I always hated the fact that my college and others force you to take completely useless classes that you will never see again in your life after completing them. Why would I need to know music history if I’m not a music major. Why should I be forced to learn about mythology and all these fake gods that I could care less about? Why do they make us take an art class when I suck at drawing? You get the point. I’m taking a class right now called lit before 1660 which they shove down your throat and it’s hard hard class that serves no practical purpose. It’s ridiculous that I have to write a 10+ page essay in 4 days for a useless class. I don’t understand it. It’s just another reason I hate college. Does anyone agree with me or do they like having classes that does not serve any purpose or interest forced down upon them?
Are you literally required to take music history? Or did you choose it from a list of classes that satisfy a gen ed requirement?
Last semester I was spring transfer and they told me I was missing a fine arts and this what was given to me. Then this semester I had to choose between art or drama which in either case is a complete waste of my time and money.
Guess you shouldn’t have transferred there without understanding the distribution requirements.
Either way I was gonna have to take these “gen ed” classes anyways. They are a waste of time, energy, and money.
Yes, some of them are a waste of time. They usually give you some leeway to choose something that can remotely interest you. Are you at a small school where the selection is lacking?
You should have looked into the requirements before attending that school. Schools have different Gen Ed or Liberal Arts requirements. Oftentimes you get to choose topics you are interested in. If nothing interesting is offered that semester, take a different requirement instead. This is, after all, what education is all about. If you wanted to attend a trade school, you should have. Most colleges and universities have these requirements in order to educate you. To be an educated person means that you are conversant on many subjects. When you get out there in the work world there will be many instances when you need to know things about the world beyond sports or random shows on tv.
My school is pretty small compared to most colleges. They force you to take classes. Students are literally forced to take this class called lit before 1660 (even the prof. Told us this and laughed about it) and gave us huge essays on the most boring books and I’m stuck on it all this stress over a class that won’t mean a thing after turning it in Friday
@researchperson I feel like colleges should not force you to take anything you are not interested, but then again they couldn’t milk you for all your money either. I don’t watch TV shows anyways and most people I talk to out in the real world even agree with me. My dad worked for a multi millionaire who does real estate and she didn’t get that successful by knowing about the adventures of Odysseus or what year a painting was drawn.
Pretty horrible world if people know nothing but what they use at work.
Hang in there! I’m not a huge lit fan myself, but as a former professor, I can assure you there is a reason for all this. First and foremost, they are trying to get you to read and comprehend on a higher level. Think of it as a fancy reading comprehension exercise. Next, you are supposed to learn to write well. Both of these skills will be needed later in life and later in school. As for the material itself, you may find it boring but you are learning about culture, history and civilization.
No matter what you end up doing with your life, there are ALWAYS going to be hoops that you have to jump through to accomplish what you want to accomplish, and some of those hoops will seem pretty stupid. It is what it is. If you want the end result, in this case a degree, then you are going to have to play the game.
@NothernMom61 I guess I do, but I can’t wait for the second I finish college. It’s probably the worst 4-5 years of my life.
I’m not sure I understand what you’re talking about OP.
Gen Eds were the easiest classes in my degree plan. They were the only reason I had time to make friends in college.
Jeez, how far in are you? Maybe you should consider dropping out if it’s pure torture.
Do you like the classes in your major, or in any department at your school? Some schools have much lighter distribution requirements than others. Maybe you should look for a school like that if there are some subjects you’re interested in.
@RedThunder I took an intro linguistics class (mostly to fulfill MIT’s humanities/writing component) and I was surprised to see a lot of that material covered in my AI, software engineering, and discrete math classes. You never know when these seemingly useful topics will pop up.
@WalknOnEggShells I’ll be a sophomore after this semester and I’ve only taken one course towards my major this semester and it’s alright. I look foward to that class more than anything else I have. I don’t like for from any standpoint. It’s just something I have to do to get to point A to point B. I hate it, but it’ll be done hopefully as I hope time will fly.
Sounds like you might prefer a trade school instead of getting a real education
Money. What else can you do with a Music History degree except teach? A teacher needs students in the classroom.