College Help?

[Buorhann]

So I am lowkey vomiting at the moment.

 

I will be going into my Junior year of high school as an IB student. My unweighted is a 3.68 and I am not proud of that. I will definitely be trying a lot better the next couple of years so I am expecting it to go up. I'll do some dual enrollment classes soon, so that will raise my weighted (4.01). It's not great but it is what it is.

I guess I was counting on a scholarship to an in-state school like University of Florida but I don't think I will get in, but I won't be able to afford it anyway.

 

My parents have about $4,000 saved up for me and they are doing the best they can. On top of that, I probably won't be able to get in to a good US school with my GPA so low. I refuse to go to a community college.

 

 

 

Refusing to go to a community college is a very terrible choice.  Community colleges not only give you a cheaper option for college credits, but they also open up several opportunities for scholarships and honor society groups.  People tend to overlook community colleges due to some odd 'negative' stigma that they don't live up to universities.  It's !@#$ really.

 

You are really overlooking that.

 

When I went through community college, my GPA was above a 3.75.  I had scholarships up the ass.  I joined two honor society groups through community college and had to assist other students with encouraging them to do better, as well as assisting them with finding scholarships they could apply for.  I had several trips to leadership conferences paid for, and managed to meet William "Bill" Nye and Dr. Michio Kaku ( I have a picture with the latter, and yes - the Science Guy ).  I also got to meet several other individuals, ranging from state supreme court judges to politicians to CEOs of big businesses.

 

Two individuals I assisted with on scholarships, both of them managed to grab the Jack Kent Cooke scholarship and were able to go to Ivy League schools through it ( One went to Harvard, the other went to Columbia; unfortunately I didn't get it although I was in the Top 100 ).  All of this through attending a community college.

 

When I graduated highschool, I left with 2.1 GPA.  Not a great score at first.  I immediately went to college, which was already paid for ( family is good with finances ), and blew that away ( 1.3 GPA when I "dropped" out ).  5+ years later, decided to straighten my life out, went back to community college paid through financial aid; after a semester of all As, was invited to join honor groups and you already read part of my achievements earlier in this reply.

 

Now I have "free" schooling through scholarships.  Not a dime left my pocket to pay for anything school related and I have no student loan debt.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

It is mighty tempting to go to a foreign school though.  If my life had taken a different direction when the choice was available, I most likely would've went to a foreign school.  I like discovering other cultures first hand.

Edited July 21, 2015 by Buorhann

[MRBOOTY]

 

AP, IB, and Dual Enrollment. Dual Enrollment is a big thing in Florida for some reason. I took the PSAT like the second week of freshman year and got a 1650 equivalent. I think I'll get in the 2100 range on my SAT for sure. As far as stats, student council, NEXUS (webmaster for school), National Honor Society and a sh** ton of volunteer hours (200+ so far).

 

FSU is out simply because of all of the FSU bashing I have done in my day. With ethnicity, I am half hispanic, and 1/8 Chinese (that may not count).

In all seriousness, if I get into UF but don't get enough financial aid, I probably won't go to an American university. That is probably bad thinking but I don't want to be halfway though my life and still be paying off student loans; that is probably one of my main concerns.

 

 

 

 

Wait, what? Dude, you have a fan!@#$ingtastic application. Like Ivy League competitive level. UF is a lock. 

 

You may have a shitton of college credit when you arrive. Try to graduate in three years. Ironically, I'm taking a community college class in the summer, just to be able to do this

 

Anyway, good luck, and you can hit me up in-game with any more questions or worries.

 

 

Apply for the Gates scholarship. 

[ELPINCHAZO]

I am going to college to be Engineer.

 Trust me, no one will care if you were smart enough to save some cash by taking some freshman classes at a community college.

 

Engineering people care about results,not pedigree (Well at least not any that I've ever worked with).

 

The only thing I've noticed is that those that attended a technical as opposed to liberal arts school tended to be better off/prepared.

[Buorhann]

 Trust me, no one will care if you were smart enough to save some cash by taking some freshman classes at a community college.

