I’ve been in a grand total of (roughly) 32 college courses during my college career.  I did a little math (with my cell phone calculator because I haven’t taken a math class since high school) and that puts about 960 students in my life.  That’s a lot of a-holes students in a small classroom.

So in honor of National Dunce Day, I wanted to take a moment and highlight those people in class who make our hair stand up on our arms, the muscles in our cheekbones twitch, and our blood pressures rise.

Today is their day. Hopefully they’ll celebrate by taking the day off from school….

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Big Brother is watching you, students....

[It's pretty obvious that the average CollegeCandy reader has some very strong opinions. Opinions that she likes to share with everyone on the site. We love a strong woman (unless she happens to be charging at us with her fists raised), so we thought we'd give her a real forum to discuss her thoughts, feelings, and perspectives. Every Friday I'll be featuring a hot topic (like cheating confessions! ) and leaving it up to you, the readers, to duke it out. So, read it and get your debate on in the comments section below!]

Ah, George Orwell, how miserable you made my life in high school. But look, now it’s happening again – except this time it’s not Mr. Orwell’s fault that I’ve got Big Brother on the brain (no, not the TV show… is that still on?). This time it’s Northern Arizona University and their plan to install an attendance system that electronically reads student ID cards to tell if you showed up to your giant lecture course. Yeah, OK, first thing I thought when I heard about this was “so you just have to get a friend to carry your card to class, no big,” but the more I think about it, the more qualms I have.

In the school’s defense, attendance is important and even though we all know it, when that 7:30 alarm goes off, sometimes it’s easy to just ignore that little fact. I know more than one person who lost scholarship money over their grades just because they skipped out on class a few too many times. We should show up to class, but we don’t always, so I can get why the school is trying to step up and actually help (force) its students to do the right thing for themselves. Read More »

College. Sigh. It’s unlike any other time in your life. It has its own set of rules, its own unique circumstances. And it’s not always easy to navigate. Everyone needs a little guidance now and then (or always) so we’ve pulled together a variety of perspectives (the does-it-all girl, the party girl and Ms. Study Lounge) to weigh in on your life conundrums and give you the best advice we can.

Every week they’ll be tackling your questions about college. From classes to keggers to keggers before classes, they’ll do their best to respond and be your Pez dispenser of collegiate wisdom. Got questions? Unsure of a decision? Just wanna chat it up with some really awesome chics?

Hit them up in the comments or shoot them an email with the subject “College Q&A”!

Question:
OK, so I have a 8am lecture 3 days a week next semester. Even better, it’s a requirement which I DO NOT want to take. There are apparently over 200 people in the class, the prof puts the notes online, he’s apparently horribly boring and I really don’t feel like getting up at 7 to go. Especially since my next class isn’t until 2pm. Annoying.

What do you think?Can I get by without it or do I really need to be there to pass the class?

Busy Bee:
I completely understand – many college requirements seem like a waste, the overwhelming students make you feel unimportant, and the prof makes you want to jump right back into bed. But honestly, I don’t think you should sign up for a class you don’t intend on ever attending. Think about it: is there any other class you can sign up for? If not a different class altogether, maybe the same class at a different time with a different prof? I know that a majority of college students end up skipping class, but being a student who doesn’t, I’ve learned that the teachers often go over things that aren’t always in the notes. In addition, you’re paying ridiculous amounts of money to be in that classroom, so I say you make the most of it. At least sign up for a class you’d be motivated to attend, or don’t do it at all. I mean, with all that you have going on, are you really going to get up at 7am? Lastly, what’s passing for you? Is it a C or is it an A? If you’re trying to get on the Dean’s List, then get yo bootay to class! Read More »

"WHY DIDN'T I SAVE THAT?!"

Did you know that college was all about academics?

Yeah, we didn’t get that memo either. We spent more time researching easy professors, building a schedule that didn’t require waking up before noon/at all on Fridays, and playing Kings, than actually studying. And now that we’re out of school and forced to use what we “learned” in college to survive, we’re kinda regretting opting for that easy American Culture class over a much more useful economics section.

Other big regrets: getting drunk before a giant presentation on St. Patrick’s Day, skipping discussion sections to snuggle with the BF, and taking that 1-credit “blow off” that actually had two 10-page papers and a final exam. Who knew one stupid credit could wreak such havoc on your GPA?

It’s obvious that most of us have made some poor decisions in college (and I’m not talking about the time I double fisted a fifth of Captain’s and a 2-liter of Diet Coke); it’s hard to think of academics, learning and our futures when there are football games to attend and beds to sleep in. This week I asked the CollegeCandy writers to share their biggest academic regrets. Maybe you can learn from them. Maybe you can relate to them. And I know you definitely have some of your own to share. Read More »