College or high school: which did you enjoy?

[Bossy Monkey]

There is a legend that everybody enjoys (at best) either high school or college, never both. I don't believe it necessarily, but by and large it applies to me and most people I know. For college, I just mean undergraduate years, but if you have any further combinations (hate high school, love college, hate grad school, etc.), feel free to share in a reply.

I also appreciate that most people's feelings are probably a lot less strong than love and hate. Just work with me here; if you have positive or negative feelings that don't quite rise to that level, just round up.

[JohnKleeb]

1. I love high school, though it can be hell its all good

[Bunny]

2. Loved high school!

Loved college too (at least the parts I can remember!)

[THUNDER HANDS]

3. hated high school....loved college

I really came out of my shell in college. That's what college is supposed to do. :D

[JohnKleeb]

5. You think that could happen to me

:D

[ComerPerro]

19. It wouldn't suprise me

You are obviously an intelligent kid, and you have a lot of valuable things to contribute.

Come to think of it, you remind me of me (that is not necessicarily a good thing, BTW).

If that is the case, yes you will come out of your shell.

Once I got out of high school and into college, I couldn't help but laugh about what a joke High School was.

And when you get to college, you will become outgoing anyway. When you arrive as a Freshman, everyone is in a new place for probably the first time, and they are anxious to find people to open up to or at least hang out with. You start to realize that most people are in the same boat as you.
And, for the most part (I have only been to big schools, so I can't say what its like at smaller schools) cliques are completely non-existant. You will have a regular circle of friends that you hang out with. In fact, you will probably have several overlapping circles of friends, friends of friends, etc. But, there is one crucial difference: the other groups won't be visible like they were in high school. You won't know they exist, and you won't really care.
You do your own thing, they do their own thing, and if you see another group, go join them. They won't care.

Hope this has been informative, if not helpful.

Where are you going to school?

[JohnKleeb]

20. College? I have no idea where I am going

Prefer in the city or near the ocean. I go to generally big schools though. Thanks, I dont know yet really, but thanks.

[ComerPerro]

21. Check out KU

Its cool, its really liberal, and no other DUers go here DAMMIT!!!

[JohnKleeb]

24. What is KU?

Oh the University of Kansas? :shrug: Sorry, I doubt it because I wanna go like in NYC, Boston, Chicago, or somewhere by the ocean but hey thanks though.

[Nikia]

9. Same here

College was great. I miss it terribly. For once in my life , I didn't feel like a freak. I remember being on campus early for cross country and one of the upperclassman saying "Do you like to study?"
We said "yes" She said "That's great because we're all geeks here." In high school I was made fun of for that, in college, studying and being concerned about one's grades was normal. We also had great intellectual discussions outside of class that I could not have had with my high school friends.

[eileen_d]

4. I have these weird recurring dreams

where I am back in high school and/or college. I have some sort of unfinished business going on there...

College was a terrible time in my life but it wasn't "college"'s fault. High school was better in comparison, but I know I couldn't wait to get the heck out!

[Bossy Monkey]

11. Everybody does, mostly where you have a test you're not prepared for

It's basically your brain's way of telling you that you're stressed out. (If you're having other dreams about college, I don't know what they would mean. I frequently have ones where I'm wandering around a college that's all in one humongous building. Could be an allegory for the mind; could just be my subconscious being weird. Dunno.)

[eileen_d]

14. I have those but also a different kind

where I am back in college, and am fully aware that I already graduated from college, yet I have returned because I lied about passing one of my classes and am now making up for it.

Same thing with the high school dreams -- in some of those I am aware that I have graduated from both high school *and* college! -- I am making up for some long-neglected class.

My therapist deserves the big bucks :D

[Bossy Monkey]

29. Yeah, and of course there's the "back in elementary school

as a full-sized adult" dream, knowing all along that you've graduated elementary school, middle school, high school, college, grad school... Also strange is that the kids never seem bothered about a giant person trying to fit into one of their tiny desks.

[trotsky]

17. My "dream test" is always for a class that I never attended...

It's like there was a class I skipped completely, never read anything, never did any assignments, and my test for it is an hour.

Very unnerving dream, I must say.

But I looooooooved college. High school was OK, there were ups and downs, but between the two there's just no comparison.

[greendog]

28. I've had that same exact dream...

High school mathmatics class. Skipped class once or twice and then forgot about it completely till the last minute....then wandering empty halls on the last day listening to my echoing footsteps trying to remember where the classroom was and what the instructor looked like.

