College! Transfer Ideas

[bbk 188]

Just need some feedback that isn't the voice in my head.

 

I opted to separate from the Army and not take a contracting job so I could focus on college. At this point I'm a few credits or so from getting my Associates. Quickly approaching is my decision to where I'm going to transfer and finish my degree.

Do you guys think its worth it to stay in state? I'm going for a BA in Anthropology (for now, definitely will go for my graduate degrees once I get my career on track), and I know Rutgers has one of the best departments in the nation, though it only applies to the graduate program. I know that the cost of school (and living for that matter) is rising nationally, and I would suffer from having to pay out-of-state fees. Truth is though, I'm not going to be sticking around NJ, even if I opted to stay in state once I start my second career.

Rest assured I've taken the time to see this at every angle possible. I know the downside will always be the financial issue (I have no qualms of leaving "home"). The upside is that it will give me the opportunities not available in NJ, which are plenty as we're all aware of at this point. Where would I go outside of NJ? I'm thinking NYU and American U as my top out-of-state possibilities, and maybe even going out to CU in Colorado (I'd prefer the Denver campus over the Boulder campus), or even U of Hawai'i. In-state, the obvious ones like Rutgers and TCNJ, maybe Monmouth U, etc.

 

Like I said at the beginning, I just want some other feedback, and maybe I can see some new angles. Thanks!

[Maksim 1,504]

no clue bud, not my field. thing to consider though, is 2 years from now, when you graduate... what do you want to do?

 

NJ is the place to be for finance, or biotech space. worst case, you can always move.

 

but also, rutgers is not a bad school at all.

[coldsolderjoint 84]

I would get out of NJ.

 

But +1 on what Maks said, gotta think of what you can do with your degree.

 

Rutgers is in New Brunswick, crowded, hard to get around, and expensive

 

But, they have lots of STD girls, and good greasy food aka, the grease trucks and lots of places to eat

[bbk 188]

Thanks so far. I'm aware of the schools in NJ. My second home was up in New Brunswick (my high school buds had a place right off of Easton), so, I'm familiar with the locale. Almost went to Monmouth, but enlisted instead. Also familiar with TCNJ in Ewing, been to FDU and Seton Hall campuses, as well as Rider and Stevens. I don't really care much for the "college atmosphere," as I got my partying days out of my system when I was in. I just want to get the education, and move forward with my life again.

As for what I want to do, I already have my plan set (not necessarily in stone). I figure with an Anthro degree (with focus on either Near East or Far East culture, and brushing up on my Korean and/or maybe pick up Farsi/Pashto-Dari/Arabic/a dialect of Hindi. I know Spanish, though I need to get better. Hope to also learn French and Serbian [best bud is a Serb]), along with my years in service (and experience with that), and security clearance; I should be able to be a strong candidate. I'm hoping to go back, and do some intelligence analyst work for one of the acronyms. I'd preferably want to retire from Federal service, but truth is that the money and the ability to actually make a difference in policies lies with the private sector. Once I've done that for long enough, probably go be a teacher somewhere-- or find a quiet place, and relax.

This is the reason why I'd consider going to some place like American University because of its desirable location (and relatively economic tuition in comparison to the other schools in DC). Bah, we'll see.

[Dewhitewolf 8]

If languages are your thing, Rutgers seems to offer more languages than most other schools, and even at the intermediate and advanced levels.