College grads, what was your attendance record in school?

[Le Jacquelope]

Be honest. Did you study like heck and bust your butt, or did you spend more time goofing off? How do you think your college lifestyle affected your performance and readiness for the work force later on?

 

[impressive]

I cut classes as much as possible -- except for a few electives that I really enjoyed. I preferred classes that weren't lecture-based -- where I'd get the list of assignments at the beginning of the semester & could just turn them in on the due dates.

Work force? Well, my work style mirrors my student style. I'm best when left to my own devices.

 

[Guest]

Be honest. Did you study like heck and bust your butt, or did you spend more time goofing off? How do you think your college lifestyle affected your performance and readiness for the work force later on?

Just like in high school. The nerd with the books.

As a musician, many of my classes were rehearsals and independent studies, a lot of disorganized chaos - but I never missed. Dependable me.

I still partied my ass off, however. We all did. We were able to do jazz at Heroes until 2:00 in the morning and then get up and be bright eyed and bushy tailed for an 8:00 theory class.

Musicians are strange.

 

[Trombonus]

As the years went on I went to classes less and less. I think the last few years I went to class 50% of the time. Of course, I never missed a band rehearsal.

 

[rgraham666]

Never finished high school.

 

[buxxxom]

College was more difficult than high school. I finally realized that I did, in fact, need to attend class and study to be able to maintain good grades. I blew off one or two classes, when I knew I could use a friend's notes, but generally I went to class.

 

[somberReality]

I kicked ass and took names in college. Rarely missed a class unless for sickness or death in the family (grandfather died my sophmore year). Made the Dean's list 7 out of 8 semesters. I never "partied," but i'm finding i'm making up for it now in my 30's WOOT!

If nothing else, college taught me how to manage my time and to get organized EARLY. I don't do anything with my degree (psychology-BA) but that's okay, the experience of college taught me a lot.

 

[cloudy]

My first two years I partied - a lot. I'd been in the gifted program all through school, so the first two years, with some notable exceptions, were very easy.

My junior and senior year, I buckled down. I worked close to full time, and always took a full load of classes, sometimes 18 hours a quarter. I ended up making damn close to straight A's those last two years.

Don't know if it affected me later on at all, to be honest.

 

[Liar]

I just graduated.
Today actually, was the ceremony.
Petty low key thing, but I got a diploma and everything.
Whee!

But on the other hand that doesn't mean anything. That was for the basic degree, and I'm going for a master, so I'm not done. Meet me in this thread a year from now, and you'll see celebration.

So far I haven't missed a class. No wait. One. When I was really sick.

But that doesn't mean that I busted my butt getting where I am today. Because while I didn't miss a lecture or seminar, I only read about half of the books and glanced through the rest. And I didn't take notes at class, pretty much ever. I don't function that way, what I learn is what I remember from lectures, seminar discussions and off-schedule conversations with teachers, professors and fellow students. No late night panic reading befre an exam was gonna help anyway.

Many of the people I went to courses with (we were pretty much a class that stuck together through 3 years) are a bit older than your average student. I'm 30 now, and was not the oldest. Many had spouse and kids and a previous career. So we weren't exactly the wild college party crowd. I guess that worked in our advantage, since the education was pretty damn tough compared to many others.

 

[Liar]

My junior and senior year, I buckled down. I worked close to full time, and always took a full load of classes, sometimes 18 hours a quarter. I ended up making damn close to straight A's those last two years.

Just curious. How much is 18 hours/quarter? How many active study weeks is a quarter? How much class attdance versus self studies (reading books) is expected?

Over here we have college years of 2 x 20 active weeks. 20 in spring, 20 in the fall. if I assume that makes a quarter 10 weeks long, I must say that 18 hours sounds pretty brief. I have 2 or 3 lectures or seminars/week that are between 2 and 3 hours long. Counting low, that's 40 hours/q. No?

Probably a difference in disposition between lectures and literature than a real difference in study intesity. Just curious how it works o'er there.

 

[somberReality]

I just graduated.
Today actually, was the ceremony.
Petty low key thing, but I got a diploma and everything.
Whee!

But on the other hand that doesn't mean anything. That was for the basic degree, and I'm going for a master, so I'm not done. Meet me in this thread a year from now, and you'll see celebration.

