College is definitely a unique experience, especially when everyone's experience is different. So far, I have enjoyed my time at a university, and I can think of a lot of great things about campus life. However, there are also somethings that I don't understand or just don't like about college. Here is a list of pros and cons on university life.
PROS
Higher Education- Not everyone has the opportunity to say they got to go to college. I'm thankful that I am someone who can say that. In no way does an education status make one person more valuable than another, but having a degree can help a person earn a higher paying job. Especially if you're learning a valuable trade or skill.
Academic Programs- Sometimes, when I'm bored, I look at the MTSU website to see what kind of programs they offer for different majors. There are so many options. As someone who transferred from a very small community college with very limited major paths, I really appreciate what all a university has to offer it's students.
Clubs/Greek life- I'm not a sorority girl but I am friends with some people who are. I just think it's great how universities have all this different stuff that students can be apart of. I think it's especially great for people who live on campus, that way they're not just constantly working, they're actually apart of something too. A lot of clubs are helpful with people for their majors. For example, I'm part of MT10, which is the TV News station for MTSU.
Jobs on Campus- I myself currently work on campus. This is another great thing for people who either live on campus or spend most of their time there. You can be an assistant for your professor, you can work in a food court, you can be a part time groundskeeper for the campus, you can work in a office, you can be a tour guide, you can work in the library. There's all kinds of positions. Plus, you'll have a much easier time landing a job at your university if you don't have luck anywhere else.
Friends/Different Cultures- As I said before, I came from a small community college. The population wasn't huge and it was predominantly white American. I didn't find anything wrong with that, I'm white American. However, I also enjoy learning about other cultures and when I came to MTSU I got to experience a lot of that first hand. I've made friends with people who are black, an Asian girl, and a girl from Ethiopia. I just think it's cool how everyone in a university gets to experience and interact with different walks of life. Plus you'd be surprised how much you have in common with other people who may not even be from the same country as you. I get along well with my Ethiopian friend. I believe she and I have a good friendship because we both believe in God.
CONS
Big Campus/Population- Some might see this as a good thing, but as a introverted person who is used to a small town/school, it's kind of intimidating. I went from going to a small community college where a lot of the students were also my classmates in high school, to this huge university where I didn't know anyone (except like two people) and I didn't know where hardly anything was. I didn't know the norms of campus life, I didn't know what all kind of programs existed for our convenience. All I knew was how to try and find my classes, that's it.
Parking- I uh...had some issues at the beginning of my first semester during college with parking. I understand it's a big campus with a lot of students so to have order they need to organize who can park where. What I don't understand though is why are there designated areas for on campus students only? They LIVE on campus. It's easy for them to get to class, they shouldn't have their own parking lots. I live 45 minutes away from school, I have to leave my house by a certain time just to guarantee I have any parking spot at all.
Open Campus- This is could be considered a good thing, but I have experienced first hand the negatives of having an open campus. This means anyone can come to MTSU at anytime. We once had a man, a preacher for some cult of a church, come on campus. I had heard about them before but never actually seen them in person. It's a small church that's mostly populated by a large family. They travel around "preaching" about how God basically hates everyone. This man came to MTSU and they had caution tape set around where he was and there were police there too. The man was just yelling things into a megaphone. I later learned that all the cops and tape were there to keep students from attacking the man. Apparently, he came to MTSU one year and got his arm broken. I understand freedom of speech, but no one wants to listen to that crap. I personally get really angry when people try to speak for God, especially when it's filled with nothing but hate.
Crime- Unfortunately, when you have a bigger population, you have more crime. Thankfully, I've never witnessed any crime on the campus itself, but a lot of the housing areas and apartments near MTSU have. I hear about shootings all the time on student living areas. A lot of people seem to think these crimes are commited by non students living in the area. I don't know if that's true or not, I just know it happens too often and too close for comfort.
