is there a lot of homework in community college

Community College: FAQ

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions About Community Colleges

What is community college.

Community college is the most common type of two-year college. These colleges offer many types of educational programs, including those that lead to associate degrees and certificates. Certificates and some types of associate degrees focus on career readiness. Other types of associate degrees are good preparation for study at a four-year college where graduates can earn a bachelor’s degree.

Can I get financial aid for community college?

Even though tuition at community college is usually low, financial aid is available. The federal Pell Grant, for example, is open to students attending any accredited postsecondary institution. You can even qualify if you go part time. The Free Application for Student Aid (FAFSA®) is available for community college students as well as undergraduate and graduate students. Filling out the FAFSA will make you eligible for federal- and state-based financial aid, including student loans, grants, and work-study programs.

What students go to community college?

More than 40% of U.S. undergraduate students attend community colleges. Students who are 18 to 24 years old make up the largest age group. Community colleges also attract working adults, retirees, and others who want to learn.

How can a community college help my career path?

At a community college, you can:

Save money : Costs are typically much lower than those at four-year colleges. According to the 2021 Community College Review, public community colleges on average charge $5,155 yearly for in-state students and $8,835 for out-of-state students. As a point of comparison, our report shows that the average 2021-22 annual tuition for public four-year colleges was $10,740 for in-state students and $27,560 for out-of-state students.

Prepare to transfer to a four-year college : Many community college graduates decide to transfer to four-year schools to complete their bachelor’s degrees. Smart planning can help ensure that the credits you earn will count toward your degree at the four-year college you hope to attend. Find out more about transferring.

Get ready for a career : If you want to enter the workforce sooner, you can earn a certificate or degree in a career-oriented field, such as firefighting or engineering technology.

Try out college : Most programs are open admission. This means that you can go to college even if your high school grades aren’t strong. A community college is also a good option if you’re not sure you’re ready for college. You’ll have a chance to challenge yourself and see if college is right for you.

Take advantage of a flexible schedule : Most community colleges offer an element of convenience to students. You can attend full time or part time, as well as schedule your courses around home and work commitments. There’s a campus within a short driving distance of most towns in the United States.

You can use College Search to find a community college that’s a good fit for you.

How can a community college help me decide what to do with my life?

You can explore different subjects before committing to a program without having to be too concerned about tuition costs. If you take a wide range of courses─including those in the liberal arts and those that are career oriented─you can explore several different options in one place. Many community colleges offer intensive counseling that can help you assess your abilities, interests, and educational options.

Is open admission really that common?

To succeed in college, you need a solid foundation of reading, writing, and math skills. If you didn’t establish this foundation in high school, you may have to take remedial, or catch-up, courses at a community college. They are also called developmental or basic skills courses. These courses don’t count toward your degree, so graduating will take you longer and cost you more if you’re not prepared. You’ll probably take placement tests when you start college. The results will reveal whether you need to take any catch-up courses before beginning college-level study.

Is there an on-campus community?

Unlike residential colleges, many community colleges lack on-campus housing. Most students live nearby. Therefore, many of these colleges make a special effort to build a sense of community on campus. You’ll find a wide variety of activities, similar to those at four-year colleges.

Has anyone famous gone to community college?

• Gwendolyn Brooks, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet
• Eileen Collins, former National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronaut
• Joyce Luther Kennard, California Supreme Court justice
• Jeanne Kirkpatrick, former United Nations ambassador
• Nolan Ryan, retired Major League Baseball professional athlete
• Jim Lehrer, news anchor
• Robert Moses, choreographer and dance company founder
• Sam Shepard, Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright
• Tom Hanks, Academy Award-winning actor
• James Sinegal, cofounder and chief executive officer of Costco
• Maxwell Taylor, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
• Guy Fieri, restaurateur and TV chef personality
• Morgan Freeman, Academy Award−winning actor

How do I prepare myself for community college?

Preparing for community college starts with creating a path to reach your goals. Map out the courses you have to take to complete your degree program. If you want to earn a bachelor’s degree, your plan should include taking courses with credits that you can transfer to a university. Another way to prepare is to make a preliminary study schedule for your courses that you can adjust as needed. Dedicate yourself to absorbing as much knowledge as you can from each of your instructors.

How do I succeed in community college?

Developing effective time management skills can help you to find success in community college. This means setting aside an adequate amount of study time for each of your courses. It’s also important to allow yourself enough time to research and write papers as well as study for tests. Asking questions in class and joining study groups can also contribute to your success in community college.

Do you have to apply to community college?

Yes. You need to apply. Community colleges have admission requirements and application deadlines just as four-year colleges do. Sending in your application as soon as possible gives you time to ensure you’ve included all of the necessary documents.

What are the advantages of going to community college?

One of the biggest advantages is it takes less time to complete community college than to earn a university degree. In short, you can finish school more quickly and start your career. Many community colleges are two-year schools where you can earn an associate degree to prepare you for a career. Another major advantage of going to community college is the cost. Community college is more affordable than most four-year schools.

Are community colleges free?

As of 2022, 20 states offer tuition-free community college for eligible students. Different states have their own eligibility criteria for community college applicants. High school GPA, full-time student status, and in-state residency are examples of eligibility criteria. To learn more about free community college opportunities, reach out to your state's education agency .

Related Articles

Related topics.

Fact or Fiction: Do Community Colleges Actually Offer a Quality Education?

Community colleges have traditionally received a bad reputation for the quality of education they provide, but is that reputation really well-founded? While not all community colleges are created equal to be sure, many are working hard to provide a high-quality education to their students, with a wealth of degree options in fields looking for skilled workers . To ensure the education at community college remains top-rated, benchmarks are being put into place to hold schools accountable for their performance and help students make the best choice in schools for their specific needs.

The Spotlight on Community Colleges

Community colleges have come under increased scrutiny in recent years, thanks to the Obama administration . When President Obama announced his lofty goal to significantly increase the number of college graduates in this country by 2020, he raised community colleges up as an important tool in meeting his goal – an action that community colleges have both lauded and feared . As more people turn to community colleges as a way to achieve higher education, focus on these schools also involves evaluating the quality of education received.

Today, it is not enough for community colleges to boast they are the institutions that put students first. They must go beyond their history of innovative curriculum and teaching strategies to accurately measure how well those strategies actually work. Even without sufficient budgets or tools to meet the requirements of their students, these schools are now on the hot seat to find ways to effectively educate students and get them into the workforce – and prove their success with measurable benchmarks. For some, community colleges are meeting their purpose and meeting it well. For others, community college continues to be seen as a second-class education that simply doesn’t measure up to four-year institutions.