 

Engineering people care about results,not pedigree (Well at least not any that I've ever worked with).

 

The only thing I've noticed is that those that attended a technical as opposed to liberal arts school tended to be better off/prepared.

 

 

Have to agree with this.  My father is pretty high up in a power company and I asked him about this.  He said for the most part that they do not care for schools as long as it's a credited university and not some online degree.  They do look at some universities first, but that's mainly due to partnership programs.

 

So you could check into that ahead of time, see if UF has a partnership program that goes in line with the degree you want to pursue.

[Sweeeeet Ronny D]

Another option you could do is if finances are tough, go ROTC, and the military will pay for your education, and you will have a guaranteed job solid paying job when you graduate, and depending on what branch you go into (I would recommend air force personally), you will graduate as an officer and your chances of ever seeing any kind of combat are low (especially if you graduate as an engineer)

[seabasstion]

dont entirely dismiss community college. the first 1-2 years of your undergrad core can easily be earned through community college and transferred over to a larger program. it is also significantly cheaper and makes the transition less painful (as in less wasted money on now useless credits) should you decide to change your major

[Odin]

If you want to study in Germany, just check if the lessons are in german or english.

You can try to learn it, but you don't really need to bother doing it^^. If you go to München you can't understand the people since they speak bavarian, even the youth

And if you try to start talking in high german, they most probably just swap to english themselves for convenience.

But if you start, you have some time to learn it there. Just learn it from american and don't bother to learn the gender of nouns for the beginning or complicated time forms, then it's rather simple. 

 

 

If you want High german countries, take Unis in Northern Germany.

 

High living costs can be avoided if you check for dorms or take a cheap rental apartment somewhat in the suburbs and take the train/bus, which again is subsidized for students.

Edited July 21, 2015 by Wilhelm II

[Lu Xun]

dont entirely dismiss community college. the first 1-2 years of your undergrad core can easily be earned through community college and transferred over to a larger program. it is also significantly cheaper and makes the transition less painful (as in less wasted money on now useless credits) should you decide to change your major

Depending on the CC / Junior College you can still transfer into a relatively decent program. For instance, I know a guy who transferred into Berkeley from community college in Cali. There are also a few junior colleges that specialize in having students transfer into Ivies, although these types of junior colleges are in themselves difficult to get into. I also know of someone who earned an associate's degree in Switzerland, then moved to University of Chicago.

 

CC / JC is only a problem if you plan to end your education there, although you will have to deal with people who resemble more the chuckleheads you dealt with in high school for longer than if you had directly matriculated into a 4-year program.

Edited July 21, 2015 by Inst

[ELPINCHAZO]

Another option you could do is if finances are tough, go ROTC, and the military will pay for your education, and you will have a guaranteed job solid paying job when you graduate, and depending on what branch you go into (I would recommend air force personally), you will graduate as an officer and your chances of ever seeing any kind of combat are low (especially if you graduate as an engineer)

Eh,if you are trying to get into something like the Army Corp of Engineers it actually isn't always easy. My Ex-Brother-in-law was denied a commission because some General didn't like that he didn't work during school (he had a large sum of money willed to him) despite having completed a very specific Masters in Engineering. So,just beware that the higher the stakes are the more politics might play into things. Nothing should ever be taken as certain.

 

also 'chances of ever seeing any kind of combat are low'  ....I find that funny since I remember all the people freaking out when the first Gulf War started because they actually had to earn that GI Bill $$$. Low chances are still chances.

 

Another option is to find a company that is geared towards Engineering and try to find a low level position there(e.g. technician). Lots of these places will have tuition reimbursement and you might also find some mentors while gaining some relevant experience. If I had to go back and do everything over again this would probably be my approach.

Edited July 21, 2015 by ELPINCHAZO

[Milkman]

In my experience, your ACT/SAT score is a lot more important than your high school GPA when it comes to getting scholarships.

