Is Community College really "easier"?

[wfamtw]

I'm attending a community college for my first year right now (taking 5 years total for my BS). It's one of the best community colleges in the country and its affiliated with a mid tier public university, and it even has on campus housing. Are community college courses really "easier" or is this just a common misconception? I'm worried I'm getting a bit cocky, I've managed to get 4.0 with little to no effort. For my first year I'm taking lower level classes to get ready since I didn't finish high school and wasn't sure what I could handle.

Right now i'm taking:
Sophomore Writing
Microeconomics (taught over broadcast from main campus)
Anatomy and Physiology for non-science majors
Sophomore political philosophy
and College Algebra (1/2 of precalc, taking trig over the summer)

Most of these courses are just placeholders to establish a GPA so I can transfer, and I guess they'll apply to some gen-eds later. I took chem 101 (intro, not gen chem) and 3 electives last semester. Am I in for a rude awakening when I start taking the premed courses at the main campus next year?

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[AlfonsTheGuru]

I don't know enough to give you a definite answer, but what community college offers on-campus housing?

 

[njtrimed]

I'm attending a community college for my first year right now (taking 5 years total for my BS). It's one of the best community colleges in the country and its affiliated with a mid tier public university, and it even has on campus housing. Are community college courses really "easier" or is this just a common misconception? I'm worried I'm getting a bit cocky, I've managed to get 4.0 with little to no effort. For my first year I'm taking lower level classes to get ready since I didn't finish high school and wasn't sure what I could handle.

Right now i'm taking:
Sophomore Writing
Microeconomics (taught over broadcast from main campus)
Anatomy and Physiology for non-science majors
Sophomore political philosophy
and College Algebra (1/2 of precalc, taking trig over the summer)

Most of these courses are just placeholders to establish a GPA so I can transfer, and I guess they'll apply to some gen-eds later. I took chem 101 (intro, not gen chem) and 3 electives last semester. Am I in for a rude awakening when I start taking the premed courses at the main campus next year?

No.

 

[MoDiddy]

Audited Gen Chem I at my local community college over the summer, took the tests as well and got a 120/100 on all of them (crazy amount of extra credit on each test)..barely did any work. Currently at a top liberal arts school and had to work a lot lot lot harder to get an A. Just my 2c

 

[jqueb29]

Yes.

 

[ciestar]

Best advice ever is to not ever get cocky because you're not perfect. Be prepared to study more next year, know it could be a possibility, but none of us can really say until you get there and into harder courses.

Btw, my SO likes to tell me now that I am starting med school that it's okay to not be the smartest person in the room, that everyone around me is finally on my level.

 

[Ioannes Paulus]

YES, YES, A THOUSAND TIMES YES!
I took Organic Chemistry II at my local CC and it was MULTIPLE CHOICE! All the exams were multiple choice!!! I don't know any 4 year school that wouldn't expect students to draw out mechanisms in Organic Chem II but CCs do it all the time.

 

[Ioannes Paulus]

Wait, are you at Santa Monica Community College?

 

[njtrimed]

YES, YES, A THOUSAND TIMES YES!
I took Organic Chemistry II at my local CC and it was MULTIPLE CHOICE! All the exams were multiple choice!!! I don't know any 4 year school that wouldn't expect students to draw out mechanisms in Organic Chem II but CCs do it all the time.

I had the opposite experience. My organic chem exams at my CC were ten pages of drawing out mechanisms, but the classes I TA'd at my university were multiple choice.

 

[wfamtw]

I don't know enough to give you a definite answer, but what community college offers on-campus housing?

My thoughts exactly

Wait, are you at Santa Monica Community College?

No

 

[wfamtw]

YES, YES, A THOUSAND TIMES YES!
I took Organic Chemistry II at my local CC and it was MULTIPLE CHOICE! All the exams were multiple choice!!! I don't know any 4 year school that wouldn't expect students to draw out mechanisms in Organic Chem II but CCs do it all the time.

I do know our chemistry professor is notorious for difficult exams, but I won't be taking his class since I'm transferring.

 

[trickydick]

I don't know enough to give you a definite answer, but what community college offers on-campus housing?

My local community college just built housing and is a SUNY very loosely associated with a local 4-year SUNY school. However, that is school is among the most competitive public schools in the country. People that transfer from my local CC to that SUNY have a very difficult time, especially in premed courses.

