Should You Go Straight to College?

Many students contemplate life after high school with almost more interest than high school itself… There are many things that students choose to do right out of high school: college, apprenticeship, vocational school, work for the family business, start their own business, even backpack through Europe (or some other form of taking a year off between high school and college).

But you’ve probably been encouraged to go to college. And many, if not most, of you probably should go to college and you should go directly as in no breaks, no vacations, no backpacking through Europe – or, in other words, “Do Not Pass Go, Do Not Collect $200.”

But it’s not as obvious a decision as you might think. After all, getting a degree from a four-year college or university, on average, takes 5 years of your life. Only 39%, nationwide, graduate in four years. Why might that be? Scheduling can be difficult at times and if you ever need to retake a course it might only be offered once a year, and what if that course is a prerequisite for the rest of your major. What if, like me (and many college students), you change your major once or twice? College is where students really discover what they are passionate about, what they are good at, and what they want to do. But all of that takes time.

Some students are fortunate to discover what they want while taking general education credits and don’t have to start all over with new or different graduation requirements when they change their major. That is the approach I would recommend. Most students, even if they have a firm grasp of what they want to do, may inevitably change their mind or have an experience that shows them they may wish to change their plans. I call that an “Ah Ha” moment.


Other students take 20 or more credits of a specific major before they have their “Ah Ha” moment and decide to change from, for example, French to Veterinary Sciences. In cases like that most of those French courses won’t count even as electives for the Vet Science degree. And now you not only have to take longer because you need to take other “required” courses, but you also have to pay for both the French that doesn’t count and the new courses. Remember, even after financial aid, that college degree will probably cost you (or at least your parents) a small fortune – even if you pay it back over the next 30 years.

That is why it is generally a good idea to test out other majors or try the interesting elective or Gen Ed classes early in your college career. Some good ways to test the waters:

-Sit in on an advanced class. You may want to speak to the professor or an advisor before doing so.
-Talk with students who are more than halfway finished with their program. Ask, “Do you like the program?” and “What are the best and worst things about it?”
-Oversit. That is, if you plan on taking 4 classes for the term, register for 5 and go to the first session of each. Then you can drop the one that seems least likely to motivate you, the least interesting, or the least relevant to you. (Always remember to drop the class during the Drop/Add period so you don’t get billed)
-Talk to advisors, professors, and the department secretary (they usually know how everything works) about possible careers and their insights.

All of these strategies can also be done before enrolling in or even being accepted to a college, though it may be more difficult if your college of choice is far away. But you can always get email addresses or phone numbers from the college website or by calling that department secretary.