 

I managed like a 27 or 28 on the ACT and that would have got me tuition at a lot of school's like Jacksonville State University. One of my friends pulled like 30 on the ACT but had a 2.8 GPA, and bot only did he not have to pay a dime for housing, food, tuition, or books...the school ended up giving him money to attend.

 

Now they do not offer an engineering prograyou but they did have pre-engineering which would allow you to go their for two years and then you would have to transfer out to finish the degree. But if you can do great on the ACT/SAT there may be something similar in your area....

 

Also don't rule out community college so quick. You could take your electives and work while still living with your parents. This would allow you to save up some money until you can afford to transfer.

[Sweeeeet Ronny D]

Eh,if you are trying to get into something like the Army Corp of Engineers it actually isn't always easy. My Ex-Brother-in-law was denied a commission because some General didn't like that he didn't work during school (he had a large sum of money willed to him) despite having completed a very specific Masters in Engineering. So,just beware that the higher the stakes are the more politics might play into things. Nothing should ever be taken as certain.

 

also 'chances of ever seeing any kind of combat are low'  ....I find that funny since I remember all the people freaking out when the first Gulf War started because they actually had to earn that GI Bill $$$. Low chances are still chances.

 

Another option is to find a company that is geared towards Engineering and try to find a low level position there(e.g. technician). Lots of these places will have tuition reimbursement and you might also find some mentors while gaining some relevant experience. If I had to go back and do everything over again this would probably be my approach.

That is why you don't do the ROTC for Army, do it for the Airforce or Navy,  I have a bunch of buddies that all are engineers that graduated in the last 10 years, and out of all of them only one was stationed overseas in Iraq, and he never left the base the entire time he was there.  The only guy I know that saw any sort of real combat was Army.

[Braunsberg]

Luckily I am a part of NHS and currently have a little over 200 hours.

And thanks for everything else you mentioned.

Woo, 200 hours. That's almost legendary, haha. I just stuck to what was required.

 

I think you are in a much better position for applications than you think you are. Even if you don't think your GPA is top-notch - and even so, it's pretty close - your other attributes are more than enough to get you into most colleges. As long as you do well on your SAT or ACT, you'll be right at the front of the competition. Especially with that many volunteer hours - colleges love volunteer people, and even in NHS most students around here graduate with like 35 total.

 

So I wouldn't be worried about your chances - things are looking great for you. Just keep working hard and put a lot of time into your college applications, and I think you'll get just what you're looking for.

[Alexander]

Refusing to go to a community college is a very terrible choice.  Community colleges not only give you a cheaper option for college credits, but they also open up several opportunities for scholarships and honor society groups.  People tend to overlook community colleges due to some odd 'negative' stigma that they don't live up to universities.  It's !@#$ really.

 

You are really overlooking that.

 

When I went through community college, my GPA was above a 3.75.  I had scholarships up the ass.  I joined two honor society groups through community college and had to assist other students with encouraging them to do better, as well as assisting them with finding scholarships they could apply for.  I had several trips to leadership conferences paid for, and managed to meet William "Bill" Nye and Dr. Michio Kaku ( I have a picture with the latter, and yes - the Science Guy ).  I also got to meet several other individuals, ranging from state supreme court judges to politicians to CEOs of big businesses.

 

Two individuals I assisted with on scholarships, both of them managed to grab the Jack Kent Cooke scholarship and were able to go to Ivy League schools through it ( One went to Harvard, the other went to Columbia; unfortunately I didn't get it although I was in the Top 100 ).  All of this through attending a community college.

 

When I graduated highschool, I left with 2.1 GPA.  Not a great score at first.  I immediately went to college, which was already paid for ( family is good with finances ), and blew that away ( 1.3 GPA when I "dropped" out ).  5+ years later, decided to straighten my life out, went back to community college paid through financial aid; after a semester of all As, was invited to join honor groups and you already read part of my achievements earlier in this reply.

 

Now I have "free" schooling through scholarships.  Not a dime left my pocket to pay for anything school related and I have no student loan debt.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

It is mighty tempting to go to a foreign school though.  If my life had taken a different direction when the choice was available, I most likely would've went to a foreign school.  I like discovering other cultures first hand.

