After High School | Pad Patter 4-11-23

[jk703]

So, my oldest son is graduating this year. I'm ok now, I will not be in August. He has decided on heading off to college come the fall. We applied all over, and he chose Rowan University, as they have the degree he showed interest in pursuing. (He didn't really show any interest until we found this by chance... and I know it may change). It's about an hour and a half away from me, in the same state, and really seems like a good fit for him. This Saturday is Accepted Students day... he will attend. I'm thrilled he's moving onto this next chapter, but I'm also a bit terrified of the whole situation. He has to maintain his grades, and not act like his father (Mr. Party Pants back then).

I think my youngest will thrive in college, but he's a freshman in high school now. We shall see.

When I graduated high school, I opted to go to community college. I think that is my one regret... I should have went away to the college I wanted to go to, but my mind played games with me and I held myself back. But, then again, I wouldn't have met my husband if I did that route.

Hubby went to school to party basically for two years. Then he got a job with Verizon, and has been there for 24 years! It's union, and we are lucky he got in there when he did! He should have done that right out of high school, but again, then we wouldn't have met each other.

My Dad never went to college but became an electrician. My mom went for a little while, but then met my Dad. If Shayne didn't go to school, I was hoping a trade school. I'm a big believer in trades.

What was your route after high school? What did you kids do? other family?

 

[HavaDrPepper]

My parents wanted me to go to college and I had the same desire. So I did at a school 90 minutes from home. No car during my first 2 quarters so I was pretty much stuck there on weekends unless I found a ride home. My parents chose not to come get me whenever I wanted. I even had to back out of being a server at a wedding because I couldn't find a way home (not a big deal since we were not all that close... they divorced a few years later!). I had a car spring quarter because I had to volunteer at a school for my education class and it was not in walking distance like the first class in that series was.

My father joined the Navy following graduation and served 4 years during the Korean War. When he got out he was all signed up to go to college in San Diego on the GI Bill but his mom begged him to come home to Ohio. So he did. He had several jobs before landing the job in construction that he worked at until he retired (I think over 30 years).

My mom went to college and got what was called a "cadet" certificate (2 years of school) that she could teach in a school. She then taught fall of 52 through spring of 55. At that time teachers did not teach when they were pregnant and Mom was due with me fall of 55. She went back into teaching in 57 but had already gone back to college part time to get her Bachelor degree in education. It took 4 years to get the last 2 years since she was working full time, had a child and only going part time. So, yes, I am in her graduation photos! She ended up teaching for 31 years.

Had Dad stayed in San Diego and gone to college, I would not be here so can I say I'm glad he chose to come home?

 

[Memaw2Wm]

My parents (attorney with a master's degree and registered nurse) insisted that I go to community college. I HATED school, as soon as I turned 18 I dropped out of community college, eloped and had two children a few years later.

I went back to community college in my 40's for a couple of years, but then my daughter had a second child. She and both of her children were living with me and I babysat them at night. Youngest was "high maintenance" and I found it impossible to work full-time, babysit 5 nights a week, go to school 2 nights a week, plus find time to study, so I dropped out.

Back in 1979 I went to work "temporarily" for my father b/c his secretary quit without notice. After spending a summer in high school working for him, I swore I'd never be a secretary. Yet here I am 44 years later ...

Older grandson installs HVAC, granddauther has worked as a vet assistant and is currently a CSR for a vet hospital, while my daughter's youngest is a high school senior ... no clue what he'll do after graduation as he's not interested in anything. His brother wants him to work in HVAC. Daughter is my *forever* child as she suffered a stroke 15 years ago and can't live on her own.

 

[IntenseMagic]

I went to a really small private college my freshman year (Davis & Elkins), to study Chemistry on my way to becoming a Pharmacist like my dad. Then, a few weeks in to my first semester, I remembered how much I hate Chemistry . I switched to being an Education Major my second semester because D&E didn't have Special Education. I transferred to Longwood University in VA the next year and stayed until I graduated.
My mom has a Speech Degree from Wake Forest University, but fun fact, she spent part of her time at West Virginia University where she went to school with Jerry West, former Lakers player and head coach, whose silhouette is the NBA logo.
My dad went to Transylvania University on a baseball scholarship but quit after a year. He went back to college at Mercer University when I was around 5 to become a Pharmacist and moved us all to Atlanta for a couple of years while he finished.
My oldest son went in to the Army National Guard right out of high school. He tried college a time or two after he came back and it's really just not his thing. He has done so well with his Army and Medic training. He has been an EMT, Paramedic, taught a couple of Community College classes, and now works for the Army full time but still pulls shifts at the Rescue Squad for extra money.
My daughter did the Dental Assisting Program through our high school's VoTech, but never did anything with it. She was just never interested in college at all. She went to work as a receptionist at the hospital and now works at the water company.
My youngest is graduating this year. We're still deciding on colleges and applying for scholarships. He's been accepted to about 6 or 7 schools and now we're just playing the money game. He wants to go to Grad School and eventually have his PhD, so I keep trying to tell him to get his undergrad wherever is cheapest, maintain his grades, save some money and then head off somewhere better for the rest.

