“I’d rather die than go to community college.”
This is an actual sentence someone said to me when I told them I would attend TCC. The crazy part? This was not the first or last time I would have a conversation like that.
I left that conversation feeling a bit perplexed. But mostly, I was confused. I didn’t know that I could feel embarrassed about my college choice, but here I was being ridiculed for it.
A college degree is highly favored in America, but when you don’t start at a university, you are viewed as less than.
Why is that?
It seems most young people tend to think students at two-year colleges are lazy, unmotivated and unserious. From my experience, university students have a superiority complex. I’ve heard many negative remarks from my friends when the topic gets brought up.
“Why didn’t you try enough in high school?” “Is it just a money thing?” “You know you can take out loans, right?”
I shouldn’t have to justify why I’m here. But while I am, I’m making the most of my experience.
So many community college students simply attend class then leave. But there are so many more opportunities when you stick around.
This is my first semester working for The Collegian, and I have just been introduced to The NewsFeed, TCC’s student-broadcast news program. I am also actively engaged with the math tutoring program in the Learning Commons on NW Campus.
The people that I’ve met at this college have been so knowledgeable that it drives me to learn more.
Recently, I conducted an interview with one of my past professors who was also a student here. She talked about how community college didn’t have a great reputation then either. But her perspective quickly changed when she found her people and her passion here.
Because she attended TCC, she is now teaching here. And that wouldn’t have happened if she went straight to university from high school.
I left that interview with a renewed perspective. I was thrilled to know I could relate to someone who started where I am now.
While working for The Collegian, I make it a priority to talk to people on campus. Many students have told me that they don’t tell their friends where they go to school because they’re embarrassed. This saddens me because I feel like it’s holding them back.
If I could go back to senior year me and give her advice, I would tell her not to listen to her peers’ opinions. When I started being more involved and lingering more on campus, that’s when I got the full experience of optimizing the amazing opportunities our school has to offer.
I strongly believe we should all celebrate our academic progress and achievements, even if it’s not the traditional route. If we, the students, keep holding onto the feeling of embarrassment, then we will continue the negative stigma community college has.
Instead, we should focus on the positives. We are getting a quality education with a lower student-to-teacher ratio, and we are paying much less than the students who attend university. We also have the same access to clubs, student organizations and campus events.
With all these resources, we have the ability to succeed if we just take the opportunity. Instead of sulking in your sadness when people make fun of you for going to community college, get the best revenge: graduate with no debt and still get your dream career.