I see what you mean with the community colleges now. I guess I never considered it a viable option because of that stigma you're talking about. And congrats on your accomplishments and turning your course of actions around.

 

Wait, what? Dude, you have a fan !@#$tastic application. Like Ivy League competitive level. UF is a lock. 

 

You may have a shitton of college credit when you arrive. Try to graduate in three years. Ironically, I'm taking a community college class in the summer, just to be able to do this

 

Anyway, good luck, and you can hit me up in-game with any more questions or worries.

 

 

Apply for the Gates scholarship. 

I guess the only reason that I don't have much confidence is because everyone in my high school are legitimately National Merit Scholars, and International Science fair worthy and other craaazzy sh**; it is a magnet school so I guess it makes sense. I have also read some sob stories online about florida residents with stats better than me getting denied; I mean that is bound to happen, but for some reason, recently, they have gotten much more selective.

 

 Trust me, no one will care if you were smart enough to save some cash by taking some freshman classes at a community college.

 

Engineering people care about results,not pedigree (Well at least not any that I've ever worked with).

 

The only thing I've noticed is that those that attended a technical as opposed to liberal arts school tended to be better off/prepared.

I see what you're saying. Awhile back, in like 6th grade we had a 'Career Exploration' class and we took all of these tests to see what job best fits us. (I ended up getting Intelligence Officer for the Air Force :/) Anyways, they kept drilling into our heads that a degree from a well known University (as opposed to a  degree from a community college) is one of the biggest deciding factors in an employer deciding who to hire.

 

As a result, I think I have always been worried about going to a big university over anything, and if that means going to former Yugoslavia to get it (lol, jk) I will.

 

Have to agree with this.  My father is pretty high up in a power company and I asked him about this.  He said for the most part that they do not care for schools as long as it's a credited university and not some online degree.  They do look at some universities first, but that's mainly due to partnership programs.

 

So you could check into that ahead of time, see if UF has a partnership program that goes in line with the degree you want to pursue.

What exactly is a partnership program? Is it like an internship? Would it be better to go to a community college with a partnership program than to a university without one?

 

Another option you could do is if finances are tough, go ROTC, and the military will pay for your education, and you will have a guaranteed job solid paying job when you graduate, and depending on what branch you go into (I would recommend air force personally), you will graduate as an officer and your chances of ever seeing any kind of combat are low (especially if you graduate as an engineer)

I have considered going into the air force for that reason; I am not opposed to it, but it is probably a last resort.

 

dont entirely dismiss community college. the first 1-2 years of your undergrad core can easily be earned through community college and transferred over to a larger program. it is also significantly cheaper and makes the transition less painful (as in less wasted money on now useless credits) should you decide to change your major

Yea, although the IB diploma will give me enough college credit for a majority of the core stuff, so I'm not sure if I should take those classes now anyway.

 

If you want to study in Germany, just check if the lessons are in german or english.

You can try to learn it, but you don't really need to bother doing it^^. If you go to München you can't understand the people since they speak bavarian, even the youth

And if you try to start talking in high german, they most probably just swap to english themselves for convenience.

But if you start, you have some time to learn it there. Just learn it from american and don't bother to learn the gender of nouns for the beginning or complicated time forms, then it's rather simple. 

 

 

If you want High german countries, take Unis in Northern Germany.

 

High living costs can be avoided if you check for dorms or take a cheap rental apartment somewhat in the suburbs and take the train/bus, which again is subsidized for students.

That is what turned me off with German the most; the gender stuff. I am used to the latin languages with Portuguese and Spanish :S. I am really considering Germany to go to college, and if the high cost of living can be avoided I will be paying a comparable amount to if I went to college here with a full-ride, so I might as well get a cultural experience along with it.

 

And nothing beats German Engineering .

