The Importance Of Community College

Students nowadays face many challenges when it comes to obtaining a college education. We evaluate an institution’s quality based on what we need the most. The qualities sought out may vary by each person’s personal point of view. However, as a student, I’ve found that most students seek for an institute that benefits them the most. Attending a community college has been an enormous advantage towards my education. I have been attending San Bernardino Valley College for the last two semesters. I have come to respect their philosophies and values. The institution has now been in business for 87 years. They venture to encourage both students and faculty towards high standards of achievement and progress into exceptional members of the society. They now offer a variety of degrees, transfer programs and certificates for a wide range of students. San Bernardino Valley College has an accomplished staff, student support services and technological tools that pave the road towards the conquest of a quality education.

When I thought about my future and where I 'll be going, I thought I would be attending a university like all of my friends in high-school. I never thought I would be attending a community college. I really hated the idea of community college. I thought it was for people who had low ACT score or people who didn 't really try as hard as others in school. I always tried hard in school even when things got hard I still tried my best. I never thought it would be for me until I saw the benefits of attending a community college. I attend a two year college because I felt like I had a better opportunity to talk to my professor , also to better myself improving my knowledge by stepping out of my comfort zone.

Community college is a great institution for students to start their educational journey. Especially when they do not have the funds or lack some of the prerequisite that a university would require. Community college was created to serve the community, traditional and non-traditional students with the best higher education and lifetime learning opportunities. The faculty and staff members at a community college is there to provide leadership in education while going above and beyond to recognize the needs of the students and the community by providing excellent educational programs and support services that are available to all who have the opportunity to take advantage of them. “Student services now include recruitment and retention, counseling, student activities, student health, financial aid, academic support, career centers, transfer centers, and supplemental services such as transportation, child care, and services tailored for specific populations of students” (Cohen, Brawer, & Krisker, 2014, pg. 209). My philosophy in fulfilling the role and mission of the community college, is to establish the mission, vision, goals and values to guide all students on their journey to strive to become successful both in school and in today’s economy.

According to Jenkins and Fink, the writers for the Community College Research Center, an average of 38% of community colleges students transfer to a 4 year college and 42% of the students complete a bachelor’s degree within the next 6 years. Going to a community college is very beneficial and affordable to children with high or low income. While I am taking Economics my teacher broke down the concepts and benefits of going to a community college versus a university. For example, going to Moraine Valley Community College is about $3,570 a year for their tuition, while the University of Illinois is around $15,686 in tution. If you go to Moraine Valley Community College for 2 years you will only be paying about $7,140 versus going to the University of Illinois for 2 years and paying $31,372 Your saving $24,232 dollars if you go to a 2 year college versus going the whole 4 years. If people are struggling financially this can be a financial advantage. Some junior colleges cost less than two-thousand dollars each semester for students who attend full time and it gives students some time to prepare for a 4 year university if they plan on taking their education further. Going to a community college helps students to set goals and aspects for their future career they want to pursue to transfer to a university. So why doesn’t Joliet West counselors promote the idea of going to a community college?

Community college is an ideal sources for obtaining higher education for many reasons. First, local community colleges provide an affordable alternative to large public and private universities (Grimes, Rezek, Campbell, 2013). In addition to serving as a gateway for economically disadvantaged students, local community colleges serve as a gateway for less academically qualified students (Grimes, Rezek, Campbell, 2013). Many students who are unable to attend highly selective colleges can attend community colleges, obtain a degree and/or transfer to a school that offers or more diverse degree programs (J. Doe, personal communication, November 11, 2015).

