This is for you mid-college or college grad folks. I'm only in my first year, second semester. I'm off to a really bumpy start. It's frustrating because the work really isn't hard, I just have a really difficult schedule. I work a 40+ hour/week job where I work 11pm-7ish am, come home, sleep for x amount of hours and then goto class and repeat. Not doing as good as I want to be in class is really diminishing my confidence, but I am trying to discern if this happens to everyone, maybe its just the change of pace I am trying to get used to?

I don't know, anyone have any advice?

Also, the whole 'taking basics' thing is driving me nuts. I want to do graphic design and advertising.... I really don't care what some poet wrote in the 1980s.

Umm, first off, I'd drop the 40 hr/wk job. Full-time job plus full-time classes, of course you're going to get screwed. Reduce the hours to something more reasonable.

Well, the job plus going to school is going to make things a lot more complicated, especially if you're working that many hours a week. Trying to get used to the pace of college can take a little bit, especially if you're in a major that's crazy (music is one of those crazy majors).

As for you wanting to just get to do what you want, well, the main reason for the general education is so you can do more than just your main emphasis.

Exactly. I tagged on another year of school because I worked 40+ hours a week (and that was only one job!) My grades also got really screwed over and I almost lost a scholarship. I believe it's better to live poorer and get decent grades then completely fail what I'm putting all that money into.

Well

Sorry, I had to. But anyway, I agree with dropping the job. I can see how having a job in your second/third/fourth year can work, but a 40+ in your first year college? I really believe you should focus on getting use to college life in your first 2 semesters before taking up a job. Do you really need the money that badly?

Good grades are unnecessary. All you have to do is pass. If you can work 40 hours a week and pull Cs, you're doing fine. Remember - your future employer just sees the diploma, not the grades.

Indeed.

hell, even if you just make it part time it'll be much better. I understand that you need money, but you also need to pass college. Work weekends.

Adjusting to college isn't usually the easiest transition, and freshman year seems to be the time you do a whole lot of stupid stuff while you're trying to figure everything out. I had fun with it, but I still look back on just last year and shake my head a little. I'm getting a bit off topic but the point is it's a somewhat tough transition anyway and you're making it 50 times worse with a 40 hour work week.

Nobody likes Gen Ed requirements. Well I guess that's a bit of a lie, I enjoyed my history requirements, but hopefully next year you can start getting into the courses that you're really interested in so you won't mind taking a gen ed here or there.

but mostly, loose the job or cut WAY back on hours.

Lawl.

Isuwen: depends on whether or not he wants to go to grad school, depends on the employer, but mainly, doing full time job and full time school is a recipe for unpleasantness.

I just went through that, and now I'm taking 17 hours. It's a hell of a workload, especially for me, since most of them are lab classes. Best advice I can give is this, though: just bust your *** and get through the boring stuff, once you get into the stuff you care about, it's so much better. Now that I'm programming and drafting and working with sprinkler systems and extinugishers, and doing calculus instead of lame algebra, (and chemistry, but that sucks) things are much nicer and it's easier to focus.

So...yeah, it'll be like that at first. You will probably screw something up, too. At least, I did, three times. But just roll with it, fix the problems as they come, and get through it, you'll be doing what you like in no time.

I would consider school to be your full time job, but I don't know your financial circumstances. Some people have to work 3rd shift, multiple jobs, etc just to pay for tuition.
I get distracted enough for normal school, and I haven't a job currently. I'm 3rd year. My first two years were rough, as I attend a liberal arts college. It gets sooo much better once you get passed all of that crap.
Just hang in there, time will go by and keep an optimistic attitude about things, it really helps too.
Just go through the gruntwork of school, get it done. No turning back (hopefully) but that is easier said than done for people with jobs like yourself. If you're too stretched, something's got to give. It's sad that it is often the school that gives, as it is probably more important...

Taking the basics gives you a good all around education--trust me, you'll appreciate it more when you're done. And what some poet wrote in the 80s may influence your graphic design work down the line.

Also, 40 hours a week + 12 hours of school = bad mojo. Seriously, get something manageable, at least something that allows you time to sleep.

Finally, if it's just the basics, realize that bad grades don't mean so much yet. Not until you finally get into your major. That is unless you're trying to keep a grip on a scholarship or something.

It's been said. You're working too much. Drop the work load down to 20 hours or less. It also helps if you can find a job where you can sit on your *** and study, ie getting paid to do your homework.

