# About to start college a little late at age 20...Any advice you want to give me? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 14, 2011, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651 "2011-08-14T03:57:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ea5d25/32.png) [@No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_umlaut_for_U)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/21 "2011-08-14T17:48:05Z")
Consider taking a math class at whatever level you left off in HS, even if you don’t think you’ll use it in any major you’re considering. Sadly, you never use a lot of math in the real world, and I found I forgot calculus very quickly. Doen’t really apply at JuCo or tech school too often, but go to all the free events you can, such as lectures by distinguished people, orchestra or choral concerts, and even interesting seminars. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/22 "2011-08-14T18:42:24Z")
obligatory Buffy quote: [ul] [li] **Dawn:** My advice to you is do exactly what everyone else does all the time. [/li][li] **Willow:** Got it. [/li][li] **Dawn:** Do what everyone else does, wear what everyone else wears, say what everyone else says. [/li][li] **Willow:** Okay. [/li][li] **Dawn:** People may say something to you you don’t understand. Just don’t be afraid to keep your mouth shut and pretend like you know what they’re saying. [/li][li] **Willow:** You know, Dawn, I’ve been to college before. [/li][li] **Dawn:** People may say something like “My protein window closes in an hour.” Just nod and smile. Mm-hmm. Turns out it has something to do with fitness.[/li][/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/23 "2011-08-14T19:49:39Z")
Take your required courses at a Community College, then transfer credits to a University. You’ll save money. Don’t hesitate to study up on a subject, & then take a CLEP Test. Quicker & cheaper, & they are easier than you’d think. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/24 "2011-08-14T20:00:17Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Don’t hesitate to study up on a subject, & then take a CLEP Test. Quicker & cheaper, & they are easier than you’d think. Good point - I CLEP’d out of several courses. ---
**Author:** ![Hyperelastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Hyperelastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hyperelastic)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/25 "2011-08-14T20:08:34Z")
You’ll do fine; better than fine, actually. Most 18-year-olds aren’t ready for college and don’t get as much out of it as they could. A couple of years away from school would do most people a world of good. I slogged through undergrad on the usual schedule, worked for three years, and then did brilliantly well in grad school. One study tip I can impart: when you are really having a hard time conceptually with something, write up a fake lecture on the topic. It may take hours and hours, but it’s the best way to thoroughly understand something. And you’ll have a nice set of notes to refer back to. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2011, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/26 "2011-08-15T03:33:22Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Don’t do anything else in class. Note taking is useless. Don’t use any devices. Just pay attention. > > To memorize something, take an exponential delay method. Look at it, come back a few minutes later, then 20 minutes later, then an hour or two, then later that day, then the next day, then after a couple days. I found note-taking to be useful, but I used a memorization method similar to the one you mention. Before each test, I would read through my notes five times. The first three times were straight read-throughs without even attempting to memorize anything. Then on the fourth and fifth read-throughs, I found I had it all down already and could concentrate on salient points likely to be covered. ---
**Author:** ![Yorikke](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yorikke/32/4335_2.png) [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2011, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/27 "2011-08-15T04:53:55Z")
Twenty is still young, but… Use what you’ve learned already. I started college at the ass end of 17. I thought I knew everything, but I knew nothing, and wasted those years. Just a little life experience would’ve helped. Joe ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2011, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/28 "2011-08-15T18:19:19Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > I started at a major university at age 24. No problems whatsoever. I’d spent the time between high school and then bumming around in dead-end jobs in Texas, trying to decide what the hell to do with myself. Looking back, I find it laughable now that I considered myself an “older student” when there were a fair number of middle-aged classmates returning or even going for the first time. I had one classmate who was in her 60s; she’d given up college 40 years before to marry and raise a family, and she with her personality not only fit right in, but also hosted many a dinner party for her fellow students. A lovely lady. The oldest student I ever had was 85. She was awesome. ---
**Author:** ![geneb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a88e4f/32.png) [@geneb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/geneb)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2011, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/29 "2011-08-15T19:22:39Z")
I started college when I was 20 as well. I don’t feel that it was any different than those who started at 18. Working and going to school isn’t all that hard either. I worked just shy of full time until my last year and I still managed to graduate in three years. You just have to make sure to have your act together. And maybe take a few summer classes (if you live off-campus it is a year long lease anyway. Might as well get some use out of it. You’re going to pay for it one way or the other). ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2011, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/30 "2011-08-15T19:35:19Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Don’t do anything else in class. Note taking is useless. Don’t use any devices. Just pay attention. This is great advice for some and absolutely horrible advice for others. It’s called “auditory processing” and some people have it, some people don’t. If I didn’t write down notes, I would forget 100% of everything I heard in class, within 30 minutes of the end of class. It doesn’t matter how keenly I pay attention or if I participate. If I don’t write it down, it’s gone. I have about 0% auditory processing ability. The act of determining what is important enough to write down, and writing it down, is what makes it stick. The only device I use is a pen and paper. The better advice is, “Know your learning style” Study in ways that maximize your most comfortable learning styles. There’s no one right way to do it. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2011, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/31 "2011-08-21T04:45:03Z")
> [@Vita\_Beata](#): > > Forget about the difference from age 18 to 20 .. totally irrelevant! Congrats upon your enrollment and best wishes on your studies. I don’t think it’s totally irrelevant. I think I probably would have been better off going to college a year or two later myself, because I was still pretty immature when I graduated a month after turning twenty-two. **2ManyTacos** will most likely be more grown up and more ready for a “real” job upon graduation than many of us who went to college at eighteen. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2011, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651/32 "2011-08-21T13:15:48Z")
The piece of advice that worked for me was “Just go to class.” Don’t skip. Go, put your butt in the seat, and do whatever works best for you there (surfing the Straight Dope won’t be what works best). Just listen, or take notes. But GO to class. It makes everything else so much easier and smoother. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/about-to-start-college-a-little-late-at-age-20-any-advice-you-want-to-give-me/592651.md?page=1)