So far I haven't missed a class. No wait. One. When I was really sick.

But that doesn't mean that I busted my butt getting where I am today. Because while I didn't miss a lecture or seminar, I only read about half of the books and glanced through the rest. And I didn't take notes at class, pretty much ever. I don't function that way, what I learn is what I remember from lectures, seminar discussions and off-schedule conversations with teachers, professors and fellow students. No late night panic reading befre an exam was gonna help anyway.

Many of the people I went to courses with (we were pretty much a class that stuck together through 3 years) are a bit older than your average student. I'm 30 now, and was not the oldest. Many had spouse and kids and a previous career. So we weren't exactly the wild college party crowd. I guess that worked in our advantage, since the education was pretty damn tough compared to many others.

Woot! congrats!

 

[jomar]

high school: very much coasted (can't remember really studying), skipped a lot 12th grade, B average

college: mostly coasted, studied when I had to, mostly went to class but with some just checked in, had fun, high B average

grad school: got serious, straight A's, still manged to have fun

I've never been overly ambitious, but through associations and circumstances find myself the owner of a small business. Doing fine, but still like to have fun so could be applying "nose to grindstone" harder.

 

[Belegon]

Congrats Liar!

I played two sports, was on Greek Council, President of my frat, held down various jobs and partied like mad...

...but I went to class. I sometimes was not very awake in them, but I went. I finished .02 away from cum laude, so I did okay... but I have for years said that I was two party nights away from graduating with honors, and that may be true.

ETA: That's college. I barely graduated High School.

 

[cloudy]

Just curious. How much is 18 hours/quarter? How many active study weeks is a quarter? How much class attdance versus self studies (reading books) is expected?

Over here we have college years of 2 x 20 active weeks. 20 in spring, 20 in the fall. if I assume that makes a quarter 10 weeks long, I must say that 18 hours sounds pretty brief. I have 2 or 3 lectures or seminars/week that are between 2 and 3 hours long. Counting low, that's 40 hours/q. No?

Probably a difference in disposition between lectures and literature than a real difference in study intesity. Just curious how it works o'er there.

18 hours is 6 classes. I had four that met on MWF, for an hour each, and then two that met on T/Th for an hour and a half. That's the max they'll allow you to take without special dispensation.

Study time was pretty intense the last two years. I'm trying to remember some of my classes - it's been a long time.

Let's see:

Business Theory (you can only take this as a graduating senior)
Labor Economics
Personnel Testing/Psychology
Advanced Quantitative Analysis
Statistics
Management Accounting
Business Law
Personnel Conflict and Negotiations (I was a Labor major)

 

[Chantilyvamp]

In university I was very good and went to almost all my classes. However, there was one class that I hated and yes I dropped it the first year due to I went so much that I forgot where the fucking thing was held at! When I did decide to go I always looked like a lost freshman running around with her head cut off I was a senior

Didnt hurt or affect my readiness for the workforce later on at all. I am a model employee and try not to take off sick if I can help it and I'm always on time. However, saying that I at least always know where I am supposed to be now. No more freshman chicken with their headcut off syndrome.

 

[SensualCealy]

First term I missed one class, due to a Drs appointment with a specialist, studied my ass off.
Second term I missed three classes two because of weather and one for a Drs appointment with a specialist, didn't study as hard. By this time I knew what I had to invest my time in so I studied accordingly.
4.0 is basically a perfect score, I had 3.838, so I was happy being that I was the third oldest in the class at 38!

I did however party in my own way, when school was done early I hit the pub to relax before getting home and dealing with the stress of kids and the hubby. Only twice did I get what I would call drunk or close to it. There again, if I were doing this at 18-19 it would likely have been a different story.

How has it helped, I think by talking to future students in post secondary and explaining that missing classes only affects you, the teachers could care less, the school could care less, they have your money! You are your own future, make of it what you will.

C

 

[Pure]

Here's a calculation that was proposed to me, re attending classes.

Take your tuition fee for the year. Divide by the number of class hours.

At a top, US, private, 'arts' college, figuring $10,000/year, that's about $25 per class hour for an 'arts' student.

The morning you sleep through a couple classes, is 100-150 dollars down the toilet.

