You know what really grinds my gears?

[AUChase]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

I’ve heard so many bad stories with advisors it always surprises me when people follow them. I’ve never had to count on an advisor for something I didn’t have access to myself. Cutting out the middle man was one of the first things college taught me.

They swapped our school's system up halfway through and every semester when I tried to register for classes I was on "Administrative Hold" and had to contact an advisor before moving forward.

The new system was still glitchy and I couldn't even find my course schedule on there to see what was required.

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

I’ve heard so many bad stories with advisors it always surprises me when people follow them. I’ve never had to count on an advisor for something I didn’t have access to myself. Cutting out the middle man was one of the first things college taught me.

I went the cheapie route and did a two year tour at the local community college and then transferred to JMU. When I was preparing my transcripts for the transfer my advisor at the CC told me I needed an additional science & lab. The biology course I had taken was not considered because it was an intermediate course level or some BS. So I took 101 chemistry or something easy like that my last semester.

When I transferred I had extra science credits on my transcripts. So that 101 apparently wasn't needed.

[DieHardYankee26]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

I went the cheapie route and did a two year tour at the local community college and then transferred to JMU. When I was preparing my transcripts for the transfer my advisor at the CC told me I needed an additional science & lab. The biology course I had taken was not considered because it was an intermediate course level or some BS. So I took 101 chemistry or something easy like that my last semester.

When I transferred I had extra science credits on my transcripts. So that 101 apparently wasn't needed.

I had a similar experience from CC to UVA. The “Computer Science” program at the community college is geared as a business program, and I’m pretty sure no school in the state has CS outside of engineering. You’d think as schools whose purpose is mainly to allow people to transfer there would be more overlap, but you could get an associates and still only have half the required classes you’d need to transfer to the 4 year program. I remember at one point I emailed my transfer advisor at TCC and they told me just email someone at UVA directly and ask them.

[pietasterp]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

I applied for my diploma to graduate from college.

It gets rejected because I'm missing a course.

I call up the admissions VA lady for some help and she says "I'm sorry Chase I can't approve your application to graduate because you're missing a course."

Know what that course is? ORIENTATION.

I have 12 more credit hours than required to graduate and I've completed every course required except no one ever scheduled orientation for me.

This just seems really really silly that they can't waive a wand and give me the credit because it's not like Orientation is free either.

Somehow an institution of higher learning has made things more dumb. So they work some magic and get the Dean to sign off on a very late registration for a class and the only orientation is Monday-Friday at 8am and I work so I can't make it. Online they say is closed because it's full.. what burden would I be on someone just posting videos online and letting the system grade things for them? The only reason I didn't register for any classes this semester is because my Advisor said I'm good to go.

So I'll have to wait until Summer to take orientation and then I can apply to graduate in the fall.

First of all, congratulations! Despite the difficulties, give yourself a pat on the back for your accomplishment.

Second of all....all of this is exhibit A of why colleges and universities are, at this point, simply credentialing mills that have long ago stopped serving their primary (and original) purposes of optional higher education. They've been able to ingrain themselves so firmly in the fabric of modern life that dealing with them in some way is essentially unavoidable. That's a longer conversation but your situation is a microcosm of the larger issue.

College is such a scam.

100% agree. We're way overdue for a reset and culling of the college/university system. The vast majority of jobs (even the highest level ones) do not require and are not better served by a college education, at least not as such "education" currently exists today. It's mission creep of the highest order and nothing more.

I’ve heard so many bad stories with advisors it always surprises me when people follow them. I’ve never had to count on an advisor for something I didn’t have access to myself. Cutting out the middle man was one of the first things college taught me.

This is ancient history now, but I think I met my advisor 1 time in my entire college career? It was about a 5 minute meeting where he basically confirmed I had taken everything I needed to graduate and then wished me well. Which I appreciated!

I went the cheapie route and did a two year tour at the local community college and then transferred to JMU. When I was preparing my transcripts for the transfer my advisor at the CC told me I needed an additional science & lab. The biology course I had taken was not considered because it was an intermediate course level or some BS. So I took 101 chemistry or something easy like that my last semester.

When I transferred I had extra science credits on my transcripts. So that 101 apparently wasn't needed.

Honestly, this is the smartest way to go about it in this day and age. 100-level courses at Harvard are the same as 100-level courses at your local CC. Why pay 20x more for the same (borderline high school level) coursework? When you figure out what direction you want to focus in, then transfer and declare your major at a bigger university (if you want to). Whenever asked for an opinion, I almost invariably advise this route.

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

Honestly, if I could have afforded it (paid my own way through school) I would have much preferred to done the full four years at the university. I feel like I missed out a lot of the traditional college experience - which is largely more than just the "education" and diploma piece.

[pietasterp]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

Honestly, if I could have afforded it (paid my own way through school) I would have much preferred to done the full four years at the university. I feel like I missed out a lot of the traditional college experience - which is largely more than just the "education" and diploma piece.

True, but it's all about cost/benefit (as w/ everything in life). Not taking out those loans has a big impact for your future finances/options.

Also, at this point - with most colleges being virtual anyway - what can a traditional university offer that an online institution can not?

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

I've never researched into any online institutions or "national" AKA franchised colleges - so I'm not sure. My gut would say caliber of professors, course work, and overall education structure. Plus, there's typically some type of prestige associated with just attending certain schools.

Of course - outside of the pandemic its less of a push.