 

Eh,if you are trying to get into something like the Army Corp of Engineers it actually isn't always easy. My Ex-Brother-in-law was denied a commission because some General didn't like that he didn't work during school (he had a large sum of money willed to him) despite having completed a very specific Masters in Engineering. So,just beware that the higher the stakes are the more politics might play into things. Nothing should ever be taken as certain.

also 'chances of ever seeing any kind of combat are low'  ....I find that funny since I remember all the people freaking out when the first Gulf War started because they actually had to earn that GI Bill $$$. Low chances are still chances.

 

Another option is to find a company that is geared towards Engineering and try to find a low level position there(e.g. technician). Lots of these places will have tuition reimbursement and you might also find some mentors while gaining some relevant experience. If I had to go back and do everything over again this would probably be my approach.

My brother went into the Army and he hated it. He's the ideal man for the military but didn't like it. He ended up getting honorable discharge for being 1% over the allowed weight when the PT came around.

 

With regards to finding a company, would you have done that now, or when you graduate high school?

[Alexander]

 

In my experience, your ACT/SAT score is a lot more important than your high school GPA when it comes to getting scholarships.

 

I managed like a 27 or 28 on the ACT and that would have got me tuition at a lot of school's like Jacksonville State University. One of my friends pulled like 30 on the ACT but had a 2.8 GPA, and bot only did he not have to pay a dime for housing, food, tuition, or books...the school ended up giving him money to attend.

 

Now they do not offer an engineering prograyou but they did have pre-engineering which would allow you to go their for two years and then you would have to transfer out to finish the degree. But if you can do great on the ACT/SAT there may be something similar in your area....

 

Also don't rule out community college so quick. You could take your electives and work while still living with your parents. This would allow you to save up some money until you can afford to transfer.

I'm doing the Khan Academy SAT prep. I believe my class is the first to take the 'new SAT' so that will be interesting. How much does SAT matter vs GPA when it comes to getting accepted into colleges?

 

With that Jacksonville State pre-engineering program, when you transfer out, where do you transfer to? Another university that has the program? If so, does that means you need to apply all over again or does the college supply an easy pathway to transfer to another University?

 

That is why you don't do the ROTC for Army, do it for the Airforce or Navy,  I have a bunch of buddies that all are engineers that graduated in the last 10 years, and out of all of them only one was stationed overseas in Iraq, and he never left the base the entire time he was there.  The only guy I know that saw any sort of real combat was Army.

If I go that route I will definitely do Air Force. 

 

Woo, 200 hours. That's almost legendary, haha. I just stuck to what was required.

 

I think you are in a much better position for applications than you think you are. Even if you don't think your GPA is top-notch - and even so, it's pretty close - your other attributes are more than enough to get you into most colleges. As long as you do well on your SAT or ACT, you'll be right at the front of the competition. Especially with that many volunteer hours - colleges love volunteer people, and even in NHS most students around here graduate with like 35 total.

 

So I wouldn't be worried about your chances - things are looking great for you. Just keep working hard and put a lot of time into your college applications, and I think you'll get just what you're looking for. 

Haha, with IB you have to do these things called CAS hours - community - action - service. You have to fill out all of the forms. It is hell.

I woke up this morning and I remember you said that your birthday was (yesterday?) and you got the German Rosetta Stone. I forgot to say Happy Birthday

 

 

 

Well I graduate in 2017 so if Bernie Sanders wins the 2016 election, maybe he will try to implement free college education and 80% of the youth of today's anxiety will disappear. 

Edited July 21, 2015 by Alex

[ELPINCHAZO]

With regards to finding a company, would you have done that now, or when you graduate high school?

 

Shit,if you can find one now great.  Even if its like washing lab glassware,that gets your foot in the door and gives you access to people. You get a chance to let them know you are interested. You can hopefully show them that you have some brains/work ethic. Maybe start with a summer unpaid internship if you can't find something paid. 

[ELPINCHAZO]

!@#$,if you can find one now great.  Even if its like washing lab glassware,that gets your foot in the door and gives you access to people. You get a chance to let them know you are interested. You can hopefully show them that you have some brains/work ethic. Maybe start with a summer unpaid internship if you can't find something paid. 