===
ADDED: it's been pointed out to me that the figure $10K should be two or three times higher, hence we're talking $50-$75 dollars per class hour.

 

[jomar]

Here's a calculation that was proposed to me, re attending classes.

Take your tuition fee for the year. Divide by the number of class hours.

At a top, US, private, 'arts' college, figuring $10,000/year, that's about $25 per class hour for an 'arts' student.

The morning you sleep through a couple classes, is 100-150 dollars down the toilet.

Ha! During one absolutely worthless grad course I had to take I spent class time calculating how much money I was spending/wasting on the class per month, week, day, hour, minute, second. It was that bad.

 

[Le Jacquelope]

I just graduated.
Today actually, was the ceremony.
Petty low key thing, but I got a diploma and everything.
Whee!

But on the other hand that doesn't mean anything. That was for the basic degree, and I'm going for a master, so I'm not done. Meet me in this thread a year from now, and you'll see celebration.

So far I haven't missed a class. No wait. One. When I was really sick.

But that doesn't mean that I busted my butt getting where I am today. Because while I didn't miss a lecture or seminar, I only read about half of the books and glanced through the rest. And I didn't take notes at class, pretty much ever. I don't function that way, what I learn is what I remember from lectures, seminar discussions and off-schedule conversations with teachers, professors and fellow students. No late night panic reading befre an exam was gonna help anyway.

Many of the people I went to courses with (we were pretty much a class that stuck together through 3 years) are a bit older than your average student. I'm 30 now, and was not the oldest. Many had spouse and kids and a previous career. So we weren't exactly the wild college party crowd. I guess that worked in our advantage, since the education was pretty damn tough compared to many others.

Wootage! What's your major?

 

[Le Jacquelope]

18 hours is 6 classes. I had four that met on MWF, for an hour each, and then two that met on T/Th for an hour and a half. That's the max they'll allow you to take without special dispensation.

Study time was pretty intense the last two years. I'm trying to remember some of my classes - it's been a long time.

Let's see:

Business Theory (you can only take this as a graduating senior)
Labor Economics
Personnel Testing/Psychology
Advanced Quantitative Analysis
Statistics
Management Accounting
Business Law
Personnel Conflict and Negotiations (I was a Labor major)

You know, I've been fairly interested in Business Theory... do you know some good online sources to read up on this?

 

[cloudy]

You know, I've been fairly interested in Business Theory... do you know some good online sources to read up on this?

no, but I'll be glad to take a look around, and see what I can find for you.

I approached grad school a little differently than I did undergrad. I was a little older, for one thing, and it was a little more necessary to go to class every single day, and pay attention. All I have left on my grad degree is clinicals, and that's definitely something you have to show up for.

 

[Jenny_Jackson]

Except for one class I didn't even know I'd signed up for... I never skipped a single class. Every day I sat in the class rooms staring blankly at the instructors/professors wondering, "WTF am I doing here?"

 

[Liar]

Wootage! What's your major?

Rhetorics. I think the English translation of the whole bonanza would be Applied Rhetorics. It's rhetorics mixed with linguistics, didactics, organization theory, media science, and practical shit like project management and marketing.

 

[S-Des]

I skipped college because I barely made it out of high school (had to take a summer class to graduate almost dead last in my class ). I hated school more than I can describe and the last thing I wanted was to continue (however I had lots of offers because of my high testing). I rarely attended JC for a couple of years before I gave up and started working. When I went back in my mid 20s to get an ET (Associates degree in Electronics), it was a totally different experience. I attended religiously, got straight A's (after a couple of semesters I dropped to a B, but I was working full time and got burned out). The difference . . . I had to pay for my own education then. It changed my whole perspective on how hard I was supposed to work.

 

[JamesSD]

Be honest. Did you study like heck and bust your butt, or did you spend more time goofing off? How do you think your college lifestyle affected your performance and readiness for the work force later on?

My high school attendance record and grades were outstanding.

I feel I led a balanced life in college. I'm lucky in that a lot of things come to me easier than others, so I was largely able to go to class, take notes and absorb most of what I needed to learn for the test, coupled with some cramming. I had to study more for some classes more than others.

I can't really say how it affected me, as I'm still in graduate school, which in some ways is like a workforce, but many ways is still like school.