Community Colleges: Get the Most from Your First Two Years

Okay, maybe you're not ready to leave home. Maybe you don't have the money or the grades for a four-year institution. Hey...cheer up. A community (or two-year) college can be an incredible place to start your academic education and begin your career. You'll be in great company, after all...Walt Disney, Billy Crystal, John Walsh of America's Most Wanted fame, dozens of Congressmen and governors, many Fulbright and Rhodes scholars and the publisher of Forbes magazine are all community college grads (according to the American Association of Community Colleges). And that's just the start.

With off-campus housing, community colleges do offer a different environment. How students handle this environment is a likely predictor of success not only during the first two years, but even into graduate school. Implement these rules on the first day of class and you'll get more from a community college than you ever would from the first two years at a huge university.

1. Become engaged. Just like their large counterparts, community colleges have a variety of activities related to academics: student newspapers, theatre, music groups, business organizations, community service groups, student professional groups and much more. Find out these groups and be involved. Students who are active in campus live make better grades and are more likely to graduate. You'll also experience the full-college experience. No just going home and doing homework!

2. Look to develop leadership roles. As underclassmen, many community colleges offer the chance to develop skills in roles usually reserved for seniors. You can star in "Hamlet," be elected president of the student government and even win research awards. Why should you have to wait until you're a junior to build a resume? At a community college, start your first year.