[IronLionZion]

6. Well, I went to right wing high school

If you were not a young repub, you were a commie so yes I was a Republican back then. College rocks! so much freedom and people are open-minded and intelligent. It would be perfect if it wasn't for those pesky classes.

I'm at RIT now and a card-carrying member of RIT4Dean

[JohnKleeb]

7. poor bastard

This school is mostly centrist I thinks, we got our dems, I talked to some today, and our repubs, who have revolted me in philosophy. I would have wore the term commie as a term of an endearment but too bad I am shy to tell generally but I slammed Ashcroft today, booyah.

[IronLionZion]

13. Centrist is good, Democrats got picked on a lot

especially around the 2000 election time. Any one who called himself a commie would probably get beat up just like the one gay kid who had to change schools.
you can read about my tragically pathetic hometown here:
http://www.turnleft.com/places/somerset.html

[JohnKleeb]

16. It leans republican I think though

I was an 8th grader in 2000 and our school went for the bastard but our newspaper I would say is liberal, Bushie got slammed, it was sweet. Oh then I would have been beaten to a pulp if I went to your school, and did what I did, what I did you see, you know how we have to tell about ourselves, I brought in a certain book by a guy named Karl M :D hehe. The guys loved it lol.

[jpgray]

8. High school was fun! College is more fun! Let this trend continue (nt)

[IronLionZion]

15. i bet working is even more fun

because you make beer money!

[supernova]

10. Hated high school; loved college

I was so glad to get out of high school, I was beside myself with glee. College was a lot more than I hoped it would be! :D

[terrya]

12. High school was the seventh circle of hell for me.

I'm still talking about my expeiences in high school with my counselor...and high school was over 20 years ago.

[ComerPerro]

18. I wish I could go through High School with my College additude

That is, "Fuck you, you preppie jerkoff".

I went to high school in a conservative town. A lot of rich kids who did a ton of drugs but were on NHS becuase "they are popular, so they must be smart".

Don't get me wrong, I had the "fuck you" attitude in high school, but I never vocalized it or really showed it. But now I have no problem telling people to get bent (like members of fraternities).

Plus, people that I thought were my friends while I was in high school, well... right now I could really care less about them. My friends in college are better friends, and there is more mutual loyalty.

Don't get me wrong, Its not like high school was hellish for me, or that I have deeply disturbing psycological issues about high school that will haunt me for years.

I look back at it more as a matter of, "Well, you know, high school was a pointless, stupid, dragged out waste of four years. I mean, really, what was the meaning??" But when I start thinking that far, I usually figure, "fuck it", call a friend, and have a beer.

[Piltdown13]

22. Well, I didn't exactly "love" high school...

...but the feeling was closer to love than hate, so I picked the "loved both" choice. College was much better intellectually and socially than high school (of course!), but I had more opportunities to get involved with stuff in high school -- I only did sports in college, where in HS I also was active in clubs, yearbook, etc. -- but I guess that's what happens when you do a dual degree (like a double major, but you have to fulfill the general education requirements for both of the colleges -- Communications and Arts & Sciences in my case -- you're enrolled in; it's supposed to add at least a semester but I still finished in four years); you just don't have the time.

Grad school is even better than college in some ways (more leeway in what you study, designing your own research), but not so good in others (you're still poor, which gets scarier as you get older, and of course the job market is another source of great concern -- getting a decent job becomes more and more of a stressful worry as those loans get bigger and bigger).

[Lisa]

23. HS was tolerable ... college pretty good ... grad school rocked!

And being a university instructor is just awesome -- because I get to teach people who are scared and miserable, and help them so they aren't as frightened and actually begin to enjoy learning.

Mainly, what got me through high school was having some very grounded friends who kept me from believing that the opinion of one clique or another wasn't the biggest thing in the whole world ...

[Bossy Monkey]

25. We sure are a hs-hating bunch! Kicking for larger sample

and out of idle curiosity.

[Blade]

26. Man..

I hated high school with a passion. I love college, however, but am doing really crappy grade-wise at the moment..

[greendog]

27. Loved Art School!

I've attended a large state university, a private design school, and a professional art school. The art school was by far the best.

I knew most of the other students by name, went drinking with most of my teachers, and spent 100% of my time working on things that excited me.