Attending a community college usually makes people cringe. It is not the first pick of an average high school student. Community colleges are hardly ever advertised however, the traditional four-year schools are. Throughout all four years of high school the word university is drilled into student brains so exploring the idea of attending a community college does not stand a chance. The football and basketball teams, the sororities and fraternities, to having the bragging rights for attending a well-known university is what students imagine when going to college. Even though students transfer from community colleges into four-year schools, the idea of attending community college is perceived to be the easy way out or a lack of effort. In the

For an Iowa resident, the cost to go to community college is one hundred and forty-five dollars per credit hour. For an undergraduate, each credit hour is worth three hundred and thirty-six dollars, but a graduate credit hour fee is worth five hundred and thirty dollars. Students can save a lot of money by going to a community college rather than a university or private college. Have you seen the news lately? Anything that involves college, especially community college? President Barack Obama is working on this proposal on having the first two years of community college free. That’s right, free! This plan is called the America’s College Promise. This would save students even more money by going to

Many of my friends will tell you I have a story for everything. They will also tell you that it was a mistake for me to go to community college. They are very narrow minded when it comes to the idea of what community college. They believed the stereotypes that it is easier and for uneducated people. But that is not completely true, therefore I ignore them. I may be the one who goes to the community college, but my best friend who is away at a university still calls me for homework help. I have a story for everything and am very talkative, resulting in English being my favorite subject.

Attending community college helped prepare myself as better student and understanding of what is essential to do to succeed at a top university level. I had to teach myself specific work ethics and traits to improve myself as a student. The first trait I constantly worked on during the school year is having more self-discipline as it is necessary to become a successful. I would use intrinsic motivations to succeed as I had the desire to achieve a good GPA and transfer within two years. Also, having this important aspect is necessary as it prepares myself in a learning environment due to the fact that I’m not forced to take notes or show up to class. Another aspect that I needed to improve in is having a positive mindset. Being positive and

First, by offering developmental education, community colleges are able to ensure that educational opportunity is open to all students who enroll, regardless of their academic starting point. While some four-year institutions provide developmental education, the number has decreased over time as community colleges took on more of this role. For the community college, this results in the need to serve a population of students who are typically the most at risk of failure (e.g., returning adults, high school dropouts, immigrants, and a large number of recent high school graduates who lack adequate preparation) (Mellow & Heelan, p. 196). This is just one example of the value that comes from community colleges’ ability to act nimbly to respond to changes in individual students’

To tell the truth, entrance tests in community colleges don’t determine the student's’ passion for education. Placement tests put students off the path to success in their education career. Susan Headden is a senior writer and a prize winning journalist wrote that 72 percent of students who didn’t take the remedial courses and directly went to college level classes “made the wise decision.” On the other hand 27, percent of students who claim to take remedial classes went to the higher level courses in community college. Also, she included that a retired professor at Stanford University, Michael W. Kirst, speaks about students who have been denied from taking college level courses, without letting them try(35). Community colleges make students

After its establishment in 1901, community colleges have become one of our nation’s leading providers of associate degrees, certificate programs, developmental courses, vocational programs, distance learning opportunities, flexible scheduling, childcare, veteran resources, counseling, and employment for the communities (Darby-Hudgens, 2012). After researching how much its role has made profound changes over time, community colleges still remains to be a beacon for higher education.

The Community College system in America is an alternative form of schooling so the student can get out into the workforce quicker than a student could while attending a four-year university. Over the years, the junior college system has progressed to become more intimate within the communities they serve. Whether the student is an older person wanting to learn a new trade, or a young adult trying to figure out what their purpose is in life, the community college is a good place to start. One question some people ask is, “Will the education be the same across the board even with the drastic difference in the cost of tuition?” Many people are hesitant about the cost of a four-year university, but likewise, they are also concerned whether

There are multiple choices to be made when going to community college. Numerous people miss out on the opportunities that community college has in store for them because colleges make it tough on students. In the article “Revamping Community College to Improve Graduation Rates” we can see how improving community college systems can dramatically change the number of students who become graduates. Revamping community college helps improve graduation rates by lowering the cost of community college, requiring less remedial classes in college, and helping community colleges gain a more structured environment for their students.

Once we graduate high school we are excited to get on to the next chapter. We want to get our own place, get a full time job, or travel the world. One major thing a lot of young adults consider is college. When I graduated I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go for my higher education, at first I considered going to a university. After a little research I ended up choosing a community college for these three major reasons; smaller class sizes, more opportunity to get to know people, and of course the expense.