I have 1.5 years left before I graduate and get a "special" high school degree, but I am thinking to instead drop out and get a GED. I am in new york city and if I finish high school I will finish with bad grades. What kind of college will I get into with bad grades? With the GED I will go to community college and try to get a good GPA there and then transfer to a good college. Is this a better choice than finishing high school with bad grades? Update: To make the intention of this question more clear, I DO NOT WANT A JOB. I will not use my ged to apply for work, I will use it to go to community/tech college, which I CAN afford. So what would be better, getting a ged and starting community/tech college now and then transferring to a good college or to finish high school and then do what? I don't know how much more a high school diploma with bad grades can get me than a ged. (Although it is a special high school diploma, it's from one of the best high schools in new york and it takes more work to graduate but you get a specialized high school diploma, which is supposed to be worth more than a regular one.)
Quitting high school would be stupid. The GED is much harder to pass than graduation requirements. As for college: You don't sound like an eager responsible student, so why college? To get more bad grades? If you are struggling in high school you won't make it in college. So stay in school, get the diploma and get a job. Welcome to the World.
Yes, drop out ...it's the best thing for you to do at this point. If you finish HS with bad grades, you're stuck with 'em forever. Drop out, join the US Army or Navy, and get your GED through the Army programs. They'll also pay a considerable fund toward college when you're discharged. Besides, you might like the service and decide to make it a career. Baron Max
If you plan on going to a tech and then transferring to another college, I've always heard the grades you got in college are more important than your high schools grades. In other words, if you're sure your plan is to go to a tech and then to a good college, it doesn't really matter. If it's all about getting that paper--that diploma or GED, then it doesn't matter. If you think there might be some real value in going through the extra 1.5 years at high school, then that should be considered. Good luck!
He's got a year and a half to improve his grades, dropping out of HS is never a good thing. Joining the military is allways a good thing though, so that gets my vote.
You said above that the kid struggling in HS should drop out and join the military! Off to Iraq with our least motivated & least educated!! I hate corporate Kerry myself as well, but I had to point out your contradictory suggestion.
It wasn't contradictory at all. In fact, I made it a point to show/tell him how he could get his GED in the military, as well as get money for college. If he's really stupid, then he won't make it in the military anyway, and won't be able to get into college even if he has tons of money! Baron Max
Check the percentages, the chances, of getting killed in Iraq. Then as a comparison, check the chances of him getting killed in car accident on the way to work. Then perhaps you can advise him which is the best choice, okay? Baron Max
That was a truly great option in the military between '75 up to a few years ago. I know several people that were in the military in the 80's that got great educations and top shelf high tech and industrial job training. Now, you are sent to war. Not as appealling of a choice as it once was for a young person.
Then I wonder why there is a recruitment shortage? Why tours are extended significantly, why leaves are being canceled/delayed. There is anger in the ranks about these very things. Iraq is sinking the military along with our national treasury.
One of my former engineer co-workers was in the Navy, he also happened to know more than everyone else soooo.....
So why encourage a young wannabe dropout to join the military?? Because it's where people that can't swing school or hold a decent job go. Not always of course, but much of the ranks are poor rural and urban youth that struggle to pass drug screening.
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This is a VERY DUMB REPLY and very poor misguided advice to give to anyone in any school. You should never drop out no matter what it takes. What if you drop out now - and with only 1.5 years to go??? - and your life soon changes where you wont be able to go to a community college or afford to do that? You'd still have the high school diploma to get a job. You can always go on to a community college any time you want to get better grades, or an associate's or a vocational degree, and then transfer to a university. If you drop out now with so little time left to go, this would be a very dumb foolish decision that you will forever regret for the rest of your life.
I should have made it more clear, I have enough money to pay for community or tech college. I do not need or want a job, for now I just need education. I have been doing bad in high school because I was lazy and unmotivated, but I am not an idiot. And the GED test is very easy, I know what it's like and I know I can pass it, anyone can. My dilemma is this, what is the point of finishing high school if I will finish with bad grades anyway? Wouldn't I be better off getting a GED and starting community/tech college right away and then going to a good one, isn't this my best choice? Good colleges give priority to community college transfers over high school students. If I finish high school, won't I be forced into community college with my bad grades anyway? The only other thing is that I am in a very good high school, this school takes a lot more work to pass than a regular high school, but they give you a special diploma, which is supposedly recognized by most colleges. One thing you must consider is that I do not need money or a job, I only need education.
