Three years ago, I too a High School Senior daunted with this question. My parents were poor and I had no money, but I was in the top 5% of my class with a decent SAT score. I wanted to go to college, but I knew I couldn't afford it. Now, being a senior in college, I have more money than I ever needed. Here is what you should do:
During High School
Talk with your Counselors. Get to know them. If they are friends with you, they are more likely to help you.
Talk to your counselors about loans, scholarships, grants, and colleges. Find out what your High
School offers.
Your High School probably has some beefy scholarships. Apply for all of them. Spend a lot of time working on essays/reports/whatever for those applications. Why? Because you are only competing with the morons in your Senior High
School class. The odds are in your favor!
I used this strategy during my Senior year and ended walking away with an extra $2400 just from my high school.
Apply to all colleges/universities in your state or as many colleges as you can, even if you are not interested in them.
Some colleges may give you nothing while others will give you a full ride. Just keep all the
financial options open. It doesn't matter which college you go to, but your ambition and aptitude for the degree you want.
Lastly, get to know your counselors! They are usually the ones on the scholarship committee. If they are not, then find out who is and get to know them.
During College/After High School
If you don't have enough money to cover the first year or second, then by all means take out student loans.
Remember, if you setup yourself up for a nice high-paying job after college, student loans are easy to pay back.
Again, get to know your counselors and scholarship committee members. Talk to them about career fairs, internships, grants, scholarships, and jobs.
Apply for as many scholarships and grants as you can. One time, I applied for intel scholarship, which was for an internship and $2500 per semester. Only four other people applied. My chances were good but I didn't get it. They gave it to a minority. Still, only four people?
Get a job in your department, even if the pay sucks or there isn't any pay. It helps you to get to know the professors ( who are usually on the scholarship
committees too ) and gives you experience and a good list of references.
Get good grades. This is the key to a high GPA and scholarships and internships.
Attend all career fairs. Get to know the recruiters for the companies are you interested in. More than likely, these recruiters will be the same for the next few years! Just spend time talking to them and be their friend.
At the career fairs, sign up for interviews, even for companies you have no desire to work for. It gives you plenty of practice and if you know the recruiters and are friends with them, it makes the whole process easier.
By all means desperately try to get an internship! Apply for as many as you can. They pay well and give you loads of experience and resume goodies.
Design a good resume. Do not use words built-in resume wizard. They look generic and are easy to spot. Make it yourself and come up with something original.
If you don't know how to make one or need advice, show what you have to your counselors and career specialist. They will destroy it and give you advice to make it better. Remember, simpler is better.
Get to know the companies at the career fair and attend all info sessions they offer. These will help you during interviews.
Before an interview, plan out questions to ask. Interviewers like people who ask challenging questions. It shows what you know about the company already and you have a desire to work there.
Get a job during the summer break if you didn't get an intership. Try to get one in your department/are of interest. DO NOT GO HOME AFTER YOUR FRESHMAN YEAR
Yes, a degree is a piece of paper. A piece of paper that represents experience, technical fortitude, and problem solving. ( it depends of where you get the education )
I'm grossly tired of many slashdotters denotting ALL degrees/certifications as useless. That is not true in ALL cases. There are some programs or educational facilities that just want your money. However, most colleges or cerification programs that I have seen are worth taking. In certain situations it is not possible to teach your self how everything works because your can't afford the equipment, books, or understand the material. Colleges, for a modest fee (tuition) will let you play with VERY expensive equipment. Thus you gain experience.
I agree experience it better than book knowledge. College is about both. The two interplay nicely to create a rounded employee, not some drone.
Certifications are ok, degrees are good, and experience is best, but I believe all three are necessary. You can't rely on just one. Honestly, I have never seen any corporation that expects their employees to know everything and have experience in everything. Most of the corporate life is on the job training.
In the end, the most imporant lesson is learn how to learn. Experience won't help in every situation, nor will a cert or a degree. But knowing how to learning will always be there to solve any problem.
Slashdot Mirror
Did anyone else read "PUBPAT" and instantly think pubic? What a name!
Yes, a degree is a piece of paper. A piece of paper that represents experience, technical fortitude, and problem solving. ( it depends of where you get the education ) I'm grossly tired of many slashdotters denotting ALL degrees/certifications as useless. That is not true in ALL cases. There are some programs or educational facilities that just want your money. However, most colleges or cerification programs that I have seen are worth taking. In certain situations it is not possible to teach your self how everything works because your can't afford the equipment, books, or understand the material. Colleges, for a modest fee (tuition) will let you play with VERY expensive equipment. Thus you gain experience. I agree experience it better than book knowledge. College is about both. The two interplay nicely to create a rounded employee, not some drone. Certifications are ok, degrees are good, and experience is best, but I believe all three are necessary. You can't rely on just one. Honestly, I have never seen any corporation that expects their employees to know everything and have experience in everything. Most of the corporate life is on the job training. In the end, the most imporant lesson is learn how to learn. Experience won't help in every situation, nor will a cert or a degree. But knowing how to learning will always be there to solve any problem.