 

[michelepixels]

I was the first of my entire extended family to go to a university (my brother was the second, a few years later). I was very academically inclined, had been on the college track through school, and my dad said he'd pay for me to go to San Diego State University. He worked for the phone company and my mom had worked in retail, so they couldn't afford more than that, and I didn't know enough to look in to loans (and later was grateful not to have them!) so I went to SDSU. I got my B.A. in Psychology and then went on to get a multiple subjects teaching credential. I taught primary grades for the last 5 years of the 1990's until my husband and I decided to move across the country and start having our babies. I've never renewed my teaching license, but it and my experience helped me get my current job as a paraeducator, working in a nearby elementary school with small groups.

My kids are going to community college.

 

[littlekiwi]

I stayed on an extra year at high school as my schooling had been very disjointed with multiple hospitalisations over the years - in hindsight I don't think it was the right move. I then went straight into study as I wanted to be a medical radiology technician but didn't have quite the right grades so had to do a bit of extra study.....turns out I wasn't ready and failed/dropped out of a few programs.

I then worked part time for a bit before deciding to study nursing, again I needed some better entry qualifications so did some more pre degree study which I completed. Unfortunately that didn't result in entry to nursing school. By this time I was 25 so after some soul searching I switched to the degree I ended up completing - Bachelor of Human Services majoring in Disability Studies. I have started a few different bits of postgraduate study in the years after my degree but found it hard going and couldn't keep paying for the papers so have put that on hold for now.

 

[jk703]

I stayed on an extra year at high school as my schooling had been very disjointed with multiple hospitalisations over the years - in hindsight I don't think it was the right move. I then went straight into study as I wanted to be a medical radiology technician but didn't have quite the right grades so had to do a bit of extra study.....turns out I wasn't ready and failed/dropped out of a few programs.

I then worked part time for a bit before deciding to study nursing, again I needed some better entry qualifications so did some more pre degree study which I completed. Unfortunately that didn't result in entry to nursing school. By this time I was 25 so after some soul searching I switched to the degree I ended up completing - Bachelor of Human Services majoring in Disability Studies. I have started a few different bits of postgraduate study in the years after my degree but found it hard going and couldn't keep paying for the papers so have put that on hold for now.

It's hard when you start, make some realizations, and then try again. You have guts. I have a degree in Business and one in Psychology. My intent was to get my masters in Business Psychology and work for a big corporate company. At one point, I was interested in nursing. I should have listened to my gut. I didn't, and I guess that might be what I wish for the most from my college experience. To have gotten the degree I would have excelled at, and made a difference. It's hard realizing later that I made the wrong choice. I think I'm too old to go back, and I've got my kids to think about too. If I won the lottery, I would, lol!

 

[Karen]

(Mr. Party Pants back then).

I always did well in high school, so I was able to go to college afterwards at a college about an hour away from home. I was a goodie two shoes in high school but my college roommate was a partier... she taught me all about it. I got my first report card back and realized I could not in fact party all the time and get good grades. I got myself into a much better routine after that and graduated with honors somehow. Lol.

@IntenseMagic I too started college in chemistry before I realized I hated it too! My professor was horrid. I loved chemistry in high school, but I was absolutely lost in my first year of college chemistry. I failed just about every test and still ended up with a B because of the curve. Come to find out that professor was fired right after that because he was so awful.

My oldest is in his first year of college now and is loving it. My youngest is a junior taking his SATs today in fact, so we are starting to talk about what he wants to do next year. He will most likely go to college too. He says he wants to go into business, but I don't think he actually knows what he wants to do really, so his path will likely take some turns. He'll be figuring it out as he goes. We've talked trade school options with him, but he's not very interested (or handy ) and we've always floated the idea of community college for a year so he can figure stuff out. He's taking a lot of business related classes his senior year though, so I'm hoping those offer clarity too.

