Community Colleges

Community colleges often offer several benefits over other colleges and universities, but there may be some downside points as well. Weigh both sides before you decide for or against attending a community college. Many students complete one or two years at a community college before transferring to a four-year college or university. Community colleges cost less, can usually accept students with a broader range of GPAs and test scores, are often easier to get into than some colleges and many universities, and usually have smaller class sizes. They're also often in areas that have no other colleges or universities nearby and generally employ high quality, committed instructors. They often offer courses during evenings and even weekends since many community college students also have jobs. On the more negative side, community colleges often have no student housing and comparatively lackluster student activities on campus. They may have a higher percentage of students who aren't particularly inclined towards academia than other colleges, and this can be difficult for more academically oriented students. The workload for many community college courses tends to be less rigorous too.