Also, we did multi-step synthesis mechanisms for days. Can't imagine a multiple choice orgo test.

 

[To be MD]

I'm attending a community college for my first year right now (taking 5 years total for my BS). It's one of the best community colleges in the country and its affiliated with a mid tier public university, and it even has on campus housing. Are community college courses really "easier" or is this just a common misconception? I'm worried I'm getting a bit cocky, I've managed to get 4.0 with little to no effort. For my first year I'm taking lower level classes to get ready since I didn't finish high school and wasn't sure what I could handle.

Right now i'm taking:
Sophomore Writing
Microeconomics (taught over broadcast from main campus)
Anatomy and Physiology for non-science majors
Sophomore political philosophy
and College Algebra (1/2 of precalc, taking trig over the summer)

Most of these courses are just placeholders to establish a GPA so I can transfer, and I guess they'll apply to some gen-eds later. I took chem 101 (intro, not gen chem) and 3 electives last semester. Am I in for a rude awakening when I start taking the premed courses at the main campus next year?

Community college classes in general are easier. By definition, 'college' curricula are not at the academic rigor of those offered by universities.

That being said, some community college classes can be harder... for many reasons. The most likely one is that a lot of the faculty a CC offers are not as good as those you'll find at the best universities (sure, they're exceptions... but let's not kid ourselves), and, with a bad professor, any material can be tough.

That doesn't mean you're not smart as anyone at a university right now, and it doesn't mean that your specific CC is easy. All this means is that overall CC classes are easier (yet cheaper and more accessible too).

Take it from me, I transferred from an okay public university to a top 25, and I was scared to death by how much harder my classes were when I started. Be confident your grades are good, but, as others have said, don't be cocky about it and be ready to work your butt off even more when you transfer.

 

[Smash Williams]

I took many of my prereqs at a local CC because of financial/schedule reasons (post-bacc career changer), and I can say that it really depends on the course. My situation is nice because the courses have competency requirements that are the same at the CC as well as the major state schools, so I know I'm covering all the information. But the difficulty relative to at a four-year school depended mostly on the course.

For reference, I took a full year of a science and a math course during my original undergrad. The math I took in the CC was harder, and when I retook that course (because it was way out of date to be a prereq), the first semester was easier but the second semester was harder. I have to imagine my first half of bio was significantly easier, but the second half made up for it by being ridiculous because of an extremely detail-oriented professor. And o-chem was no question harder at the CC according to kids who came over from the local four-year for one of the two semesters. The professor, their interpretation of the competencies, and their testing style made all the difference more than CC vs. four-year.

The flip side is at my CC, you may get a better relative experience in a class because the sizes are markedly smaller. O-Chem is a 200+ person course at the local four year (a true behemoth of a school), and we had about 15-20 in my class. The teacher was damn difficult, but I had much better interaction and therefore probably learned the material better. Your experience may obviously vary.

 

[21Rush12]

I think it depends on the school and its reputation...as @gonnif said there are some schools that advise against too much CC work for prerequisites, but one of the schools s/he listed interviewed me and I did two years at a similar NY community college.


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[leonardoson]

I was at a community college for 3+ years(not full time for first part). The hardest term I had there was a 15 credit term. I transferred this year to a lib. arts uni took 16 credits last semester at my current and was stressed to the max. Was in gen chem, calc physics, calc 1, and Spanish. I would say that community college is easier. I still managed a 3.67 (damn you spanish) last semester after getting 3.8-4.0's in community college. Universities have a lot higher expectation of you, and assign more work. Be prepared for transfer shock your first semester. You are getting cocky, as I got cocky as well. Just prepare for a harder workload and jump in. You can do it! Just as I am right now

 

[kamakazi5]

I've taken courses at my community college that were way harder than most classes I took at university and taken some that were jokes. I've also taken classes that were complete jokes at my university as well. It really depends on the teacher and they're teaching/testing style.

 

[aalamruad]

The UC I'm currently at is easier than my CC was. I've been taking physics, bio, and biochem, and have literally averaged ~98% over all my classes so far. Definitely couldn't have gotten those kinds of scores at my CC, but it's pretty easy to do here with very minimal effort.