This video looks at the question of whether elite colleges are better than community colleges.

Are Community Colleges Doing their Job?

The answer to that question would be a resounding “no,” if you ask scholar Susan Jacoby. Jacoby was recently a guest on the Daily Circuit on Minnesota Public Radio , discussing the upcoming presidential election. When weighing which candidate college graduates would vote for, Jacoby responded, “One of the things we’re leaving out here is that we’re a country in which a majority of people are not four-year college graduates. One of the things you have is a big middle, that’s gone for a year or two of very bad community colleges. That, while they might prepare you for a job or they may not, you’re not learning very much in them.”

Of course, Jacoby’s comment did not go unheeded by those in the community college community. Rassoul Dastmozd, president of St. Paul College , told NPR, “I just have a hard time understanding the facts being used by Ms. Jacoby to conclude that, you know, that…some community colleges provide one or two years of bad training. From my world view, education is a broad spectrum. There’s a place for everyone. There is a time and place for everyone. You make what you wanna make out of education.”

While Jacoby’s comments received negative comments, they are illustrative of how community colleges are still viewed by some in the world of academia today. However, those views may be outdated, as community colleges now strive to meet the needs of a diverse spectrum of students while training the 21st-century workforce with skills that will effectively compete in a global marketplace. Those who have dedicated their lives and careers to community colleges have been pleased to see the changes taking place.

One of those individuals is Dr. Jill Biden, a long-time community college professor, and wife to former Vice President Joe Biden. Dr. Biden was recently interviewed by NEA Today , where she had the opportunity to talk about some of those changes, as well as the difference support from the current administration has made in helping community colleges meet the needs of their students.

“Community colleges connect the dots,” Dr. Biden told NEA Today. “Granting two-year degrees, providing new skills training and certification, and providing an affordable path for those who want to move on to a four-year university .”

Dr. Biden added that community colleges are a viable path to a baccalaureate degree and address the needs of the workforce most effectively, bringing trained graduates into positions currently available in their region.

“For the last 18 years I have seen firsthand the power of community colleges to change lives,” Dr. Biden said. “I have welcomed students to my classroom from a wide variety of educational, economic and cultural backgrounds, and I have seen how the community college system offers them the same path of opportunity.”

Measuring Success

In order to determine the value of the community college system, it is necessary to move beyond sound bites and dig into what the research really says. The Community College Survey of Student Engagement is one annual benchmark that can be used to evaluate the quality of schools through the student engagement factor. This survey asks community college students specific questions regarding institutional practices and student behavior, according to the CCSSE website .

The American Association of Community Colleges has recently come out with another tool for measuring success. Inside Higher Ed reported last December on the release of the Voluntary Framework of Accountability, which will provide a starting point for what is working at community colleges today. The standards took 18 months for AACC to develop and will track two different student cohorts between 2005 and 2009 to identify standards that enhance student success. Schools will then be encouraged to commit to those standards as a means of maintaining consistent quality throughout the community college system.

Questions? Contact us on Facebook @communitycollegereview.

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Policy Fact Sheet | July 2021

An Introduction to Community Colleges and Their Students

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Community colleges serve about 10 million students per year, or roughly 44% of all undergraduates, depending on the definition used. [1] [2] The nation’s 1,000 community colleges are found in rural, suburban, and urban areas and are much more affordable than four-year colleges, providing access to higher education for nearly all Americans.

Community colleges play an essential role in higher education. They provide instruction in a wide variety of fields that lead to employment in sectors such as health care, public safety, information technology, business, and manufacturing. Community colleges prepare students for transfer to four-year colleges and universities, and allow high school students to earn college credits through dual enrollment. They teach adults who are preparing for GEDs or learning English. And community colleges partner with local employers to train or upskill workers needed for regionally important industries and occupations.

What the Research Tells Us

Community colleges are an entry point to higher education for many first-generation, low- income, black, and hispanic students, and they provide a second chance for older students and workers who need to retrain..

• In the 2018-19 academic year, enrollment at public two-year colleges was 6% Asian, 13% Black, 24% Latino, and 46% White. [3]
• Community colleges serve a large number of students who are historically underrepresented in higher education. In 2018, 41% of students enrolled in public two-year colleges were Black or Hispanic, compared to 30% of students enrolled in four-year colleges and universities. [4]
• Nearly half of public two-year college students are 24 or older, and 28% have children or other dependents. [5] About two thirds attend part-time. [6]
• Nearly 60% of public two-year college students are financially independent. About 37% of students, dependent and independent, make less than $20,000 a year. [7]
• More than 1.4 million high school students enroll in dual enrollment courses each year, with about two thirds participating through community colleges. [8] [9]

Community colleges are relatively affordable and accommodate large numbers of working students.

• In 2020-21, the average published tuition and fees for a full-time student at a public two-year college was $3,770, compared with $10,560 at a public four-year college. [10]
• About 81% of part-time and 47% of full-time students at public two-year colleges work while enrolled. [11]
• Community colleges offer three main types of credentials: associate degrees that prepare students for transfer to a bachelor’s degree program; applied associate degrees that prepare students for direct entry in a skilled occupation; and certificates (requiring less than two years and sometimes less than one year of full-time study) that focus on specific skills in a career/technical field to prepare students for immediate employment.
• A growing number of community colleges also offer bachelor’s degrees in high-demand, workforce- oriented fields. [12]

Community college degrees boost the earning power of graduates, and the colleges contribute to local and national economies.

• Associate degree holders age 25 and older have lower unemployment rates and higher median weekly earnings than persons with a high school diploma or some college but no degree. [13] This was true even during the worst months of the COVID-19 pandemic. [14]
• Some community colleges play a major role in helping students from low-income backgrounds move into middle- and upper-income levels, making them potential engines of upward mobility. [15]
• Beyond increasing wages, community college degrees contribute to economic activity, bolster government tax revenues, and reduce the demand for public services. [16] [17]

Community college students have lower graduation rates than students who start at four-year colleges, and there are equity gaps in success rates within community colleges.

