Community College or University?

When choosing to pursue higher education, students have a major decision to make. Either go straight to a four year university or start out at community college.

Either one is a stepping stone to obtaining a degree, but which one is the better choice?

As someone who's been to both, here's my experience.

When I was a senior in high school, I had my entire future mapped out. I was accepted to Central Washington University and that's where I was set to go. I applied to various other schools so I would have options, but I never intended on going to any of them.

Then in April of my senior year, after I had already applied for housing and put down a couple hundred dollars to CWU, I changed my mind. On a whim one of my friends and I decided that we would move to Olympia and live together while going to South Puget Sound Community College. It was so exciting and I was grateful that I planned ahead and had already been accepted to SPSCC.

But I often wonder if I made the right choice, or would I have been better off going to CWU from the start? I analyze this often so here's my take.

An obvious reason to choose community college is the price. Tuition at SPSCC was half the price of tuition at CWU. My scholarships were able to cover all of my education and I didn't have to pay a dime for my AA.

Also there are more community colleges in Washington state than universities, therefore they are often more accessible to remote regions, thus allowing students to stay at home and just commute to school. If you're someone who's not ready to take the full plunge of moving away from family, friends, and really the only life you've ever known, that's totally understandable and community college is a great way to bridge this gap.

But one of the major benefits to choosing community college, in my opinion, is that it only takes two years to get your Associate of Arts degree. I know a lot of people who went to a four year university and dropped out after two or three years, either because they couldn't afford it anymore or because they were burned out, and now they have nothing to show for it. Had they gone to community college, they could at least have an AA under their belt. There is definitely a quicker return on your investment from community college.

The downside though is that making friends at a community college is rare. Not to say it doesn't happen, but these instances are few and far between. I mean think about it, nobody lives on campus, most people still live with their parents or have an apartment with preexisting pals, and you're only there for two years. The motivation to make friends is nonexistent.

When I graduated high school I had all of these expectations of friends that I would make in college, but in the two years that I attended SPSCC, I made a grand total of zero friends. I just went to school, did my work and went home. In that environment nobody sticks around campus longer than they have to so there's little to no opportunity to see classmates out and about. There's also no push to get involved on campus. I didn't join any clubs or organizations because that wasn't something that even seemed possible.

When students go to a four year university, it's often required that they live on campus the first year. Some may think this is a dumb rule, but when you're a little fish in a big pond it makes all the difference. I've met so many people on campus who are best friends with people they met in the dorms or through classes. If I had come straight to CWU, who knows how many more people I would have met along the way.

There's also a coolness factor associated with four year universities. When you tell people that you're "just going to community college" they are almost sympathetic. Regardless of if it was your first choice or not, they assume the latter, but when it comes down to it there are mainly two factors that weigh on the decision to choose what type of college to go to: money and connections.

If you're someone who has no interest in making new friends and you want to save thousands of dollars then I would 100 percent recommend starting out at a community college. It's a great education for a fraction of the cost and can be a good option for nontraditional students.

But if you want the "college experience" and the chance to meet new people and grow a lot as an individual, then a four year university is probably the best choice. Yes, it's more expensive but there are scholarships, grants, financial aid, and loans that are available to students.

To me, I can't really put a price on the education and experience that I received from CWU. I have only been here two years but I've made friends, been involved in clubs, taken leadership positions, completed an internship, made connections, and so on. To me, that's worth the investment.

Yes, there are days I wish I had chosen a different route, but the grass is always greener on the other side. There's no way to know if the choice I made was the "right one" but ultimately I finished college in four years, and in a few months I will have completed my second degree and wasn't that the goal all along?

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