands). College (undergrad) was definitely a lot of fun. Whatever you do … enjoy … life is too short. Leave the party at 2:00.
June 30th, 2008 at 9:56 am
Undergrad was the best time of my life!
June 30th, 2008 at 10:09 am
College is a time that stupid college kids can be stupid college kids, i.e. going out to a party where there are no rules, anything goes, until the cops show up.
Ah the good times…
June 30th, 2008 at 10:23 am
C: haha-exactly!
June 30th, 2008 at 11:04 am
Go to Johns Hopkins then GO TO CHINA (or other foreign locale)
June 30th, 2008 at 11:05 am
The best years of your life occur as long as you’re breathing
July 1st, 2008 at 10:21 am
Go HPU! Go SeaWarriors!
Im a HPU student and dream someday that it will rival UH; something like UNC and Duke. Probably a pipe dream but i think that it would be pretty awesome.
July 1st, 2008 at 4:33 pm
not everyone is fortunate to “Say in school as long as they want”…some of us need to get in and get out ASAP because of our Roles and Responsibilities…to take care of our parents, our siblings…and to GROW up as fast as possible due to our economic hardships.
If I had a trust fund and my parents were middle class, then I would have stayed in school longer…but truth be hold, there are many people, who need their son’s/daughters to Graduate EARLY so that they can help them get out of the lower income bracket….
July 6th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
I finished in 2 years so I wouldn’t know.
College was okay, but I certainly hope it wasn’t the best time of my life. What else would there be to look forward to then?
July 9th, 2008 at 7:39 am
[…] Like leaving the party at 9 pm I’m not sure if I’d call my college years the best of my life, but considering they were filled with meeting tons of great people my age, making lasting friendships, never waking up before 9 am, taking fascinating classes with … […]