[Majingir]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

College is a waste of money. People know it, but actually hearing a professor admit that the school wants them to push the sales of textbooks and checks in semester by semester seeing if books for certain courses are being sold (and if they're not, the school comes down on the prof, wondering if they are telling people to not buy it, aren't pushing sales enough, or are giving too much of the course content away through their powerpoints), how is that not a commission salesmen type of business?

I've even had profs that assigned homework simply based on part of the textbook. That was the only time we ever used the book, and it came early in the semester. Old editions of the book have about 99% same content...except some case studies and figures/numbers used in examples or questions.

I got through college without buying many textbooks. Early on I did, but eventually I realized it's a scam. I googled lines from the new book and at times could find google books versions of the book which had most of the chapters anyways. Other times I'd rent the prior edition from the library and hope nobody ever wanted it too so that I could just renew it all semester long. Literally saved me thousands of dollars.


And on Chases talk about course credit. I went into a program being allowed to skip 2 years due to prior things I've done. I did all the credits, and chose electives based on the elective list. Only problem, I realized one elective I took was actually a course in the 2nd year of the program I went in to. I never took the course though since I skipped 2 years. Somehow the school let me take it, and the program credit page showed that course counting as my elective credit. A semester before graduating I decided to double check with my program advisor about this, where they told me it DIDN'T count as an elective credit, so in my final semester I had to take an extra course to make up for it.

I did, I passed, I graduated. Only thing...i actually did get credit for the elective i originally took. So my program advisor made me spend hundreds of dollars on a course i never actually needed. Nothing fishy here......College is just a major scam. I'm partially glad I did take the route of simply just getting a degree for sake of having one, but not going down the expensive route others did. I paid as much in my entire time at school as some do in a single year, and I fully paid off all my stuff right as I graduated.

[dubcity]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

I feel like maybe the UK has the right idea with with how their secondary/higher education system works. At 16 they start focusing more on what we consider college major paths, instead of doing another 2 years of basically general education like we do our junior/years of high school.

[Majingir]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

Another commercial gear grinder.

Acting like your past version sucked and your newest one isn't just an improvement, it's the best one possible.

Just saw a Tim Hortons coffee commercial where they were like "We tried this before, but this is our best one yet", and had people taste past years versions, people said it sucked, but tried the 2021 one, it was perfect.

Last time I checked, all their commercials in years past had "real people, not actors" taste it and said it was perfect too....So are you admitting you lied for all those years?

[Caulfield]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

Another commercial gear grinder.

Acting like your past version sucked and your newest one isn't just an improvement, it's the best one possible.

Just saw a Tim Hortons coffee commercial where they were like "We tried this before, but this is our best one yet", and had people taste past years versions, people said it sucked, but tried the 2021 one, it was perfect.

Last time I checked, all their commercials in years past had "real people, not actors" taste it and said it was perfect too....So are you admitting you lied for all those years?

man, this makes me want some New Coke & Colgate Lasagna

[dubcity]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

There are tons of compilations on youtube of old commercials, particularly 1980s. I find it hard to decide which is worse:

modern commercials - selling you a product by saying how truly special/unique you are, and the only way to really embrace that is to buy their product. Or by using cringe internet humor/lingo from 5-10 years ago.

80s/90s ads - selling you a product by wrapping it in some kind of awkward/cringe Americana. Scenes of a group of friends relaxing after an impromptu softball game with a six pack beer, or chewing gum. Or when they would make the voices in the commercials so loud, like it's radio or something.

[Majingir]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

Most commercials suck.

But one of the things I hate is how so many commercials are the same thing no matter the company.

How many car commercials are different? They all just show a car driving, usually in different climates, either in a big city or middle of nowhere, and the narrator talks about some award they won, the amount of horsepower it has, how you can get employee pricing and all that stuff. Every company, every year, same stuff. Do people get paid 6 figures for ideas like that?

My fave ads though are the ones which air right before a show returns from commercial, and it has a countdown clock letting you know how much time is left before the ad is over and the show is back. An idea probably taken from things like non skippable youtube ads, but its effective. If I see a clock saying 25 seconds until my show returns, I'm watching the commercial. If it doesn't, I'm channel flipping for another 30 or so seconds.

[Caulfield]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

Most commercials suck.

But one of the things I hate is how so many commercials are the same thing no matter the company.

How many car commercials are different? They all just show a car driving, usually in different climates, either in a big city or middle of nowhere, and the narrator talks about some award they won, the amount of horsepower it has, how you can get employee pricing and all that stuff. Every company, every year, same stuff. Do people get paid 6 figures for ideas like that?

My fave ads though are the ones which air right before a show returns from commercial, and it has a countdown clock letting you know how much time is left before the ad is over and the show is back. An idea probably taken from things like non skippable youtube ads, but its effective. If I see a clock saying 25 seconds until my show returns, I'm watching the commercial. If it doesn't, I'm channel flipping for another 30 or so seconds.

and once you've seen a ''good'' commercial 25 times, it doesn't matter how great it was originally, you don't need to see it again, let alone 25 more times

[Majingir]

Re: You know what really grinds my gears?

and once you've seen a ''good'' commercial 25 times, it doesn't matter how great it was originally, you don't need to see it again, let alone 25 more times

It's why I hate Canadian commercials especially. You have the same bunch airing on every single channel. Although outside of sports, I never watch commercials anymore, but the same few air multiple times a game and it's so annoying.