• About 40% of community college students earned a credential from a two- or four-year institution within six years. The rate for public four-year college students is 67%. [18]
• About 14% of first-time community college students who started in 2013 earned a bachelor’s degree within six years (31% transferred to four-year colleges, and 46% of them completed a bachelor’s degree). [19]
• There are substantial gaps by race and ethnicity in access to dual enrollment; in the pursuit of STEM credentials; in rates of remediation, dropout rates, graduation rates; and more. [20] [21] [22] [23] [24]
• Several factors contribute to lower community college completion rates, including the fact that many students attend part-time. Institutional factors also contribute to poor outcomes, including the “cafeteria college” model on many campuses. Cafeteria colleges give students many options but provide little structure or support to students. [25]
• Changes to college structures and practices have been shown to improve completion rates. The ASAP program, started at the City University of New York, combines full-time attendance, intensive advising, and financial and other supports and nearly doubles graduation rates. [26] Guided pathways reforms, which restructure the college to focus on getting students on a path in a well-designed program of study, are also starting to show impacts on student success. [27]
• ^ The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) excludes community colleges that offer any bachelor’s degrees from its definition of public two-year colleges; using this definition, community colleges enroll about 8 million students annually. See NCES (n.d.-a). Trend generator: Number of students enrolled in postsecondary institutions annually, by sector of institution and student level: 2018-19 .
• ^ Fink, J., & Jenkins, D. (2020, April 30). Shifting sectors: How a commonly used federal datapoint undercounts over a million community college students . CCRC Mixed Methods Blog .
• ^ NCES. (n.d.-b). Trend generator: Number of students enrolled in postsecondary institutions annually, by sector of institution and race/ethnicity: 2018-19 .
• ^ NCES. (2019a). Digest of education statistics , Table 306.20.
• ^ Campbell, T., & Wescott, J. (2019). Profile of undergraduate students: Attendance, distance and remedial education, degree program and field of study, demographics, financial aid, financial literacy, employment, and military status: 2015–16 (NCES 2019-467). Tables 3.3 and 3.4-A. National Center for Education Statistics.
• ^  NCES. (n.d.-c). Trend generator: Number of students enrolled in postsecondary institutions in the fall, by attendance status (full-time/part-time) and control of institution: 2019 (based on 938 institutions, limited by Sector of institution) .  
• ^  Campbell, T., & Wescott, J. (2019). Profile of undergraduate students: Attendance, distance and remedial education, degree program and field of study, demographics, financial aid, financial literacy, employment, and military status: 2015–16 (NCES 2019-467). Tables 3.4-A and 3.5-A. National Center for Education Statistics. 
• ^  Marken, S., Gray, L., & Lewis, L. (2013). Dual enrollment programs and courses for high school students at postsecondary institutions: 2010–11 (NCES 2013–002). National Center for Education Statistics. 
• ^  Fink, J., Jenkins, D., & Yanagiura, T. (2017). What happens to students who take community college “dual enrollment” courses in high school? Columbia University, Teachers College, Community College Research Center.
• ^  Ma, J., Pender, M., & Libassi, C. J. (2020). Trends in college pricing and student aid 2020 . College Board.
• ^  NCES. (2019b). Digest of education statistics , Table 503.20.
• ^  Fulton, M. (2020). Community college bachelor’s degrees: An update on state activity and policy considerations . Education Commission of the States.
• ^  U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2019, September 4). Unemployment rates and earnings by educational attainment .
• ^  Falk, G., Carter, J. A., Nicchitta, I. A., Nyhof, E. C., & Romero, P. D. (2020, December 7). Unemployment rates during the COVID-19 pandemic: In brief (CRS Report R46554). Congressional Research Service. 
• ^  Chetty, R., Friedman, J., Saez, E., Turner, N., & Yagan, D. (2017). Mobility report cards: The role of colleges in intergenerational mobility (NBER Working Paper No. 23618). National Bureau of Economic Research.
• ^  Rothwell, J. (2015, November 17). What colleges do for local economies: A direct measure based on consumption . Brookings Institution. 
• ^  Felix, A., & Pope, A. (2010). The importance of community colleges to the Tenth District economy . Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City , 95 , 69–93.
• ^  Causey, J., Huie, F., Lang, R., Ryu, M., & Shapiro, D. (2020). Completing college 2020: A national view of student completion rates for 2014 entering cohort (Signature Report No. 19). National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
• ^  National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. (2020a). Tracking transfer: Measures of effectiveness in helping community college students to complete bachelor’s degrees .
• ^  Fink, J. (2021, January 14). How equitable is access to AP and dual enrollment across states and school districts? CCRC Mixed Methods Blog .
• ^  Minaya, V. (2021). Can dual enrollment algebra reduce racial/ethnic gaps in early STEM outcomes? Evidence from Florida . Columbia University, Teachers College, Community College Research Center. 
• ^  Chen, X. (2016). Remedial coursetaking at U.S. public 2- and 4-year institutions: Scope, experiences, and outcomes (NCES 2016-405). National Center for Education Statistics. 
• ^  National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. (2020b). Persistence and retention .
• ^  Causey et al. (2020).  Completing college 2020 .
• ^  Bailey, T. R., Jaggars, S. S., & Jenkins, D. (2015). Redesigning America’s community colleges: A clearer path to student success . Harvard University Press.
• ^  MDRC. (2021). CUNY ASAP doubles graduation rates in New York City and Ohio . 
• ^  Jenkins, D., Brown, A. E., Fink, J., Lahr, H., & Yanagiura, T. (2018). Building guided pathways to community college student success: Promising practices and early evidence from Tennessee . Columbia University, Teachers College, Community College Research Center.

Elizabeth Ganga

Communications Manager

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Education scholar Denise Pope has found that too much homework has negative effects on student well-being and behavioral engagement. (Image credit: L.A. Cicero)

A Stanford researcher found that too much homework can negatively affect kids, especially their lives away from school, where family, friends and activities matter.

“Our findings on the effects of homework challenge the traditional assumption that homework is inherently good,” wrote Denise Pope , a senior lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Education and a co-author of a study published in the Journal of Experimental Education .

The researchers used survey data to examine perceptions about homework, student well-being and behavioral engagement in a sample of 4,317 students from 10 high-performing high schools in upper-middle-class California communities. Along with the survey data, Pope and her colleagues used open-ended answers to explore the students’ views on homework.

Median household income exceeded $90,000 in these communities, and 93 percent of the students went on to college, either two-year or four-year.

Students in these schools average about 3.1 hours of homework each night.

“The findings address how current homework practices in privileged, high-performing schools sustain students’ advantage in competitive climates yet hinder learning, full engagement and well-being,” Pope wrote.