 

[Darshawn]

It's entirely dependent on the professors, where you are etc. Where I live we don't have any public unis nearby so we have a lot of really good professors (one of mine used to work at yale) who moved here later in life bc of the location (beach) and the local CC system is their main job choice. I don't think any university has as big of a diverse pool of instructors as community colleges do.

I'd say in general that the stereotype is unfounded. In the past CCs have been seen as easier but CC has evolved from "pre-university" to a way to save money, and the education quality isn't inherently better or worse. The biggest shortcoming of CCs is the lack of opportunities outside of your actual classes.

 

[Monkey.King]

It all depends on the school. In my state, the city community colleges are terrible. The top schools in my state don't even take credits from there. You can take classes from community college while in highschool in easily get an A from the city ones. The county ones are a different story in my state. Some of the county CC are better than some of the universities in my state. Hopkins even accepts credits from these colleges. My state is MD. A few of them even offers room and board, even though it's not worth since the cost is more than the tuition @AlfonsTheGuru

 

[ed*26]

I don't know enough to give you a definite answer, but what community college offers on-campus housing?

A CC that is hoping to become a university soon. A small commuter college in my hometown recently became accredited as a university, and they had to put up housing (among other things) to qualify.

For my $.02, I withdrew from Calc II at my university and followed it up with a 96 in a summer CC class. Don't expect to continue to receive a 4.0 with "little to no effort." I suggest taking no more than 1-2 hard STEM courses your first semester to make the transition easier. You should be able to fill out the extra credits with psych/soc, stats, foreign language, minor classes, etc.

 

[M.D.Cole]

Why is it going to take you 5 years to finish your B.S. ? CC courses that are a C or better typically transfer to your next school, and for certain if you transfer to a State School that is affiliated with that CC.

 

[leonardoson]

My Molecular Bio teacher was also pretty rigorous. 7 exams and 3 quizzes. Exams were 50 questions, 55 minutes. I studied 25 hours a week for the class to net a perfect overall grade. The same teacher also teaches my Genetics class. He has structured his class to center on the concept and material of genetics, as opposed to calculating random ****. There are 3 accepted medical students who all went to fantastic Uni's in my Genetics class (along with many other smart students who are accepted pharma and optometry). I score significantly higher on my exams with my community college education than they do with their top 10 university education.

That is a brash statement considering the circumstances. Since they are all "accepted" you think maybe they are taking it easy and not stressing about getting A's? Just a thought....

 

[mountainpeak]

In my experience, the material wasn't easier but the environment (for me) was better and therefore facilitated a better and easier learning experience. I hope that makes sense. And of course it all depends on the professor.

For example - I took organic at a CC and both semesters, the final exam was an American Chemical Society final exam. Meanwhile when I transferred to a large university, most of the exams were scantron and cheating in the large lecture halls was rampant. Even with TAs walking around, they can't have their eyes on every student at each moment so it happened. At my CC, some professors would even check water bottles during exams to make sure the labels weren't printed with answers.

However I noticed my labs were always definitely harder at university vs. CC.

 

[medic86]

Doesn't matter. Everyone knows that if you ever went to a community college you won't get into medical school.

 

[andrek82]

There are some medical schools that directly speak to this idea of community college courses. This may give a little better insight in how the underlying “culture” or “attitude” of admission committee members, whether a formal policy or not, may perceive applicants who choose summer or community college coursework. While this list is not exhaustive, it is representative enough to help advise students who are considering such a step.

SUNY Upstate College of Medicine
http://www.upstate.edu/com/admissions/faqs.php
“Applicants should avoid taking more than one or two prerequisite science courses during the summer and avoid taking them at community colleges.”

Ichan School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
http://icahn.mssm.edu/education/medical/admissions/regular-track/requirements
Q: Can I take my courses at a community college, or must I take them at a four-year college or university?
A: We have no requirement about where you take courses, though the Committee on Admissions does take that into consideration in evaluating your application.

Johns Hopkins Medical School
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/som/admissions/md/application_process/prerequisites_requirements.html
The School of Medicine accepts prerequisites completed at the community college level. In order to be competitive in the selection process, we encourage prospective applicants with community college prerequisites to supplement these courses by taking advanced courses in related subjects at their four year institution.