I do work study, and I can make it either go towards my tuition or keep it for spending money or any combination. Does your school have anything like that?

Wrong.

Not if you don't want to get good scholarships, like quesadilla_red mentioned. He seems to have money issues, seeing that he needs to get a job in the first year of college.

Freelancer...you may have flunked out of university, but that doesn't mean it's not important.

I didn't flunk out. I consciously chose to stop attending.

And when you stop going to class, you fail classes and flunk out.

Not everyone has the option of mooching off of their parents until they are dead.

Wrong. Your transcript is readily available to employers. Some employers may not value grades as much as others, but they are still very important. Shrugging off your grades is shooting yourself in the foot.

Yeah I think tomorrow I'm going job hunting... from the looks of it, they may be plotting to fire me soon. I don't like the looks of their hasty new hire.

yeah.

having a 40 hrs/week job + full time school is pretty much the stupidest thing you could ever do. you are wasting a good opportunity by squandering your time at a job with no future. your job is definitely not as important as your performance in school. you shouldn't even cite financial reasons, since you can always get some educational loans / apply for financial aid and just pay them off later (they don't start charging interest till after graduation anyway). if you need spending money and/or textbook money, this is what work study is for.

dont let some of these guys fool you into thinking that grades are not important. they are ****ing hella important. i mean, extra-curriculars and all that are part of your resume too, but GPA does matter a ****load to most employers, unless of course you are thinking about packing trucks or other menial labor with your college degree. the GPA indicates how well you can learn, perform under stress, manage your time, etc. in essence, its a fairly good indicator of how well you spent your time in college if an employer was to flip through several resumes. for example, i know of someone who had a 3.9 here who got a job in a field he wasn't even majoring in. it was all based on the fact he got a 3.9 in a hard major (biomedical engineering).

So...you are still going to have a job again?

Why are you working that job, by the way?

You want to do graphic design and advertising, right? Do you know what the career path is/advancement opportunities are? What they look for in an applicant? If grad work is needed (heh, probably not here). This job, I would say, will make more than your current job, no? This degree would help you get the job you want, right?

If you need a degree for a job, and if the job allows you to make more than you currently do, why are you extending the period of low revenue? Drop that job and try to buzz through the rest of college.

Flamebait: Your major seriously isn't hard. It's not a science, and it certainly isn't engineering (which then, if you're smart, can be not hard, but I digress). If you really wanted to, you can just quit your job, pile on units, work your butt off to get out in less time, and join the real world sooner. You're just not only wasting your time but possibly harming your future at this current pace by taking some piss-*** job over your future.

Ah the general ed classes. Sucking tuition dollars since...well long before you or I were born.

I have to work because I have a car payment, phone, insurance, gas, and food to pay for. which totals ~ 700 or so a month

Uh? Although AoEJedi isn't following the same path as I am, when I speak to companies such as Enterprise, Boeing, and AT&T, they've had either a 3.0 or 3.2 cutoff, or expressed a prioritizing of people with a 3.2+ GPA.



Are student loans not an option?



Coincidentally, what do you do for a living?

Heh, speaking of easy majors my college offers a program called golf management. From what I gather it's the business of running a golf course.

I mean, golf management. WTF.

I don't "make a living."

I feel sorry for you if that's what you intend to do with your college degree.

How do you provide food and shelter for yourself?

Or...

How do you obtain paper currency that you barter for services?

And many can make a living via their degree. Comp sci, any engineer, business majors (if used right), etc. It's a definite reason to, you know, get one. Not dishonorable at all. I'm going to get paid to do what I love... and I'm able to do it through education. Unless you'd want a self taught physician.

Wrong. Your transcript is not available to anybody without your expressed consent thanks to the The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

Interviewer: "Hey, can we see your transcript?"
Interviewee: "NO, I DON WANNA!"
Interviewer: "Oh, err, ok... NEXT!"

In other words, if a prospective employer/agency would like to see that to hire you, you'd better show it. I think that's what Emon means, not that they would sneak to see your files. So, basically, they might as well have access to your files. Saying no essentially shows you flunked up, sending them a clear message.

Basically: The point of his post still holds true, that grades, not just the degree = success.

Indeed.

God forbid should I pursue an area of interest and then attempt to earn a living off of it.

And it was an honest question - what do you do to pay the bills?