 

[jk703]

I always did well in high school, so I was able to go to college afterwards at a college about an hour away from home. I was a goodie two shoes in high school but my college roommate was a partier... she taught me all about it. I got my first report card back and realized I could not in fact party all the time and get good grades. I got myself into a much better routine after that and graduated with honors somehow. Lol.

@IntenseMagic I too started college in chemistry before I realized I hated it too! My professor was horrid. I loved chemistry in high school, but I was absolutely lost in my first year of college chemistry. I failed just about every test and still ended up with a B because of the curve. Come to find out that professor was fired right after that because he was so awful.

My oldest is in his first year of college now and is loving it. My youngest is a junior taking his SATs today in fact, so we are starting to talk about what he wants to do next year. He will most likely go to college too. He says he wants to go into business, but I don't think he actually knows what he wants to do really, so his path will likely take some turns. He'll be figuring it out as he goes. We've talked trade school options with him, but he's not very interested (or handy ) and we've always floated the idea of community college for a year so he can figure stuff out. He's taking a lot of business related classes his senior year though, so I'm hoping those offer clarity too.

Oh, Peter was a social butterfly! We met at a fraternity party, and I ended up driving him home! It's so funny now. In college, he was the partier - go and do everything fun, and I was the homebody. Now, we are opposite - he is the homebody and I'm the one wanting to always go and do all the fun things. We joke that I had to get things all on order before I could relax.

I don't know if college is right for Shayne, like he might be like his father Mr. Party Pants, but I want to give him a chance. He is also handy, so that is an option if traditional college does not work out. We will see!

 

[Karen]

Oh, Peter was a social butterfly! We met at a fraternity party, and I ended up driving him home! It's so funny now. In college, he was the partier - go and do everything fun, and I was the homebody. Now, we are opposite - he is the homebody and I'm the one wanting to always go and do all the fun things. We joke that I had to get things all on order before I could relax.

I don't know if college is right for Shayne, like he might be like his father Mr. Party Pants, but I want to give him a chance. He is also handy, so that is an option if traditional college does not work out. We will see!

Oh to have a crystal ball, huh? Sometimes you just gotta let 'em give life a try and then course correct as necessary. (easier said than done for my control freak self!) I figure for my youngest, he needs to go to college more for the growing up part and figuring out how to take care of things on his own. If he finds an occupation along the way... great! Lol!

 

[jk703]

Oh to have a crystal ball, huh? Sometimes you just gotta let 'em give life a try and then course correct as necessary. (easier said than done for my control freak self!) I figure for my youngest, he needs to go to college more for the growing up part and figuring out how to take care of things on his own. If he finds an occupation along the way... great! Lol!

I wish I had a crystal ball! I'd promise to be good! lol!

I agree! I feel like Shayne will land on his two feet and can totally take care of himself now, so all will work out. He doesn't have that strong drive. He's low-key, flexible and carefree. Colin, hmmm.... He's a little oblivious to life at times right now, so he's going to have to grow up a bit. He does really, truly love and appreciate money . He won't care what he does, only that he makes a lot of money. I feel like I'm going to have to remind him to have fun and relax later in life.

 

[HavaDrPepper]

I too started college in chemistry before I realized I hated it too!

One of my high school friends wanted to be a pharmacist. Of course, chemistry is a big part of that. She was doing fine grade wise until she got to Organic Chemistry. She hated it and struggled. So she switched to just getting a biology degree. She saw an ad for an accelerated program to become a respiratory therapist at a hospital in Toledo several years after graduation. It was 6 weeks of intensive bookwork and then on the job training for a couple of years. She applied and got in. (Met her husband in that program too). She has done quite well for herself, even working at Loyola Hospital in Chicago when they started their hyperbaric chamber. She was the lead on it. She moved back to Ohio to get married. Her DH is still a working respiratory therapist. She worked as a casual for a long time and ended up getting a Master's degree. Now she is the head of the department at a local college for the respiratory therapy program. All because she hated Organic Chemistry... life can take many turns!

 

[jk703]

One of my high school friends wanted to be a pharmacist. Of course, chemistry is a big part of that. She was doing fine grade wise until she got to Organic Chemistry. She hated it and struggled. So she switched to just getting a biology degree. She saw an ad for an accelerated program to become a respiratory therapist at a hospital in Toledo several years after graduation. It was 6 weeks of intensive bookwork and then on the job training for a couple of years. She applied and got in. (Met her husband in that program too). She has done quite well for herself, even working at Loyola Hospital in Chicago when they started their hyperbaric chamber. She was the lead on it. She moved back to Ohio to get married. Her DH is still a working respiratory therapist. She worked as a casual for a long time and ended up getting a Master's degree. Now she is the head of the department at a local college for the respiratory therapy program. All because she hated Organic Chemistry... life can take many turns!

