August 10, 2008
Wait For It…
I got my college degree one year ago today.
This is it?
Posts Tagged 'College'
August 29, 2007
Post-Graduation: A Preliminary Retrospect
I’ve been a college graduate for nearly three weeks now, and it seems only fitting on this landmark to look back on those nineteen days and comment on graduate life thus far.
For me, life isn’t much different than it was when I was in school. And not because I am being lame and just doing the cop-out. Because for a week and a half after graduation, life was great. I could come home from work and do have little or no resposibilities. There wasn’t homework to be done, tests to stress over, or classes to register for. I could just come home and do whatever come into my mind until the next morning. I was able to put a lot of time into music, and biking, and reading, etc. It was great.
All the while, I’ve been doing a little bit of work here and there for Fuor, a company that some friends and I are slowly getting off the ground. Late last week, though, we got the go ahead on several project at the same time, and they all need to launch by September 1st (this Saturday). So, we’ve been scambling trying to get the work done in time. That has turned into me working late last Friday night, from noon until about eleven on Saturday, from 3:00 to 10:00 on Sunday, and from shortly after I get home until midnight every night this week so far.
So, life is feeling much like it did when school was in full swing. Probably even a bit worse. Fortunately, the work I’m doing for Fuor is a lot of fun, and it hasn’t been super-stressful in of itself yet. It’s just taking up a lot of time.
Still, post-college life is highly recommended.
July 26, 2007
Close Curtain
Last night I had my last day of school. Ever. Well, unless I decide to go back for a Master’s Degree sometime in the future (unlikely). But, for the purposes of this post, it was my last day of school. Ever.
I was actually in class for less than twenty minutes, because all we had to do was take a 36-question multiple choice test. As I finally filled in the last of the thousands of answer bubbles I’ve filled during my college career, I sat there in the classroom in quiet reflection. The back of the room was lit while the front set of lights were switched off, and with the fading sunlight seeping in through the half-open blinds on the windows, the room had a soft, relaxing atmosphere. Though I was done with my test, I figured that since it was likely the last time that I would sit in a college classroom as a student, I shouldn’t be in a huge rush to leave. And since I’m possibly one of the most sentimental people to ever walk our great Earth, I wanted to kind of savor my final moments of college. So, there I sat, thinking back over my college career, and it’s slow progression over the past six years.
And then I left. Though I’ve not technically graduated yet, college is pretty much behind me.
This means I get a raise, right? …right? …hello?
May 16, 2007
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
Right, so I’m thus far completely failing at my recent “Quantity over Quantity” creed. I have discovered that my life is far too dull to have enough material to write two or three times a week. Won’t stop me from trying, though.
Well, today is my first last day of school. After tonight, I will never go to class again for the first time. At least not as an undergrad. And that’s a pretty nice feeling.
Almost… there…
April 26, 2007
Home Stretch
One more semester under my belt. One more to go.
Lord willing, I’ll be a college graduate two days before I turn 24.
Knock on wood.
April 25, 2007
So Close; So Far
Putting a man on the moon? Defeating terrorism? Getting phone support for AOL?
Try graduating from college.
With regard to my college education, it seems like every time I take two steps forward, the universe erupts. And then through the rubble, I take three steps back. The latest setback: finances.
Little did I know, but tuition at UTD does not use a base per-credit-hour pricing scheme. They instead charge by the semester, with a set semester price based on how many hours you take. The more hours you take in any given semester, the less each credit hour costs. For example, a semester of 4 classes costs $3,350, which comes out to about $837 per class, plus a few extra fees here and there. A semester of one (1) class, on the other hand, costs $1,200 plus those same fees. That’s almost a third more. My final bill for one (1) class comes out to $1,400 exactly. I paid $2,700 for 3 classes just this Spring. Those two extra classes were less than I’m paying for the one.
I had no idea. Had I known, I probably would have tried to knock out 12 hours this past semester as opposed to 9. It would have cost me $735 instead of $1,400. Yeah, that’s right. Half price.
Nuts.
I was planning on paying for tuition with my initial three-month bonus from work, which could be anywhere up to $1,000. Unfortunately, even if I do get straight A’s in my review, I’m still $400 shy. As luck (and God almighty) would have it, UTD lets you pay in installments. So, I only need to pay $700 up front, but I’ll still have to come up with $350 a month for the following two months. I realize that $1,400 is really nothing compared to most college tuitions, but considering that I was expecting to have a little cash left over after paying for my Summer class, this all adds up to equal a significant, long-reaching setback.
Thus begins the aptly named Summer of Ramen.