<p>Even if we accept that some average Joes (students or parents) ask advice on CC, there are some people who got depressed after a visit on CC. Were there times where you got depressed after a visit on CC?</p>
<p>If I did, it wouldn’t be from posters’ stats, but from what people say. </p>
<p>Not really. I thought about what I wanted in life and realized I didn’t need to compete with the people on here. It’s not like they’re going to kick me off the planet for not accomplishing enough.</p>
<p>I’m sometimes…disturbed by this site because I come from a rural area where people don’t really apply to colleges that reject people, and a lot of kids on here lack perspective and think everyone in the world is judging them based on whether they can get into a selective college. But I don’t usually criticize people for that because I’m also very privileged and worry a lot about things that don’t matter. </p>
<p>I get depressed by the following:
- Students who list that ‘pretty girls’ are one of their criteria for a college (can’t recall seeing a ‘hot guys’ request…). Or that they want to go into investment banking. On principal I don’t give advice to those students, have no interest in helping them further their aims.
- Students whose parents have no understanding of today’s college admissions processes and are really screwing their kids over with various crazy ideas and demands.
- Students who think that only HYPS or a very top college will do, and that their life is over if they don’t get into one of those schools.</p>
<p>I advise people that I tell about CC to just stay off the Ivy league forums and stick more to the forums where it is mostly parents posting.</p>
<p>Sometimes . . .</p>
<p>When a kid has chosen a school and his parents or friends belittle his choice for not being prestigious enough.</p>
<p>When anyone says their ACT of 25 is “low” (which is different than saying low for a particular college)</p>
<p>When people want to turn to psychiatric diagnosis and possibly meds first rather than looking at the pressure cooker a kid is currently living in.</p>
<p>The HYPS obsession also depresses me. </p>
<p>What put me in a funk for a couple of weeks was a white parent who kept PMing me for guidance on which jaw-droppingly generous pkg to choose from, from the schools which were aggressively, obsequiously courting his half-hispanic kid. That’s when it sank in how much a difference checking the “race box” makes.</p>
<p>Although I well understand that CC is NOT a cross section of all applicants, it was eye opening to see there are so high quality candidates competing for admissions and scholarships. Not depressing, just educational. </p>
<p>In “misery loves company” category, it was good to read about other families that felt financially comfortable yet still overwhelmed by their EFC estimates. </p>
<p>No, not really. I don’t take these things seriously, good for them if they can get into HYPS. I actually kind of feel sorry for those who are naïve enough to put a lot of blind faith in these colleges. I try to help all of them out even the ones who want “hot girls”. I sometimes think some of these kids could be kids like my cousin’s who had nobody to help. So if I could help that is good. </p>
<p>It depresses me to read about the opportunities that exist in other school districts. The inequality of our public education system is appalling, and needs to be addressed far more fervently on a national level. And no, I don’t mean Common Core!</p>
<p>Depressed…no, dumbfounded…yes.</p>
<p>I am not sure that depressed is the right word. I think that CC has taught me that there is a whole world of amazing kids out there. I agree with planner03- there is a lot of inequality in our schools and yes, that is depressing.</p>
<p>
This reninds me of what DS told me about his high school physics teacher: He assigned a grand total of about 20 short questions for the students as homework assignment in the whole semester and he teaches about 40-50% of class time and then the students are left to do whatever they want and he himself goes off to do whatever he wants to do. At one time, the classroom became well too noisy and chaotic (one chair went up to the ceiling fan and students had too much fun but the teacher did not pay any attention to it as he was busy doing his own thing) and the vice orincipal came to see if anything bad happening in the class after receiving some complaints from a neighboring class. That teacher retired after that school year.</p>
<p>Another math teacher in middle school really does not want to teach. She came to class and preferred to talk about anything but math, like about a new donut store coming to our city every class for several months. At the end of the semester, some administrator from the school district visited her classroom and she taught on that day. Afterwards, most of the students thought she is actually very good at teaching after all - the only problem was that she does not feel like teaching on most days. I think DS actually learned more from her than that physics teacher, because at least she would assign enough homework for the students to work on at home so the students can learn by themselves from the textbook or parents. (Is it a miracle that DS turns out to be a STEM major at college?!)</p>
