Community colleges can offer small classes and interaction with professors that rival that of four-year schools. Attend one and prepare for a job or transfer to finish a bachelor’s degree!

Do you want small classes, available professors and a wide selection of courses for a tenth of the cost of many private colleges? Community colleges can be just as rigorous as their four-year and private counterparts. And they are increasingly becoming the destinations of strong students with good grades who want to save money their first two years of college. Read on to see if community colleges are right for you.

NSM: What kind of student does best at a community college?

Mary Claire Bauer, director of admissions at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, N.Y.: If a student is very motivated and knows the career track and knows the specific program, they have a good chance of doing well.

The students who are undecided about what they want to do also do well here because we have a support system of teachers and administrators and faculty to help motivate them. The bright students in high school who may have not considered community colleges in the past are attending community colleges because the reputation is strong and the price is right. We have strong high school students and strong adult students returning to school or going to school for the first time, as well as students who need a little more assistance.

NSM: What is the admissions process like?

MCB: All of the community colleges in New York State are open admission. Everyone who wants to come here can come.

However, you do have to have certain qualifications or fulfill some prerequisites to get into the specific departments, like nursing or engineering, to be matriculated.

Students can apply to the college by coming in and filling out a form or applying online. Once accepted, they are either required to take a placement test or are waived from the placement test if they have a 500 or better on all sections of the SAT or if they have completed some college courses. Then they go to academic advisement, then they pay their bill, and then they are enrolled.

NSM: What is unique about community colleges?

MCB: It’s a place of help and hope for everybody because whatever situation you are in, it’s an affordable option for everybody to find their way.

Here, the student isn’t a customer; he or she is a student. No matter what the situation, we can offer something.

 

This article is provided by The Next Step Magazine (nextSTEPmag.com), a publication that helps students prepare for life after high school.