University of Florida College of Medicine
http://admissions.med.ufl.edu/faq/#community_college
Q: Can I take the prerequisite courses at my local community/junior college?
A: In order to create the most academically competitive application you should take all prerequisite courses at the most competitive bachelor’s degree granting institution where you can gain entrance. You should try to complete your pre-requisite courses at a four-year institution

Albert Einstein College of Medicine
https://www.einstein.yu.edu/educati...pplication-procedure/course-requirements.aspx
Whereas course work at a four-year college or university is our benchmark, if a student chooses to meet a competency component via an alternate route such as through laboratory experience, through an advanced placement course, a course taken at a community college, a course taken abroad (during a semester abroad for which the undergraduate U.S. degree-granting institution gives credit, or for which AMCAS will verify and report the grade), or an online course, he or she should seek guidance from his or her advisor to ensure that the option meets the above guidelines as well as the rigorous academic standard required by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

George Washington University
http://smhs.gwu.edu/academics/md-program/admissions/faqs#communitycollege
Do you accept community college credits?
Yes. The Committee on Admissions does accept coursework taken at a community college; however, it is preferable to have the pre-medical coursework taken at a four-year college or university.

Florida State University College of Medicine
http://med.fsu.edu/?page=mdAdmissions.admissionRequirement
Listed below is the pre-requisite coursework required for all matriculates to the FSU COM. Advanced Placement, CLEP, and dual enrollment credits fulfill the course requirements. However, courses taken in a traditional classroom at a four-year institution are considered to be more academically competitive.

Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University
https://medicine.temple.edu/education/md-program/admissions/requirements
Two pre-requisite science courses can be fulfilled with AP credits, community college courses or through a study abroad program.

Not to be argumentative, but my class at Suny Upstate had multiple students, including me, with associates degrees from community colleges. I think it is really student dependent there. That said, a community college background will exclude you from some higher tier med schools even if they don't say it will.

 

[andrek82]

Argumentative or not, the formal and published policy on their website is the below and is specific to the prerequisite courses, not to community college graduates in general. Perhaps if you are a student there you should bring it up to the admissions office that their FAQ may have outdated and misleading information

SUNY Upstate College of Medicine
http://www.upstate.edu/com/admissions/faqs.php
“Applicants should avoid taking more than one or two prerequisite science courses during the summer and avoid taking them at community colleges.”

I'll do that. I didn't take any prerequisites at a four year school, in fact.

 

[andrek82]

SUNY Upstate College of Medicine
http://www.upstate.edu/com/admissions/faqs.php
“Applicants should avoid taking more than one or two prerequisite science courses during the summer and avoid taking them at community colleges.”

It looks like it was changed already:
"If a student is matriculated at an accredited four year college or university, the Admissions Committee strongly recommends that all science prerequisites be completed at that institution. If a student begins college at an accredited two year college and transfers to a competitive four year college or university to complete their bachelor's degree, they must demonstrate continued academic excellence in any remaining prerequisite and/or upper level science courses taken at the four year institution."
This is more in line with the way they treat it now. They are very much in favor of reinvention and that strong upward trend.

 

[acslater99]

I took a Biology course at a local CC, there were 56 students at the beginning of the semester. By the end of the semester there were only 17 of us left. It was pretty tough, the professors questions were all critical thinking. I managed to survive, but if you ask the other students who dropped out of the course, they would tell you differently.

 

[Moose A Moose]

I'm attending a community college for my first year right now (taking 5 years total for my BS). It's one of the best community colleges in the country and its affiliated with a mid tier public university, and it even has on campus housing. Are community college courses really "easier" or is this just a common misconception? I'm worried I'm getting a bit cocky, I've managed to get 4.0 with little to no effort. For my first year I'm taking lower level classes to get ready since I didn't finish high school and wasn't sure what I could handle.

Right now i'm taking:
Sophomore Writing
Microeconomics (taught over broadcast from main campus)
Anatomy and Physiology for non-science majors
Sophomore political philosophy
and College Algebra (1/2 of precalc, taking trig over the summer)

Most of these courses are just placeholders to establish a GPA so I can transfer, and I guess they'll apply to some gen-eds later. I took chem 101 (intro, not gen chem) and 3 electives last semester. Am I in for a rude awakening when I start taking the premed courses at the main campus next year?

Yes

 

[andrek82]

do u have that link?

