I’ve lived in Columbus, Ohio for over 15 years. There are many things that I like about this city, one of the main things being the education system. Columbus Ohio has some of the best colleges in the nation, and they work very closely and if or when you choose to transfer from one to another, most or all of your credits will transfer. And while CSCC is not nearly as big and prestigious as OSU, it is still a great college. I graduated from Columbus State back in 2005 and while there are many things that I liked about the college, there are still some things that I wish I knew before attending.
1. Martial Arts Training: CSCC has a martial arts training program that I could have joined. I have always wanted to learn some type of martial arts but never got around to trying it. Had I known about CSCC’s martial arts program before graduating, I most likely would have enrolled.
2. Transfer Options: Columbus State is a 2 year college. And, after attending the college for several months, I then began considering my options for transferring to a 4 year school. Eventually I learned that Columbus State works very closely with Franklin University , and if I had chosen to transfer to Franklin University, all or most of my credits would have been accepted. If I knew that ahead of time, I could have planned better for a smooth transition, programmatically and financially.
3. Scholarship programs: I did not find out until much later that Columbus State offered several scholarship programs that I might have qualified for. I found out about the programs so close to graduation that it was too late.
4. The Workload: Attending and graduating from college is very hard work. My first quarter at CSCC, I registered for 4 or 5 courses giving me full-time status. My problem was procrastination, I waited until almost the middle of the quarter to start doing the assignments. I immediately realized my huge mistake in underestimating the workload. I ended up paying extra to repeat some of these classes.
5. Online courses: Columbus State offered online courses for my program and many others. The courses were intense, challenging and well organized. The online courses offer a level of convenience that campus courses can’t match. It was only after attending CSCC for several months that I realized that they offer such courses and that I probably should try some of them. In many cases you end up learning more from the online courses than from the on-campus ones.
If I had it to do again, I most likely would still attend Columbus State Community College. Community colleges are a great place for almost any student to start their college journey. The credits are much more affordable than 4 year colleges and you still obtain very good training in your field of choice.
Roy Hall graduated from Columbus State in 2005 with an Associate of Applied Science in Website Design. He currently works at home in Columbus, Ohio as Website Designer and Freelance Writer.