Pope and her colleagues found that too much homework can diminish its effectiveness and even be counterproductive. They cite prior research indicating that homework benefits plateau at about two hours per night, and that 90 minutes to two and a half hours is optimal for high school.

Their study found that too much homework is associated with:

* Greater stress: 56 percent of the students considered homework a primary source of stress, according to the survey data. Forty-three percent viewed tests as a primary stressor, while 33 percent put the pressure to get good grades in that category. Less than 1 percent of the students said homework was not a stressor.

* Reductions in health: In their open-ended answers, many students said their homework load led to sleep deprivation and other health problems. The researchers asked students whether they experienced health issues such as headaches, exhaustion, sleep deprivation, weight loss and stomach problems.

* Less time for friends, family and extracurricular pursuits: Both the survey data and student responses indicate that spending too much time on homework meant that students were “not meeting their developmental needs or cultivating other critical life skills,” according to the researchers. Students were more likely to drop activities, not see friends or family, and not pursue hobbies they enjoy.

A balancing act

The results offer empirical evidence that many students struggle to find balance between homework, extracurricular activities and social time, the researchers said. Many students felt forced or obligated to choose homework over developing other talents or skills.

Also, there was no relationship between the time spent on homework and how much the student enjoyed it. The research quoted students as saying they often do homework they see as “pointless” or “mindless” in order to keep their grades up.

“This kind of busy work, by its very nature, discourages learning and instead promotes doing homework simply to get points,” Pope said.

She said the research calls into question the value of assigning large amounts of homework in high-performing schools. Homework should not be simply assigned as a routine practice, she said.

“Rather, any homework assigned should have a purpose and benefit, and it should be designed to cultivate learning and development,” wrote Pope.

High-performing paradox

In places where students attend high-performing schools, too much homework can reduce their time to foster skills in the area of personal responsibility, the researchers concluded. “Young people are spending more time alone,” they wrote, “which means less time for family and fewer opportunities to engage in their communities.”

Student perspectives

The researchers say that while their open-ended or “self-reporting” methodology to gauge student concerns about homework may have limitations – some might regard it as an opportunity for “typical adolescent complaining” – it was important to learn firsthand what the students believe.

The paper was co-authored by Mollie Galloway from Lewis and Clark College and Jerusha Conner from Villanova University.

Media Contacts

Denise Pope, Stanford Graduate School of Education: (650) 725-7412, [email protected] Clifton B. Parker, Stanford News Service: (650) 725-0224, [email protected]

Should I take Honors courses in Community College?

I am debating taking honors courses at my community college, but would like to know if anyone can speak to the difficulty a community college (very weak cc/ bottom 10%). My other dilemmas are that most (nearly all) of the honors students are sophomores due to the fact that almost none of the students pass the ACT requirement to enter initially (I do) and I am a bit worried about being the outsider (yes its college I know but I’m guessing with the size of the school most sophomores are already going to know each other). Also because its small, there aren’t many classes to choose from in Honors and I have a lot already filled with AP classes from high school so I may be forced into taking things I don’t want to. The main perks would be that if I later transfer to the accompanying university (which also isn’t ranked very well, save the medical field which I am not entering) I would have a full scholarship plus books (so long as I maintain a decent GPA). Then there is also priority scheduling which is a plus and the better familiarity with faculty and staff which seeing as I want to be in numerous leadership clubs wouldn’t be bad.

Overall what I am asking is: Is Honors at a CC worth it?

YES. It is worth it. Top universities sometimes look down at CC students because they don’t think their classes are at the same level as the transfers from current university students. Taking honors classes shows that you can and are willing to put in the extra effort and will be able to survive at top universities once you get there.

I can’t speak for the CC you will be attending, but at my CC honors classes aren’t really that much more work IMO. My calculus honors classes are just 10 more homework assignments (which are much harder than the regular ones, but still do able). My political science honors classes is just an additional research paper due with the final research paper, and my English honors courses is just additional sources in each essay.

If you are nervous about the classes, my advice would be to meet with the honors counselor and talk to them about your concerns.

But overall, yes, honors courses are defiantly worth taking. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask me as I am very involved with the honors program at my CC.

Are you a CA student?

Poptix-Thanks for the reply! Your advice helps alot im leaning towards doing it Luckie- no TN

Definitely take the Honors courses. The benefits are good and the classes aren’t onerous, they’ll just prepare you better for a 4-year (which sounds like your goal - “regular” classes at bottom 10-30%s CCs tend to be remedial gen ed or meant for the vocational programs, so not academically rigorous enough.) Plus being with Honors Sophomores will keep you on track to transfer, which few students manage to do, especially if the CC is weak - the challenge and emulation will be good for you socially. In colleg,e it’s not about age, it’s about preparation, drive, and achievement level. But why are you planning on a CC ( a weak one at that) if you have a decent ACT score and Ap credit? And why are you already planning to go to a mediocre public when there’s UT Knoxville, if your academics are on par?

IF you are willing to put in the extra work and work harder than you planned to, (for the same grade), then the distinction really is worth it. Remember to follow through on that though, most importantly.

Anan- I am definitely ready to put in the time and effort as long as the reward is worth it! Myo- Thanks for the Advice, I am very limited financially, however my family is not (120k a year). Because my family does not contribute I took the free CC program TN offers (I have scholarships that cover books and will room at home because of close proximity). And that mediocre college is more of a safety seeing that once again it would allow me to graduate debt free whereas UT-Knox while I am a fit for would not offer me much in the way of transfer money. Now say I blow the CC out of the water and graduate with a 4.0 in Honors, my plans would change (The only person from our CC ever to go to Ivy league was a 4.0 Honors grad that went on to columbia). If some big college offers (and I mean big) than I will more than likely reverse my decision on debt and just go for the reputation.

You’re wise and very mature for this decision, which must have been difficult. In this case, yes, definitely take the Honors courses, and aim for a 4.0 as well as involvement in research with professors. Seek out who does research and see where you can go from there. Contact department chairs at the community college in subjects you’re good at. Present your stats, your skills, your willingness to start this summer if need be (hopefully you’d be able to do this and work). UT Knoxville would be worth a little debt (if you don’t take federal loans your first two years, you’d be allowed to have the $27,000 that are good for 4 years, for your last two years). Most importantly, some students have found that a small branch college often doesn’t really “open doors” and blocks them due to limited offerings and poor reputation. You’d be better off going to UTK or another university - there are LOTS of excellent universities between a local, mediocre branch campus, and the Ivy League.