It's at http://www.upstate.edu/com/admissions/faqs.php in the Non-traditional students section. There is a typo in the first question there. I'd guess they mean 5-8 students per class in their 30s. It was more in my year, but I think they were experimenting. A 10-12 of us had kids prior to starting (of 150+) and more than 20 do now. There were definitely at least 10% in their 30s as well and a solid representation of community college grads. The numbers weren't quite as non-trad favorable this past year but they were still pretty good.

 

[I'mJustCurious]

I want to say most of the classes at CC are easier but some classes I took in undergrad were easier than some class that I took at CC. It really depends on the teacher and their class structure.

 

[marmanqmd]

There is really no difference between most community colleges and mid-tier colleges. I spent my freshman year at a community college and then did my sophomore year at a mid-tier college and notice no difference at all (I actually thought my classes were easier at the mid-tier college). For my 3rd and 4th year I transferred to a top 20 school and honestly even that was not that different from my community college classes. Community colleges use many of the same textbooks that upper level schools do, thus it is really depends on how much time you spend studying the books. I honestly believe my courses at my community college were harder than those in my 3rd and fourth year simply because in a community college you have to self-teach much more than at traditional colleges.

 

[Bergamot]

Doesn't matter. Everyone knows that if you ever went to a community college you won't get into medical school.

Lol! Thanks for the laugh Medic86.


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[tyrsa]

The difficulty/rigor of the coursework will likely vary between community colleges.

But while we're on the topic of CCs, an article in Academic Medicine showed that "Compared to medical students who never attended a CC... CC matriculants were more likely to have parents without a college education ... and higher odds of intentions to practice in underserved communities..." [PMID:25076199].

I thought this was interesting

 

[themoonman2]

I transferred from a CC with a 3.9 to a top 20 school and graduated with a 3.75. You can maintain a high gpa at both schools. Mine went down due to personal issues unrelated to class difficulty. Some of the hardest classes I took in all of college were at the CC and some of the easiest at the 4-year. There are too many unchangeable factors that effect course difficulty that vary from class to class rather than institution to institution (eg professor; grading scheme; your course load at the time; etc) to say that one is ALWAYS harder than the other.

If you do very well at both, you can be accepted to medical school.

 

[Seth80]

Completely depends on the teacher. Keep in mind that some of these teachers moonlight at community colleges for extra $$$ and use the exact same curriculum (and yes--same books) they use at their university to save time (I had two for sure who did)--so same quality, less money.

But I will say that there are also some who really do give you a false sense of security--especially in science courses. Not so much in that they dumb it down, but end up giving an overview and sometimes ignore important details.

 

[Mansamusa]

My local community college just built housing and is a SUNY very loosely associated with a local 4-year SUNY school. However, that is school is among the most competitive public schools in the country. People that transfer from my local CC to that SUNY have a very difficult time, especially in premed courses.

Also, we did multi-step synthesis mechanisms for days. Can't imagine a multiple choice orgo test.

Suffolk?

If Suffolk, yeah, it really is just a second high school. My sis is there now and she hands in work weeks late and still gets As. I took an English class there and my grade was a A++++(prof put all the pluses) and the final paper was less than a page. Took 30mins

 

[Mad Jack]

I don't know enough to give you a definite answer, but what community college offers on-campus housing?

There's a few out there. My sister attended one a few years back, used it as a springboard to get to UT-Austin and then to an engineering job at Boeing.

The difficulty of CC depends highly on the professors. I attended one that had a reputation for difficult courses and that utilized professors that were largely sourced from the larger universities in the area (big, well-regarded places) and thus the quality, difficulty, and transferability of the courses was quite high. Was definitely prepared for when I went on to a university.

 

[Marine2MD]

I took a Biology course at a local CC, there were 56 students at the beginning of the semester. By the end of the semester there were only 17 of us left. It was pretty tough, the professors questions were all critical thinking. I managed to survive, but if you ask the other students who dropped out of the course, they would tell you differently.

Same experience on a quarter system - 40 to 6 at the end of the first quarter, 11 to 6 at end of second, and 8 to 4 at the end of the third.

I don't know enough to give you a definite answer, but what community college offers on-campus housing?

A lot of the CC's I have seen (near military bases) offer on campus housing, very odd.

 

[trickydick]

Suffolk?

If Suffolk, yeah, it really is just a second high school. My sis is there now and she hands in work weeks late and still gets As. I took an English class there and my grade was a A++++(prof put all the pluses) and the final paper was less than a page. Took 30mins

Nope, somewhere upstate but I imagine its very similar.

