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I left college for a semester, then re-enrolled and graduated. It's incredibly easy to do. If I were a current Harvard student, I'd drop out for the next year.
by gringoDan 6y ago
I left college for a semester, then re-enrolled and graduated. It's incredibly easy to do.
If I were a current Harvard student, I'd drop out for the next year. Take some community college courses, work, travel (in a COVID-responsible way...maybe road trips only).
This is a unique opportunity to get off of the well-trodden path and far preferable to sitting in front of a computer in your parents' house for a year.
There is a huge safety net once you've gotten into an Ivy or other top school. Best case scenario, you start a business and no longer need Harvard, a la Zuckerberg or Gates. Worst case scenario, you graduate broke at 23 (with some great stories), rather than broke at 22 (without the stories).
The value of a college degree is:
1) Signaling/exclusivity (the diploma)
2) The connections you make
3) The subject matter that you learn
4) The social environment – all of the benefits of adulthood with none of the responsibilities
Distance learning only hits #3 on that list. Harvard can get away with charging full tuition for its classes because...it's Harvard. So it also hits #1. But the majority of schools are in for a rude awakening when they realize that students were paying for the social environment and aren't willing to, in the words of Good Will Hunting, "Waste $150,000 on an education you coulda got for $1.50 in late fees at the public library."
- opportune 6y agoUnless you urgently need to start a business right now, I don’t see how this has a higher expected value compared to doing the same after you graduate.
- gringoDan 6y agoIt doesn't have higher expected value and I wouldn't necessarily advise going down this path in normal times. But calculating the expected value only takes into account the diploma and learning subject matter, none of the other benefits. The decision right now is between a) paying full price for a watered-down college experience (graduating earlier) and b) gaining some life experience and potentially getting "the full" college experience in a year or two for the same price (albeit with the drawback of a later graduation date).
- albntomat0 6y agoI'm not the original commenter, but I'd bet their logic is that the value of being at Harvard for 2020-2021 is less than that of Harvard for 2021-2022. The expected value of a startup (heavily dependent on what type of startup...) is the same either this year or next, but the opportunity cost is less.
- asdff 6y agoIt does if the in person version of your classes are more engaging than the online versions you would be stuck with otherwise.
- qntty 6y agoHopefully you're being metaphorical with the use of the term expected value, or are you really suggesting that a young person plans their education based on what's more profitable? Not that money isn't something to consider, but the "value" you get out of your education and other formative experiences isn't measured in dollars.
- barry-cotter 6y agoExpected value encompasses all the things you value, not just money.
- woeirua 6y agoBingo, this is what every college student should be doing right now. Most colleges have a well established process for deferring your education for a year or more due to various exigencies that can arise during those years. I would also argue, that this is what most parents should be doing for their younger kids too. We all know that remote learning sucks for young kids. You basically have to sacrifice one parent to just sit at home and help the kids through their online coursework. At that point, you're better off putting them in daycare for a year, working, and then re-enrolling them for the next year. Will they be behind a year? Sure, but they'll also have a big advantage over their peers who got a half-assed education from the past year and were forced into the next grade.
- thekyle 6y agoI would do this except I would lose my $12,000 a semester in scholarship from my university. Most scholarships do seem to require continuous enrollment. Also, students with deferred loans would need to begin paying those back.
- woeirua 6y agoI think it really depends on the specifics of your situation, which no one online will be able to help you with... At the very least, you could probably drop to a part-time student, which would maintain your scholarships and student loan status, while avoiding the full financial commitment.
- thekyle 6y agoRight. To be clear I wasn't seeking advice as I've already decided what I'm going to do. I was merely pointing out that it's more complicated than pausing enrollment and resuming when things get back to normal.
- evilduck 6y agoWhen I was a student (over a decade ago now) part time status only deferred my financial obligations if I was in my last semester and about to graduate.
- dylan604 6y agogap years, if done responsibly as you say (not in front of the tv), can be extremely life enriching. i'd highly suggest spending some time abroad. getting out of your "only lived at home, now in college" bubble can expose you to other things when you're still young and impressionable while being open to new things.
- mirthflat83 6y ago> I'd drop out for the next year. Take some community college courses Harvard students have better things to do other than taking community college courses... it is absolutely a waste of time to take classes that are a joke.
- spankalee 6y agoWhat classes would be a joke?
- mirthflat83 6y agoAll courses offered at community colleges
- asdff 6y agoSeeing as they still count for course credit, I don't think Harvard considers them to be jokes. I will take the highly paid accreditors at Harvard's opinion over yours, sorry mate.
- mirthflat83 6y agoYou have no clue what you’re talking about. Research more before claiming that they count for course credit
- Blackthorn 6y agoI've taken classes at community colleges and I have a degree from an Ivy League school. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the community college classes, and I learned a great deal from them. I don't know where you got the chip on your shoulder, but I hope no one reads your words and gets the mistaken impression that community college is somehow lesser.
- spankalee 6y agoI guess you're just woefully uninformed then. There are community college classes that could help with that.
- divbzero 6y agoIn fact, students admitted to Harvard this year will not need to drop out to pursue the plan you lay out. Harvard is giving new admits the option to defer admission until the following year. This decision was made, I believe, with recognition that the value of Harvard is in large part the social environment and connections you experience in person.
- koheripbal 6y agoHarvard is a bad example because there are always way more kids that want to go to Harvard than are willing to defer. They can tap the wait list for everyone else.
- draw_down 6y agoI had the same thought, but they’re not gonna stop making matriculating freshmen. So next year you’ll be competing with the new class plus the leftovers from your class. Kinda sucks for all involved.
- throwaway1313 6y agoDeferrals require you to re-apply, which means you might not get in again.
- koheripbal 6y agoThat depends on the school. Many do not require you to re-apply.