So funny how so many start on one path, and finish on a totally different path!

 

[HavaDrPepper]

So funny how so many start on one path, and finish on a totally different path!

What is funny is that her only daughter has done the same thing. She went to college for hospitality management, had several internships in the field (including WDW and Cedar Point in Ohio). Then got a job somewhere in the Keys. She ended up leaving that job when they wouldn't give her time off to come home when my friend was going through treatment for breast cancer (she's fine!). On a whim, the daughter applied to go into training to become a flight attendant. She was accepted, finished her training, now lives in Houston and works for Spirit Airlines!

 

[dawnmarch]

My Dad and Mom went to a small Christian college together. My dad finished but my mom dropped out because they got married and had my sister. My mom's family never really wanted her to go to college anyway so getting her "Mrs degree" was sort of the expected path back then. My Dad was extremely focused on my sister and I doing well in school and going to college. His favorite saying was that by going to college "you can write your own ticket" -- I guess meaning you can do anything you want in life. So, my sister went to college and became a CPA. I went to college and got a degree in Finance and then went to Harvard Law School which pretty much knocked my Dad's socks off. Given that some of the folks that I went to law school with and/or was a law partner with became President of the US, Supreme Court Justice, US Solicitor General, White House Counsel and other esteemed positions, I'm not sure I've fully lived up to the potential of my degree but being a lawyer has been a good gig and a desk job suits me. I've never wanted to conquer the world.

I guess hubby (a law professor) and I instilled our education emphasis in our kids. My daughter (who never loved school) graduated from college last year and works in marketing. My son (who always loved school) is a sophomore at the University of Southern California studying to be a rocket scientist -- which is way more math and science than I was ever capable of doing.

 

[gonewiththewind]

My dad has a high school education. He had a great job at a local paper company in the forestry division. He went out on long term disability because of damage to his knees from all the repetitive motions he had to do.

My mom went to our local community college + our local university. She first got her degree in Elementary Education, and then when I was 9/10/11, she went back to get her masters. She taught 1st grade and 4th grade. She went to the University of Georgia to become a reading specialist for the county. She did that for quite a few years before retiring. After retiring, she tutored as well as teaching art lessons while also creating herself. She had spots in a couple of different galleries locally. Right now, she's had to abandon all teaching because of her health, but she does continue to create.

Jay went into the Army following graduation in the late 80's and he was only in for 2 years. After the Army, he went to our local community college and got two different AS degrees - one in computer technology and the other in manufacturing technology. He's been working at a local plant since then, and does quality assurance.

I went to our local community college for my AA and then to our local university for my BA in English Education. I ended up getting hurt while on campus and because of surgery, my graduation date was postponed and mid year, so I worked at a local law firm. What was supposed to be a temp job ended up with me getting my CLA (Certified Legal Assistant), and being paid quite well. They wore me out though. LOL I held a couple of other jobs after working in the legal field for 10 years. One of them was doing coding and billing for a retina specialist. I've also done transcription. My favorite job so far is this one as I love creating.

Olivia went to our local university following my mom's and my own footsteps. She graduated summa cum laude and ended up working for a company for a short time before she was laid off because of the pandemic. She is now working at the same university and is doing quite well actually using her degree.

Now Daniel is another story entirely. He is planning on going to a technical college locally for Applied Cybersecurity, but he may change his mind and go to our local state college. We're trying to determine what will be the best financial option. I think he needs to mature a bit more, so the technical college would be a good place to start before moving on to the state college.

I think education is extremely important. Even if you don't get a job for your particular degree, having that experience and knowledge is priceless in so many areas of life.

Wishing your graduate the best. Daniel has 6 weeks left before graduation!

 

[littlekiwi]

. life can take many turns!

yes, I agree...I started with ambitions of medical imaging then nursing and ended up in disability studies as my degree

 

[littlekiwi]

@gonewiththewind sometimes waiting is best, I ended up waiting about 6 or 7 years post high school before I did my degree and should have waited til then to do any form of post high school study rather than attempt various qualifications, fail or quit them and have a mountain of student loan debt for it. I was much more settled at 25 rather than 19 studying.