Another possibility, but one that may not be optimal for you, is to take a gap year and work, raise your scores (can you get to a 1400 CR+M?) then apply for all the full ride scholarships, both automatic and competitive, that are out there. Those are good for 4 years and in some cases (Howard, for instance), even cover the cost of books. In the end, the 4 years would end up costing less than 2 free years at CC + full costs at a public university. These merit scholarships are NOT available to transfers.

What happened to you is what I feared for the TN idea - parents who latch on the “free” part without regards to the student’s academic needs, and then disinvest of the rest. :s Many 100% need schools would have been interested in a student from Tennessee, but they would still have expected a parent contribution. I’m very sorry and you’re doing the best with what’s been handed to you. My hat to you.

Thanks for being so understanding! I have no problem with the free CC system because even if the cc wasn’t free through the program it would have been with my gpa/act combination. If it is a miniscule amount of debt I would look into UTK its just so hard to way it against a free lesser school.

I’m not really into the year off thing I do plan to work through school (Looking at Walgreens, Vitamin Shoppe, Barnes and Noble) I do have a few other schools I could Use your opinion on Appalachian State is between local branch and state branch (It’s on NC side but living on the border I could maybe get state tuition) UVA is another because of its prestige (Very good national school, though might not be on ivy level) if I could get a good scholly

I would estimate App State to be roughly the level of UTK on average, but with a lesser concentration at the top. UVA is in another category altogether, it’s considered a “public Ivy” and they’re supposed to meet need, although I don’t know if they would for transfer students. You’d need 3.75-3.8 in honors courses though.

In a sense, I’m glad this system is in place and you can use it since your parents won’t contribute. And I’m impressed with how mature you are about this all. (No tantrum like the kid whose parents make $325,000 and have 5 cars; s/he was complaining because they weren’t eligible for financial aid :p. No I’m not kidding.)

Wow lol I think I might be able to do a 3.8 And trust me I’ve thrown a tantrum before but at some point you have to just call it a loss and move on

You might want to email UVA and ask whether they meet need and/or have merit scholarships for students who apply as community college transfes from Tennessee.

Calculate for all schools

Your chance of acceptance, your chancing factors, extracurriculars, searching for the easiest history course in community college.

Hey guys, I'm looking at my options for history courses at community college. I know this might sound a bit lazy, but I want to take a class that's not too demanding so I can focus on my heavier workload courses. Does anyone have a hint on what the easiest history class might be in a typical community college?

When it comes to the "easiest" history courses at community colleges, it's important to remember that what might be straightforward for one person might not be for another due to differences in interests and strengths.

However, general education courses like "Intro to U.S. History" or "World History" are often seen as less demanding since they usually offer broad overviews. These classes typically cover a lot of ground but don't go too deep into any one event or period. As such, there's a lot of general knowledge to absorb, but less detailed analysis to worry about.

The workload might also be lighter if you select a subject you find interesting because your engagement could make studying feel less tedious. If there's a particular era, geographic location or event that grabs your attention - be it Ancient Greece, the Civil War, the history of your local area - taking a history course on that might feel "easier" because you're naturally interested.

Additionally, consider the teaching style of your professors. Some instructors might teach in a way that better aligns with your learning style, making the course seem easier. Class size and format (in-person, online, hybrid) can also impact your experience.

Lastly, leverage support resources available to you at your community college, including study groups, tutoring centers, and professor office hours. Making the most of these can make any course significantly more manageable. Good luck!

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College can still be rigorous without a lot of homework

Senior Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Southern California

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How hard should it be to earn a college degree?

When the book “ Academically Adrift ” appeared in 2011, it generated widespread concern that college was not effectively educating students and preparing them for today’s world. Among other things, authors Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa claimed that most colleges were not rigorous or demanding, in part because college students were not reading and writing enough in order to build their critical thinking skills. But is it really how much work students are assigned that makes college rigorous and helps them learn?

As a scholar of higher education , I have taken a close look at college students’ academic experiences and outcomes for several years. Some people define rigor as how many pages a student reads or how many pages a student writes. But in a 2021 peer-reviewed study that I published with colleagues John Braxton and Ernie Pascarella , I found that if they do that, they might miss key elements of what it takes to help students develop critical thinking skills and become lifelong learners. They also might create an unnecessary burden for students who have other demands on their time.

What is rigor?

In education, academic rigor tends to be defined in two different ways : as a workload that is demanding and difficult or as learning experiences that challenge and support students to think more deeply.

Given the importance of critical thinking, the way rigor is defined makes a big difference in terms of the ways that the general public – as well as administrators, policymakers, journalists and researchers – assess if a college is rigorous. It also makes a difference in terms of faculties’ expectations for students, the types of classroom activities they use and the assignments they give.

In other words, if rigor means workload, then students who spend a lot of time studying should become better critical thinkers. In contrast, if rigor means academic challenge, then students who practice higher-order thinking skills, such as analysis and evaluation , during class, on assignments and during exams should become better critical thinkers.

That’s why my study examines each definition of rigor – workload and academic challenge – in terms of helping students develop critical thinking skills. The study also looks at those definitions of rigor in relation to two related dimensions of lifelong learning. One is reading and writing for pleasure, and the other is the habit of thinking deeply and critically about things.

The college difference

The study included about 2,800 students who attended one of 46 four-year colleges in the U.S. between 2006 and 2012. These students took part in the Wabash National Study of Liberal Arts Education , which was a large, longitudinal study of how college experiences affected outcomes associated with a liberal arts education. They completed surveys and tests at three different points during college: at the beginning of their first year, at the end of their first year and at the end of their fourth year.

In these surveys, students reported their course workload, including how many books they read, pages they wrote and hours they spent studying for class. They also reported how much their courses challenged them to engage in higher-order thinking. Faculty ask students to practice higher-order thinking when they ask challenging questions in class and give assignments that ask students to analyze information or form an argument.

Since the Wabash National Study measured students’ critical thinking and lifelong learning skills at multiple timepoints, my study looked at how much students developed these skills in relation to their workload and the academic challenge of their classes. Of course, students who are motivated to get good grades may be more likely to develop these skills. And lots of other college experiences, like interacting with faculty outside of class or being in an honors program, might also make a difference. My study accounts for these factors in order to better understand the unique influence of each definition of rigor.

What matters

Here’s what we found.