 

 

we had an intern at my job last summer that got in because her dad knew 2 VPs. She was a nice girl but extremely lazy and entitled,she wasted a great opportunity.

 

 

Also,consider schools with strong work programs like NorthEastern. It is VERY nice to have actual work experience when you complete your degree,gives you a leg up in the job market.

[Buorhann]

 

I see what you mean with the community colleges now. I guess I never considered it a viable option because of that stigma you're talking about. And congrats on your accomplishments and turning your course of actions around.

 

 

What exactly is a partnership program? Is it like an internship? Would it be better to go to a community college with a partnership program than to a university without one?

 

 

 

Thank you.

 

Some partnership programs are like internships, others are more like technical programs - so you're not far off from the description.  As for your question, YES!  It's way better to go through a partnership/internship/technical program through a community college than attend a university without one.

 

The experience from the programs will transfer with you to your university, but what companies look for - is the experience itself.  If they see that you attended this program, then you're more than likely to jump above most resumes.

 

Another thing - join as many honor groups as you can since you're a high expectation student.  Just by being in two honor groups, I had so many interviews lined up for me.  It's crazy just how useful honor groups can be for a resume.

 

As a matter of fact, I helped push an initiative for Phi Theta Kappa honor society to start looking at high achievement high school students before they attend college.  I haven't checked up lately on the status of that, but it was high on their priority list and they're the main ones who paid off my college tuition.  They also had access to finding scholarships that you can apply for as well. (www.ptk.org if you're curious to look further into it ; don't know what their status is for Florida though, but I know there's a big group in that state from the conferences I went to - plus there's a lot of fine looking girls)

Edited July 21, 2015 by Buorhann

[Braunsberg]

Haha, with IB you have to do these things called CAS hours - community - action - service. You have to fill out all of the forms. It is hell.

I woke up this morning and I remember you said that your birthday was (yesterday?) and you got the German Rosetta Stone. I forgot to say Happy Birthday

 

Well I graduate in 2017 so if Bernie Sanders wins the 2016 election, maybe he will try to implement free college education and 80% of the youth of today's anxiety will disappear. 

Thank you! Just turned 18, this week I will have to put my name in for the draft and I will also register with the Democratic Party. So there's one more vote for Bernie and your free college education, haha.

[Alexander]

we had an intern at my job last summer that got in because her dad knew 2 VPs. She was a nice girl but extremely lazy and entitled,she wasted a great opportunity.

 

 

Also,consider schools with strong work programs like NorthEastern. It is VERY nice to have actual work experience when you complete your degree,gives you a leg up in the job market.

I will certainly look into that. Thanks

 

plus there's a lot of fine looking girls)

lol

 

Thank you! Just turned 18, this week I will have to put my name in for the draft and I will also register with the Democratic Party. So there's one more vote for Bernie and your free college education, haha.

I actually registered as an independent. I can't vote in any primary anyway because of my age, but come 2016 they'll mail me my voters registration card before the election so I can vote then. Hopefully the democrats take a good look at Hillary and Bernie and make a good decision. 

 

Thank you.

 

Some partnership programs are like internships, others are more like technical programs - so you're not far off from the description.  As for your question, YES!  It's way better to go through a partnership/internship/technical program through a community college than attend a university without one.

 

The experience from the programs will transfer with you to your university, but what companies look for - is the experience itself.  If they see that you attended this program, then you're more than likely to jump above most resumes.

 

Another thing - join as many honor groups as you can since you're a high expectation student.  Just by being in two honor groups, I had so many interviews lined up for me.  It's crazy just how useful honor groups can be for a resume.

 

As a matter of fact, I helped push an initiative for Phi Theta Kappa honor society to start looking at high achievement high school students before they attend college.  I haven't checked up lately on the status of that, but it was high on their priority list and they're the main ones who paid off my college tuition.  They also had access to finding scholarships that you can apply for as well. (www.ptk.org if you're curious to look further into it ; don't know what their status is for Florida though, but I know there's a big group in that state from the conferences I went to - plus there's a lot of fine looking girls)

I am certainly going to look into those partnership programs. When they payed off your tuition, you were already in college, I assume, so did they contact you while you were a member, or did you ask them to pay it off? How often do they pay their members' tuition off?