 

[amien1]

My dad followed his dad's footsteps and went into the Operating Engineers Union right out of high school. He has been a big equipment operator, mechanic and welder his entire career. He is about to retire, and although he's had a great job & made a great wage his whole career- it has taken a toll on his body. He is probably going to have to have carpel tunnel surgery on both wrists at some point in the future. My mom had me right out of high school with my dad, but I do remember her taking accounting classes at a local community college, but she never did enough to get a degree. She was a finance manager at a local car dealership for 20 years, before she switched to the banking side- she is just a few years away from retirement at a credit union as a car dealer representative- aka she schmoozes dealerships to use their credit union for loans. She could have easily been an accountant or anything in the financial market- as she's so smart with numbers/math- but family was what she chose out of high school instead. I don't think she has any regrets about that decision!

I always knew I wanted to go to college, as no one else in my family had- I am the oldest grandchild on both sides! Around my senior year of high school- I settled on dental hygiene as a degree/career- so then the hunt for what schools to apply to was on. Here in WA state- you can get an associates degree from an accredited school or a bachelor degree and still get your dental hygiene license- degree doesn't really matter- but I knew I wanted a 4 year degree if possible. My top choice for schools was Eastern WA University- because they were the only school in WA where you could go straight out of high school, start pre-requisites and then once accepted into their DH school- and get a Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene. My next schools were more local (I grew up in SW WA) and were community colleges with DH schools. I LOVED Chemistry and had an amazing professor, and maintained a 4.0 through all my pre-reqs. After my 2 years of pre-req classes (year of chemistry and year of biology)- I was fortunate enough to get accepted into all the DH schools I applied to- EWU, Pierce College and Lower Columbia Community College. I chose to stay at EWU and got my BS in DH.

Not only did I get a degree at EWU, I also got a husband! I met my hubby through friends my junior year of college and the rest is history! My hubby worked at a local credit union as a teller all while going to school to get his Business Administration degree. I always joked how easy his degree was compared to my science degree! Later after we were married and our daughter was a baby- he did the extra year to get his Masters in Business Administration. He currently is an AVP of Dealer Services (his department does cars/boats/rv/toys loans) for a local credit union here in Spokane. (yes- he & my mom work in similar departments for different credit unions! lol Lots of 'shop talk' when we get together!)

My kids are still little (ish) so not too much has been said about after HS plans. My daughter is a freshman in HS, she knows she wants to do something in the medical field, but still unsure. She is taking a lot of advanced and Bio-med type of classes- so she's started on that path at least!

 

[KayTeaPea]

My parents met in nursing school in 1967- then they married and my mom worked as a nurse while my dad went on to Anesthesia school and became a CRNA (Nurse Anesthetist.) Mom stayed home with my brother and I but although she had her RN, she had gone to a 3 year program so she didn't actually have her BS. She went back to school when I started kindergarten and got her BS finished a few years later. She worked as the school nurse for my elementary school, then worked nights in the ICU at our local hospital when I was in middle school. When I went to high school she started teaching nursing at a nearby community college and helped students get their LPN degrees. When I went to college, she got into research and worked for a few different doctors who were doing medical research-- one for Heart Disease then the final one she worked for specialized in Spinal Cord Injuries. My dad worked in our local hospital when I was little, then got a job at a hospital that was focused on eye surgeries and did anesthesia for eye surgeries.

I went to a tiny all-women Baptist College straight out of high school and got my BA in Interior Design. I loved college and had a great time, meeting my husband through a friend from college. I got married after I finished school but before we had our graduation ceremony (finished in December 1996, got married in May 1997, and didn't walk in graduation until June 1997.) My husband went to the University of Nebraska, got his Mechanical Engineering Bachelor's, and then joined the Navy. He worked various types of jobs in the Navy and we moved around a few times until he got out in September 2001. He works as a government contractor in missile defense. A few years ago, his company paid for his masters, which he got in Engineering Management.
I stayed home with our kids until this year, when I started working at a local Photography Studio. I did have a photography business for a few years from 2010-2018ish, but I didn't have much business volume and I didn't like marketing myself.
Our son is finishing up his BS in Electrical Engineering, our middle daughter has her Associate's degree and is taking off some time to save up money for living expenses when she goes off to finish her Bachelor's. Our youngest daughter is a senior in high school and wants to become a Physical Therapist, so she has 7 years of school ahead of her. She is going to a community college (where our other kids started) for a year before going off to the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where she will finish up her undergrad and hopefully get her Doctorate in Physical Therapy.