In the first year of college, higher-order thinking was related to an increase in both dimensions of lifelong learning: reading and writing for pleasure and the tendency to think deeply. Higher-order thinking was not related to development of critical thinking skills. Workload was not related to students’ critical thinking or either dimension of lifelong learning.

Across four years of college, higher-order thinking was related to an increase in students’ critical thinking skills and both dimensions of lifelong learning. Workload was related to only one dimension of lifelong learning: reading and writing for pleasure. This relationship was driven primarily by the amount of reading students did, rather than the amount of writing they did or the amount of time they spent studying.

Perhaps most importantly, my study suggests that students learn important critical thinking and lifelong learning skills because of challenging class experiences regardless of the workload. In other words, college can help students be better critical thinkers and lifelong learners without requiring them to spend a lot of time studying.

[ You’re smart and curious about the world. So are The Conversation’s authors and editors. You can read us daily by subscribing to our newsletter .]

Implications for colleges

This study has implications for how courses and colleges are assessed as being rigorous. It also has implications for how faculty teach, as it suggests that they should create courses that engage students in higher-order thinking, rather than asking them to complete long reading and writing assignments.

These implications matter particularly for students from low-income backgrounds, who are more likely to work full-time during college. Low-income students are also more likely to commute to campus and have family responsibilities .

Because of these responsibilities, students from low-income backgrounds often have less time to dedicate to homework compared to students from wealthier backgrounds who live on campus and who don’t work as many hours. This creates an opportunity gap in students’ ability to be successful. A 2018 report from the Pell Institute shows that low-income students graduate at much lower rates than students from higher-income backgrounds.

If campuses want students from low-income backgrounds to graduate at the same rate as their peers, then it is important that these students have a reasonable workload in their courses so that they don’t have to choose between college and their other responsibilities.

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Quantity Is Not Rigor

By  Cathy N. Davidson

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Several commentators have argued recently that one problem with remote teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic is lowered standards. Apparently, we should be worried about professors decreasing their usual homework assignments and therefore abandoning rigor.

Really? Is quantity the same as rigor? Is maintaining the status quo the best educational goal during a crisis? Since we have all been turned upside down by this catastrophe, I suggest we turn the question of rigor on its head, too. Why not use this occasion to examine those standards and ask where they came from, whether they continue to serve us and, if not, what we can do to change them? While we are all working at home, let’s rethink homework.

The old rule of thumb for homework is that a college student should spend two hours studying outside of class for each Carnegie credit hour. A student taking a 16-hour course load should devote roughly 32 hours a week to homework, spending a total of 48 hours each week dedicated to academics. Perhaps that would have been reasonable in 1906, the year that the Carnegie hour was invented, when only a small sector of the population went to college and more than 80 percent of college students attended elite, private, residential institutions.

Now, however, over 80 percent of students attend public institutions. Forty percent of all students work 30 hours a week , and a quarter hold down full-time jobs while attending college full-time. Some 22 percent of today’s students are also parents. At commuter campuses, including community colleges that enroll nearly half of the nation’s students, they also have to spend travel time getting to and from classes. Forty-eight hours of schoolwork simply does not fit into the calculus of our students’ busy lives.

In Introduction to Transformative Teaching and Learning in the Humanities and Social Sciences, a graduate class that I co-teach with LaGuardia Community College professor Eduardo Vianna (an M.D. who also holds a Ph.D. in developmental psychology), our students are rethinking every possible aspect of graduate, professional and undergraduate training. In this class, we ask what counts -- and who gets to count. We ask what we teach, why and how and to whom. We ask what it means to introduce students to a field. In our student-led, participatory course, we do not just talk about requirements, but we also ask the far deeper question of what students require for mastery of a field. What kinds of mastery serve students beyond college? Is the goal of higher education to learn from an expert? Or to gain the tools and skills that will allow students to become experts themselves in whatever they hope to accomplish? How does one do that?

As a final project, several of our graduate students are creating syllabi for undergraduate courses they will soon be teaching. One question they start with is “How long should a syllabus actually be?” This is a good question because, if one looks at the many syllabi available online, they often seem created with the unrealistic Carnegie prescriptions for homework in mind. Many are so unrealistic (one could say “padded”) that one has to wonder if they were written only for the eyes of their students or also for scrutiny by supervisors -- chairs and deans. Meanwhile, those supervisors are thinking ahead to the five-year scrutiny by their formal educational accreditation bodies.

How much homework should we assign? There is no one right answer, but it is crucial to spend time thoughtfully focusing on the question. We can begin by asking what we wish students to accomplish outside of class and why. We also need to ask about the level of the class, the amount of preparation students bring to it and the material constraints on their time outside of class. Finally, we need to be honest with ourselves about the actual amount of work we are assigning, and we need to make the hard choices before the class begins. As an undergraduate English major, I was assigned Moby Dick to read in a week; in graduate school, we had a week to devour Being and Time . I am positive no one finished either tome.

A handy tool created at Rice University’s Center for Teaching Excellence helps anyone, students or professors, come up with a more realistic assessment of how much time students spend on their assignments. The Course Workload Estimator allows anyone to enter in data for the reading, writing, exams and other homework assignments for a course. One specifies not only length of an assigned reading, for example, but also the text’s difficulty and the purpose of the assignment (to survey, understand or engage). The tool provides an instructor or a student with an estimate of how much out-of-class time is required to accomplish this work. Extensive supplementary materials, including surveys and other data, explain the assumptions behind this convenient tool. Although hardly definitive, the Course Workload Estimator provides a useful reality check.

What are we actually communicating when we create an unrealistic syllabus? No, a student will not be able to read Thomas Piketty’s 817-page Capital in a week. They might, however, manage the Instaread Summary that clocks in at a lean 34 pages or the 4,900-word Wikipedia entry or a 500-word exam crib sheet prepared by another student and available online. Given the realities of our students’ lives, it is time to admit that when we overassign, we are really rewarding the skim, the summary and the cheat. Is that rigor?

Homework seems like a simple and perhaps even superficial place to begin an analysis of our inherited practices, but it is actually a subtle dog whistle that signals assumptions about the values of our profession. How much is the “rigorous” syllabus telling students who do not have the previous training, insider vocabulary and cultural capital to know how to fake it that they will never, ever catch up -- so why bother? What is the relationship between a daunting syllabus and a student’s willingness to take a course -- or ability to finish one?

