COMMUNITY COLLEGES ARE BETTER THAN UNIVERSITIES
Community colleges, sometimes called junior colleges, are the most common
type of colleges. Community colleges are a two-year educational establishment where
people obtain degrees in their desired field. They are well established around the
globe, from Canada to the Philippines. Community colleges are not as hyped over as
normal four-year universities. They actually have better advantages given in their
establishment. Community colleges are better than four-year universities.
Firstly, the tuition fees for community colleges are cheaper. Community
college fees are definitely cheaper if you compare it to a four-year university.
Community college tuition nationwide averages less than $3,000 per year, a fraction
of what you would pay at a university (Rogers, n.d). It is indeed better for middle to
low class families in which are in need of the money for other things. International
students can also benefit from the low tuition expenses. They can pay less in expense
while still obtaining their degrees. Often, international students are charged a
significantly higher tuition fee at four-year schools than their American counterparts
(Pranabudi, 2013). Students attending community colleges are financially at ease, as
they don’t have to take loans. With these low fees, they wont feel the financial burden
of paying debt. Two­year schools offer students the chance to start their careers
sooner and with less or no debt (Couch, n.d). Macy Williams in her article stated that
she was able to save a lot of money and was financially comfortable when studying in
a community college. Hence, the low expenses in community college fees makes it
affordable for people of all walks of life.
Second, the straightforward transition in community college makes students
easier in adapting to new surroundings. For a high school graduate or an international
student, adapting to a new environment is not the easiest task. With a small campus
and small sized classrooms in community colleges, transitioning is no problem. These
students may find the smaller campus and classes of a community college are more
comfortable right after the high school years (Chen, n.d). Community college students
get more personalised attention from their professors to their counsellors. Teachers at
community colleges are charged with connecting with students rather than putting
half their time into research and publishing, which often requires putting a student
assistant in charge of the actual teaching (Rogers, n.d). Rogers also states that this is
beneficial to international students, mostly to those who are not fluent in English.
More accessible professors make it easier for international students to speak with their
professors regularly, increasing their understanding of the course material. Therefore,
adapting is made easy for students who attend community colleges.
Nonetheless, it is important to consider opposing perspectives in relation to
this subject matter as it is claimed that attending community colleges are
disadvantageous too. In this regard, two of the most common arguments are the lack
of campus-life experience and inflexibility of credit transfer. Firstly, in community
colleges, the students will not get the chance to experience the campus life as
compared to the university students. This is because most of community colleges
usually do not provide accommodation for on campus housing or dorms (Lovejoy,
2014). Unlike community colleges, universities have fraternities and sororities in
which the students will be able to bond over. In addition, credits may not transfer for
students that attend community colleges. They might have to retake some of the
subjects if they want to join the university. This is because some of the universities
consider that the credits are more or less equal to a semester course. Even though I
had already taken a linear algebra class at my community college, I had to retake it at
Brown because the school considers two quarter-based classes equal to a semesterbased course (Pranabudi, 2013). However, the disadvantages can be refuted because
community colleges have their own lifestyle in their campus and the students can
initially check the transference of credits before applying to a particular university.
Community colleges do provide a college lifestyle; it is just slightly different
compared to the usual university lifestyle. The difference is that, without the
accommodation, students bond over in classrooms. As stated in the pro-argument,
community colleges have smaller campuses and classrooms. Even though they do not
have accommodation or dormitories, they find other ways to interact with each other
in social activities such as sports. Aside from that, the students also should check if
their credit hours are able to transfer before they join any particular university because
some community colleges do have such facility. Hence, the definition of a campuslife may not be exactly the same as those at the university, but it is a campus-lifestyle
nonetheless, and credit transfers are allowed in certain community colleges.
Therefore, while some may feel that there is a lack of campus-life experience
and inflexibility of credit transfer, community colleges have beneficial aspects that
are given to their students. Community Colleges provide the same level of education
that is alike with the university but rather with cheaper tuition fees. It also simplifies
the students’ transition process in adapting to a new surrounding. If the students are
not mentally and physically prepared to experience the university life, they should
start small by attending the two-year community colleges before pursuing their
studies in the four-year colleges or universities. Moreover, students can easily apply
for the community colleges because their admission policies are a lot more lenient as
compared to the universities. Through this, they get to explore their area of interests
in a wide field of careers before they can land a job.
References:
References:
1. Lovejoy, D. (2014, July 20). Weighing the Pros and Cons of Community
Colleges
Vs.
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2. Chen, G. (n.d.). 8 Reasons Why Community College Might be the Best
Choice After High School | CommunityCollegeReview.com. Retrieved from
http://www.communitycollegereview.com/blog/8-reasons-why-communitycollege-might-be-the-best-choice-after-high-school
3. Community
Colleges
vs.
Universities.
(n.d.).
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http://www.educationcorner.com/community-college-vs-university.html
4. Couch, C. (n.d.). Two-Year vs. Four-Year Colleges: Which One is Right for
You? Retrieved from http://www.collegeview.com/articles/article/two-yearvs-four-year-colleges-which-one-is-right-for-you
5. The Pros & Cons of Community Colleges. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.scholarships.com/resources/college-prep/choosing-the-rightschool/the-pros-and-cons-of-community-colleges/
6. Reasons to Attend a Community College. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://home.cccapply.org/colleges/why-attend
7. Pranabudi, I. (2013, December 10). Weigh Pros, Cons of Attending a U.S.
Community
College
First.
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http://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/international-studentcounsel/2013/12/10/weigh-pros-cons-of-attending-a-us-community-collegefirst
8. Rogers, B. (n.d.). Why Choose a Community College? Retrieved from
http://www.collegeview.com/articles/article/why-choose-a-community-college
9. Williams, M. (2016, February 4). I Am Proud to Say I Went to Community
College.
Retrieved
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http://www.popsugar.com/smart-living/Why-
Community-College-Better-36973927