<p>DS once said to me that he actually likes to attend his physics class at college and he could not understand why so many other students complained about the quality of the teaching in the same class. At least that college physics teacher taught the class the whole time and prepared the teaching materials before class. The reasons that I can think of are: 1) this may be a compliment to me because he has mostly learned physics from me at high and middle school, and his appetite for such a subject has not been “ruined”. You know, it is often the case that a child is not willing to learn directly from his own parents face to face. So I mostly wrote down something he needed to learn or some parts of a book he needed to learn from, and let him work on it independently while I was not around him. 2) other students might have a better high school physics teacher so they do not know what a really bad or lazy physics teacher is like in their whole lives.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>THIS! So much THIS! </p>
<p>As someone who has struggled with anxiety and depression, it really drives me up a wall when people jump to that as the issue rather than looking at other issues. I’m all for psychiatric treatment when it’s needed, but just because a kid is a little different or doesn’t want to be perfect doesn’t mean that he/she needs psychiatric help. (S)he could just be being a kid. </p>
<p>It really depresses me that some on here are so quick to jump to extreme conclusions in general. </p>
<p>No, there’s in fact a comfort in knowing that the world isn’t going to depend on me to save the world from whatever. Someone smarter than me out there can do it. I can chill and let others take the responsibility for that. </p>
<p>No. I saw how many truly accomplished kids don’t get into HYPS, etc. It shows what I suspected - that the elites are a crapshoot for just about everyone. And I also learned about the (many!) other fantastic educational options for those accomplished kids – and the “normal” ones as well.</p>
<p>Not really. I have older kids and several nieces so through them or their friends I already knew that there are good colleges that are not HYP, that not having a 4.0 or a 2400 SAT score does NOT doom you to flipping burgers, that there are many interesting careers that are NOT ibanking, engineering or medicine, and that it’s even possible to work at places like MS and Google with a degree from only a select few colleges. I mostly stay for the fun of it.</p>
<p>It did take me awhile to recognize that certain posters just raise my blood pressure and really need to be ignored as engaging them gets me nowhere. And I’ve also learned that there are some interests and populations just not well represented here so I need to do all the work myself of investigating related topics. But otherwise I’m good.</p>
<p>I think it could be intimidating for a student or parent to see the quantity of highly accomplished applicants on here, but this could be a blessing in disguise. The parents and student only see the top 10 or so students in that class, but not the ones in the rest of the US and world who are applying. The financial reality of college is also made clear on CC.</p>
<p>Personally, I think it would be less depressing to see this on CC first, then reach too high and not get accepted to college. I think top students can still apply to their reach schools, but with a more objective outlook of the prospects and include other less selective but great schools on their lists. Sure they are the occasional trolls and posters who will discuss things that might irritate others, but the vast majority of people on CC who give informed and honest advice is impressive.</p>
<p>I do wish there was a less negative view of community colleges here on CC. I think they can provide affordable options for students who are not financially able, or academically prepared to enter four year colleges. Traditional college with room and board is not the only way to succeed, and starting out at a CC and then transferring can save costs. It may not be the best choice for all students, but it could be the best option for some students. </p>
<p>@catria, could you elaborate on how you feel, since you asked the original question?</p>
<p>I have felt truly amazed at the kindness, wisdom, and sense of humor shared with one another here, despite the very occasional snarkiness. I have seen incredible grace freely given. I do have to admit when D2 was closing in on college aps, I avoided the parents of class of 20** thread for her year because the parents posting had amazingly accomplished kids and were unabashedly proud (not that they shouldn’t be), and hung out more on the B and B+ threads (finding colleges appropriate for kids with these GPAs, which BTW are still GOOD GPAs). Great leads on those those threads, though, about great colleges for kids who are not academic standouts. If one is prone to comparing oneself with others, CC can be a hard neighborhood to walk through, though you can always find a friend . 
</p>
<p>No, but if you only got your information from CC, you’d think a 2200 SAT was “meh.”</p>