I am suggesting that “rigor” can be deployed as a code word that leads to far deeper assumptions about our profession, including its function as an echo chamber that rewards those few students whose values, background, demographics and family educational background match those of their professors. “Rigor” can too easily translate as professorial self-replication.

Someday, this heinous COVID-19 crisis will be over, and then it will be time to pick up the pieces and rebuild. Given the abandon with which programs are being cut right now, one must worry that there will still be enough pieces left to start that process. I fervently hope that, in the current crisis, higher education is not jettisoned, that the future of students isn’t sacrificed to other economic considerations.

At the same time, as we rebuild, I hope that we can also reimagine higher education. Let’s reconsider the meaning, scope and purpose of the work we do as well as the work we assign. Let’s think about how we measure excellence and success. Let’s decouple quantity and quality. Perhaps from this pandemic we might all learn some lessons that we should have learned before.

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Which College Assigns the Most Homework

by Jack Tai | Aug 30, 2019 | Articles

College is difficult.

It requires hard work, plenty of studying, and lots of homework. I

t’s easy to overlook this part of the college experience when it’s excluded from college brochures and movies about college life.

Yet, it’s a certainty that in order to graduate, students will need to spend tons of time studying outside of class.

However, even in college, homework isn’t standardized, and there are different homework expectations at each college. The reality is that students attending one college may have more homework, on average, than students attending another college.

At all levels of schooling, there’s debate over whether schools are assigning too much homework. While some argue that homework supports student learning and achievement, others argue that more homework doesn’t necessarily lead to more learning.

Are you wondering if you’re attending one of the schools that assigns the most homework? Learn which colleges have the most homework, how homework could relate to career success, and what to do if you’re struggling with homework.

Which Colleges Assign the Most Homework?

To understand which colleges are assigning the most homework, Princeton Review surveyed students across the country. Here are the top 20 schools where students are studying the most, along with their acceptance rates and the early career salary of graduates.

California Institute of Technology, CA Acceptance rate: 7% Starting salary: $89,900

Williams College, MA Acceptance rate: 13% Starting salary: $68,500

Reed College, OR Acceptance Rate: 35% Starting Salary: $58,300

Olin College of Engineering, MA Acceptance Rate: 16% Starting Salary: $83,345

College of Wooster, OH Acceptance Rate: 54% Starting Salary: $51,600

Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, IN Acceptance Rate: 61% Starting Salary: $76,200

College of the Atlantic, ME Acceptance Rate: 67% Starting Salary: $24,600

Harvey Mudd College, CA Acceptance Rate: 14% Starting Salary: $90,700

Webb Institute, NY Acceptance Rate: 32% Starting Salary: $80,900

U.S. Military Academy, NY Acceptance Rate: 10% Starting Salary: $83,500

Brown University, RI Acceptance Rate: 8% Starting Salary: $69,300

St. John’s College, NM Acceptance Rate: 65% Starting Salary: $58,200

Lehigh University, PA Acceptance Rate: 22% Starting Salary: $70,500

Gettysburg College, PA Acceptance Rate: 45% Starting Salary: $59,300

Wellesley College, MA Acceptance Rate: 20% Starting Salary: $60,500

Grinnell College, IA Acceptance Rate: 24% Starting Salary: $56,300

St. John’s College, MD Acceptance Rate: 55% Starting Salary: $53,500

Cooper Union, NY Acceptance Rate: 13% Starting Salary: $71,600

Hillsdale College, MI Acceptance Rate: 36% Starting Salary: $42,650

Bowdoin College, ME Acceptance Rate: 10% Starting Salary:$63,500

Does More Homework Lead to Career Success?

Among these top 20 colleges that have the most homework, the average early career salary is $65,645.

Comparatively, the average early career salary of those who attended the 20 colleges with the least homework is $51,920. That’s $13,725 less!

There are certainly other factors contributing to the earnings disparity between colleges that assign a lot of homework and ones that don’t. However, with the potential for a 26 percent salary increase, it may be worth it to attend a college with hard-working students.

How Can Students Get Help with their Homework?

For many students, it may not be the quantity of homework that’s challenging; it’s the difficulty.

While weekly tutoring sessions can be a helpful way to support learning, online platforms such as OneClass’ 24/7 Homework Help can provide the type of academic support that helps students achieve their goals.

To ask a question, students simply snap a photo of the homework problem that they’re struggling with. Tutors will reply by sending a step-by-step detailed solution. The team of knowledgeable experts typically replies within 12 hours, and you’re guaranteed to receive a reply within 24 hours.

Helping students from high school freshmen through college seniors, OneClass’ online tutors are subject matter experts. Tutors provide the on-demand support to help students improve their grades and prevent the problems that can occur when a student falls behind in classwork. Plus, a solutions database of more than 30,000 questions is publicly available, and your first Homework Help question is FREE.

Jack Tai is the CEO and Co-founder of OneClass . Visit the site to find out more about how this online tool has helped 90% of users improve by a letter grade.

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College Homework: What You Need to Know

• April 1, 2020

Samantha "Sam" Sparks

• Future of Education

Despite what Hollywood shows us, most of college life actually involves studying, burying yourself in mountains of books, writing mountains of reports, and, of course, doing a whole lot of homework.

Wait, homework? That’s right, homework doesn’t end just because high school did: part of parcel of any college course will be homework. So if you thought college is harder than high school , then you’re right, because in between hours and hours of lectures and term papers and exams, you’re still going to have to take home a lot of schoolwork to do in the comfort of your dorm.

College life is demanding, it’s difficult, but at the end of the day, it’s fulfilling. You might have had this idealized version of what your college life is going to be like, but we’re here to tell you: it’s not all parties and cardigans.

How Many Hours Does College Homework Require?

Here’s the thing about college homework: it’s vastly different from the type of takehome school activities you might have had in high school.

See, high school students are given homework to augment what they’ve learned in the classroom. For high school students, a majority of their learning happens in school, with their teachers guiding them along the way.

In college, however, your professors will encourage you to learn on your own. Yes, you will be attending hours and hours of lectures and seminars, but most of your learning is going to take place in the library, with your professors taking a more backseat approach to your learning process. This independent learning structure teaches prospective students to hone their critical thinking skills, perfect their research abilities, and encourage them to come up with original thoughts and ideas.

Sure, your professors will still step in every now and then to help with anything you’re struggling with and to correct certain mistakes, but by and large, the learning process in college is entirely up to how you develop your skills.