Edited July 21, 2015 by Alex

[Buorhann]

I went into business management, I'm speaking from the experience of my father - which yes, the program he joined got him into specific scholarships that did help pay for his college tuition.

 

The key point here is looking for ways to attract scholarships to you.  The partnership programs just help you get your foot into the door of future employers ( Basically guaranteeing you a job ).  By going through community college, keeping my grades up, and joining as many honor society groups I could get into ( As well as other miscellaneous groups like LordRahl2 suggested ), I was able to apply for several scholarships that paid my own tuition. 

[Crust]

If you're weighing between studying abroad or not I'd recommend checking with different colleges in your country to see if they have any special agreements with international colleges/universities. I know my university has a lot of agreements with a wide range of universities and colleges from east to west coast, which means you could spend a semester or two studying in another part of the world with some perks. Like they'd probably help you get a visa, plus it would grantee that the school you attend has an international status, with students from all parts of the world.

 

For example: since Stockholm University has these deals with schools from other countries we've got a lot of non-swedish students, thus a lot of parties and clubs for people who are knew to the country. I can imagine a university in Berlin or Munich being the same in that regard.

 

But what you gotta ask yourself is how long you'd wanna study abroad. Is it just for a semester or for 3-5 years? It could totally be worth it either way. You get to establish a diverse network which can later on be a perfect way to get a job once you've gotten a degree. The more people you know increases the chance of you getting a good job and studying overseas is a perfect way to get to know a lot of people. Plus it tends to look good on your resume.

 

And I agree with Buorhann. Colleges/universities that offers internship with their programs are generally much better at getting you an actual job than a fancier university without internships, Sometimes you don't even have to get your degree before companies start making you job offers.

[Alexander]

If you're weighing between studying abroad or not I'd recommend checking with different colleges in your country to see if they have any special agreements with international colleges/universities. I know my university has a lot of agreements with a wide range of universities and colleges from east to west coast, which means you could spend a semester or two studying in another part of the world with some perks. Like they'd probably help you get a visa, plus it would grantee that the school you attend has an international status, with students from all parts of the world.

 

For example: since Stockholm University has these deals with schools from other countries we've got a lot of non-swedish students, thus a lot of parties and clubs for people who are knew to the country. I can imagine a university in Berlin or Munich being the same in that regard.

 

But what you gotta ask yourself is how long you'd wanna study abroad. Is it just for a semester or for 3-5 years? It could totally be worth it either way. You get to establish a diverse network which can later on be a perfect way to get a job once you've gotten a degree. The more people you know increases the chance of you getting a good job and studying overseas is a perfect way to get to know a lot of people. Plus it tends to look good on your resume.

 

And I agree with Buorhann. Colleges/universities that offers internship with their programs are generally much better at getting you an actual job than a fancier university without internships, Sometimes you don't even have to get your degree before companies start making you job offers.

I took a quick look into University of Florida's exchange programs and there are so many things. I didn't realize they were this expansive: https://www.abroad.ufic.ufl.edu/index.cfm?FuseAction=Programs.SearchResults&Program_Name=&Program_Type_ID=1π=%7F&pc=%7F&pr=%7F&pt=%7F&Partner_ID=ANY&p_10004=%7F&p_10004_t=MULTI&p_10005=%7F&p_10005_t=MULTI&p_10008=%7F&p_10008_t=SELCT&p_10006=%7F&p_10006_t=MULTI&p_10010=%7F&p_10010_t=MULTI&p_10011=%7F&p_10011_t=MULTI&p_10015=%7F&p_10015_t=MULTI&p_10009=&p_10009_t=YESNO&p_10013=UF+Exchange%7F&p_10013_t=MULTI&p_10020=&p_10020_t=YESNO&p_10018=%7F&p_10018_t=SELCT&p_10021=%7F&p_10021_t=MULTI&Sort=Program_Name&Order=asc&pp=10004%2C10005%2C10008%2C10006%2C10010%2C10011%2C10015%2C10009%2C10013%2C10020%2C10018%2C10021

 

Anyways, maybe this is what I've been looking for. A little adventure, without so much risk of just hopping on a plane to Brazil, haha.