 

[Miss_Premed]

I think it would depend both on the specific community college but also the classes you take. I thought overall community college was MUCH easier than the 4-year I transferred to, but some specific classes at cc were actually more difficult than similar ones at the 4-year. Just do your best wherever you go and I'm sure you will be fine!

 

[BlastedHeath]

It really varies based on instructor. I've taken courses at both community college and major universities and I actually struggled more in my community college courses. My university courses always had some sort of curve, and community college didn't, and community college tended to have more busywork that took up time and distracted from studying for exams.

 

[Marine2MD]

It really varies based on instructor. I've taken courses at both community college and major universities and I actually struggled more in my community college courses. My university courses always had some sort of curve, and community college didn't, and community college tended to have more busywork that took up time and distracted from studying for exams.

I had the same experience minus the busy work, we had quizzes every day at the CC which I think would have benefitted me significantly more at the 4-year level.

 

[Nerdeka]

lol yes. 10/10 would recommend to anyone that wants to have an easy first 2 years.

 

[minor.groove]

Community college classes in general are easier. By definition, 'college' curricula are not at the academic rigor of those offered by universities.

That being said, some community college classes can be harder... for many reasons. The most likely one is that a lot of the faculty a CC offers are not as good as those you'll find at the best universities (sure, they're exceptions... but let's not kid ourselves), and, with a bad professor, any material can be tough.

That doesn't mean you're not smart as anyone at a university right now, and it doesn't mean that your specific CC is easy. All this means is that overall CC classes are easier (yet cheaper and more accessible too).

Take it from me, I transferred from an okay public university to a top 25, and I was scared to death by how much harder my classes were when I started. Be confident your grades are good, but, as others have said, don't be cocky about it and be ready to work your butt off even more when you transfer.

Umm...
College:

• : a school in the U.S. that you go to after high school : a school that offers courses leading to a degree (such as a bachelor's degree or an associate's degree)

• : a part of an American university that offers courses in a specified subject

• : a school in Britain that offers advanced training in a specified subject
  
  University:
  
  1. 1: an institution of higher learning providing facilities for teaching and research and authorized to grant academic degrees; specifically : one made up of an undergraduate division which confers bachelor's degrees and a graduate division which comprises a graduate school and professional schools each of which may confer master's degrees and doctorates
     
     
  2. 2: the physical plant of a university
     
     
     Merriam-webster seems to disagree... So would the college i was in at university as well as numerious Colleges of Medicine that many on these boards would die to attended...

 

[Dr.NickRiviera]

In case anyone is still wondering about community colleges with on-campus housing, there are surprisingly quite a few of them in the US.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_community_colleges_in_the_United_States_with_campus_housing

 

[Espressso]

Many university professors also teach courses at local CC's. This answer is completely dependent on courses/instructors/etc. But generally, I'd say 4-yr universities are more challenging.

 

[To be MD]

Umm...
College:

• : a school in the U.S. that you go to after high school : a school that offers courses leading to a degree (such as a bachelor's degree or an associate's degree)

• : a part of an American university that offers courses in a specified subject

• : a school in Britain that offers advanced training in a specified subject
  
  University:
  1. 1: an institution of higher learning providing facilities for teaching and research and authorized to grant academic degrees; specifically : one made up of an undergraduate division which confers bachelor's degrees and a graduate division which comprises a graduate school and professional schools each of which may confer master's degrees and doctorates
     
     
  2. 2: the physical plant of a university
     
     
     Merriam-webster seems to disagree... So would the college i was in at university as well as numerious Colleges of Medicine that many on these boards would die to attended...

Thank you, Mr. Webster.

When we're talking about colleges v. universities in American English, we usually speak of colleges as institutions that are (1) undergraduate focused, solely offering bachelor's & associate's degrees, or (2) specific schools or tracks of study within a university. Universities, on the other hand, are institutions that confer both undergraduate and graduate degrees that may contain colleges (definition 2).

Notice that every single medical college in the US is found within a university. This also holds true for our friends across the pond (e.g. Exeter College at Oxford University).

More important, what the heck does your 5 minute copy-and-paste session have to do with the 'easiness' of community colleges?

 

[lyana]

Yes, it sure is easier. One reason is because your class consists of 30 people and not 410.