This is the reason why college homework is voluminous: it’s designed to teach you how to basically learn on your own. While there is no set standard on how much time you should spend doing homework in college, a good rule-of-thumb practiced by model students is 3 hours a week per college credit . It doesn’t seem like a lot, until you factor in that the average college student takes on about 15 units per semester. With that in mind, it’s safe to assume that a single, 3-unit college class would usually require 9 hours of homework per week.

But don’t worry, college homework is also different from high school homework in how it’s structured. High school homework usually involves a take-home activity of some kind, where students answer certain questions posed to them. College homework, on the other hand, is more on reading texts that you’ll discuss in your next lecture, studying for exams, and, of course, take-home activities.

Take these averages with a grain of salt, however, as the average number of hours required to do college homework will also depend on your professor, the type of class you’re attending, what you’re majoring in, and whether or not you have other activities (like laboratory work or field work) that would compensate for homework.

Do Students Do College Homework On the Weekends?

Again, based on the average number we provided above, and again, depending on numerous other factors, it’s safe to say that, yes, you would have to complete a lot of college homework on the weekends.

Using the average given above, let’s say that a student does 9 hours of homework per week per class. A typical semester would involve 5 different classes (each with 3 units), which means that a student would be doing an average of 45 hours of homework per week. That would equal to around 6 hours of homework a day, including weekends.

That might seem overwhelming, but again: college homework is different from high school homework in that it doesn’t always involve take-home activities. In fact, most of your college homework (but again, depending on your professor, your major, and other mitigating factors) will probably involve doing readings and writing essays. Some types of college homework might not even feel like homework, as some professors encourage inter-personal learning by requiring their students to form groups and discuss certain topics instead of doing take-home activities or writing papers. Again, lab work and field work (depending on your major) might also make up for homework.

Remember: this is all relative. Some people read fast and will find that 3 hours per unit per week is much too much time considering they can finish a reading in under an hour.The faster you learn how to read, the less amount of time you’ll need to devote to homework.

College homework is difficult, but it’s also manageable. This is why you see a lot of study groups in college, where your peers will establish a way for everyone to learn on a collective basis, as this would help lighten the mental load you might face during your college life. There are also different strategies you can develop to master your time management skills, all of which will help you become a more holistic person once you leave college.

So, yes, your weekends will probably be chock-full of schoolwork, but you’ll need to learn how to manage your time in such a way that you’ll be able to do your homework and socialize, but also have time to develop your other skills and/or talk to family and friends.

College Homework Isn’t All That Bad, Though

Sure, you’ll probably have time for parties and joining a fraternity/sorority, even attend those mythical college keggers (something that the person who invented college probably didn’t have in mind). But I hate to break it to you: those are going to be few and far in between. But here’s a consolation, however: you’re going to be studying something you’re actually interested in.

All of those hours spent in the library, writing down papers, doing college homework? It’s going to feel like a minute because you’re doing something you actually love doing. And if you fear that you’ll be missing out, don’t worry: all those people that you think are attending those parties aren’t actually there because they, too, will be busy studying!

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What type of homework is assigned in college?

I asked my mom and she said it’s mostly essays, what type of homework/assignments do you get in college? also if you’re a biology major it’d be helpful to get your input as i am going to be majoring in biology too !!

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Search the site, search suggestions, "homework" in college.

Since coming to Harvard, I don’t recall even once hearing the word “homework”—which is a pretty strange thing considering the role it played for the first 12 years of my education (spoiler alert: this doesn’t mean that we don’t have assignments and work to do).

However, the type of work that’s assigned in college is different from what I was used to in high school, so I’m here to break it down for you.

Problem Sets

Problem sets, or “psets”, are typically packets of questions that are assigned and due on a regular basis. Most of my pset classes have been math and science courses, although they don’t necessarily have to be. I think the biggest difference between psets in college compared to similar assignments in high school is that they can be really challenging, and many courses expect and encourage students to work together on them—I made some of my best friends while struggling through organic chemistry psets lasts year!

Sometimes you even get stickers.

Rather than lots of shorter assignments, many classes opt for a few essays spaced throughout the semester. Humanities classes (English, history, etc.) are typically essay classes, although many science classes also have you practice scientific writing through grant proposal or review-style papers. If you’re not super comfortable writing academic papers coming into college, not to worry! All freshmen take a writing course (Expos) during the first year to make sure that everyone is on the same foot. There’s a ton of individual feedback, so it can be really beneficial no matter what your level of writing is coming in.

Discussion Posts

Particularly if it’s an essay class, you might be assigned additional questions to respond to on an online forum for the course. It’s a nice way to keep people on track with the reading, and the responses are often used to start discussion in section.

*Most larger courses have weekly “sections” with 12-15 students and a teaching fellow leading discussion—it’s an opportunity to review the material and go more in-depth with the readings.

Reading (sometimes a lot of reading)

One of the bigger adjustments for some students is learning how to get through hundreds of pages of reading per week. Granted, this depends on what type of classes you’re taking—it is possible to tailor your schedule to an amount of reading that’s appropriate for you. I’ve found that my humanities classes have a much higher volume of reading, but that my science courses have denser reading—sometimes a seven page primary lit paper from a science journal takes me the same amount of time to read as forty pages in a novel. If you are struggling to get through all of your assigned reading, or just want to use your time more efficiently, the Bureau of Study Counsel offers “speed reading” courses during the year which are said to be really helpful!

I was found very diligently reading my book.

I have to say, I’ve had some pretty cool project assignments in college. In my multivariable calc class, our final project was to use Mathematica (a math tool) to come up with equations that would form a 3D object, so I made and printed a 3D minion. In a genetics class, we spent the semester analyzing our own DNA in lab, looking for markers that might indicate lactose intolerance, ancestral history, etc. (I wasn’t lactose intolerant, thankfully.) One of my friends is in a Folklore and Mythology class on quilt making, and her final project is to make a quilt. Pretty cool, huh?

My minion!!

Ah yes, not one to forget. On the plus side, there tend to be fewer exams in college than in high school—for classes that do have exams, you would likely only have 1-2 midterms and a final. Studying is often more effective in a group, so it’s another chance to meet people in your class!

Whew! While this is not a complete list, hopefully it gives a sense of the type of work you might be asked to do here. You can choose a schedule of classes that’s a good fit for you—while some people really like taking four essay classes or four pset classes at once, for example, I always try to strike a balance halfway in between. Particularly if you’re taking classes that you’re really interested in, the work doesn’t even seem so bad. :)

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