 

Let's say I were to pursue a master's degree. After IB I will go into college roughly halfway through my second year; this means it would take me 4 1/2 years for a master's degree. I would spend 1/2 a year completing my second year at UF, and since the 3rd year of college is when the exchange program starts, would that mean that I'd spend the 3rd year, 4th year and the two extra years for the master's in the exchange college?

 

Does anyone know of anyone who took advantage of their college's programs? 

Edited July 22, 2015 by Alex

[saeton]

I went to community college because I refused to take the SAT or ACT (I was rebellious) and instead just took the entrance exam, aced the hell out of it, and got in. About a year later I decided to take the MCAT, got a 36 (which was bloody amazing) but since I didn't take the SAT or ACT, I ended up screwing myself over because I couldn't get into any med school. Plus some of my favorite professors I've ever had were there and not at any other University I've been to.

 

Also, keep in mind that it all depends on what you want to do. My university has amazing programs in Criminal Justice, Geography, and some other stuff. Hell, we're even one of five universities in the entire world (six if you count Sydney building one soon) that has an on-site body farm (granted it's a few miles away and only forensic anthropological students with their professors can access it, but still) to study decomposition, so that's saying something. But some of our other programs are jokes. 

 

I'm sure people hiring in that field will know which programs are better in regards to that, so don't be ashamed of community college, state schools, etc. It's where YOU are able to go with scholarships and stuff, not your parents. 

[Ungawa Jones]

If you choose to study in Germany, you do not need to know German. However, you will be expected to take German courses each semester so that eventually you DO know German. Coincidentally I am also named Alex and have Brazilian family in the USA. Personally, I am a Junior at the University of Georgia who has several programs abroad. Going in foreign countries  where I know little of the language has definitely helped me learn languages I knew very little about. Most of the schools I've been told about that have programs for international students with good programs are either in the south (Florianopolis, Rio) or Sao Paulo as you said in the OP. If you know the basics of Portuguese, you should do quite well and my experience there showed people are very friendly and patient. People were more so impressed I knew Portuguese rather than being irritated at my poor grammar (my weakest strength in the language outside of present and future tense). Although depending where you are safety is a huge concern and I'm constantly reminded about it by my family whenever I visit.

 

Although, I didn't really see too many programs where the tuition or fees were low in Brazil, but Germany was probably the best I saw recently and they are actively looking for American students to come and study, especially to make German a more popular language to learn and for business reasons. It's definitely worth researching. I'm strongly considering applying to a few German universities for my masters and learning German. Here's a recent article by BBC about it: http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-32821678

Edited August 1, 2015 by Fanag

[Sailor Jerry]

When I was in the U.S. Navy and was stationed over in Japan, I met my wife there. She was born and raised in ulstate NY, buf when her dad got an offer to go and work in Japan, she went over and went to Temple University in Tokyo for 4 years, unfortunately for her, she was a few classes short when she came back to the states and had to do a semester at Temple main in Philly. My point is, that she was able to go to a school in another country and the language barrier was not an issue.

 

Also, like was stated before, there is the military. Check out the ROTC/NROTC programs at the colleges you want to go to. The military will pay for your college and all you have to do isa 4 year term of "Obligated Service" (ObliServ). You go to college for 4 years, go into the military at around 22 years old as an officer, do 4 years of service, you're out at 26 years old, with your degree, no student loans and 4 years of leadership/management experience. Also, if you like the military and stay in until your 20 mark, you'll retire from the military at around 38 years old, pulling 50% of your base pay, ever month......for the rest of your life! At 20 years of service, you'd be pretty close to being an AF/Army/Marine Col or Navy/CG Capt. And those guys make fat cash! I was only enlisted, but I get about $1800/month every month for the rest of my life!