Further clarification on the college thing:

[apocalypsos]

-- There's a weekend course program around here which is the only one I wouldn't mind taking. My mother took it. The problem? I work a four-day-on, four-day-off schedule. The weekend that I have off right now, I'll be working in four weeks.

-- Get another job? I took the one I have as a holdover so I'd be able to pay the bills until I got a better job. Two years later, I still can't find one.

-- Financial assistance? No one will be giving me money. Trust me. I wouldn't give me money. I wouldn't give me a loan, a grant, a scholarship ... hell, I wouldn't throw a quarter into a coffee cup I was holding on a street corner. My situation is THAT bad.

So even if I found a college course I could take, I couldn't pay for it. No, no matter how cheap it might be.

Hence the "exercise in futility" statement. I might as well be window-shopping for ponies.

(There's a reason my list only says, "See about college classes," but says, "Get published." Because I have a better chance of getting published at this point. Hey, anybody want to buy a kidney? Or some eggs? God knows I'm not getting any use out of them.)

Comments

[nute.livejournal.com]

The first question is: WHY would you want college? Are you interested in the kind of jobs that stick to the outmoded and useless racket of "college degree required"? Or is it just a matter of "self-improvement"?

If it's the latter, then college is nothing more than a leisure pursuit, and can be accomplished just as effectively for free with a library card.

If it's the former, then you can keep perpetuating a corrupt system by paying money for education that should be free, or choose to buck the system by substituting actual knowledge for classroom education and applying for those jobs anyway and leaving the "education" section on your resume blank save for a "details available upon interview" notation. I've done that with every job I've applied for, and it's always proven to be effective in interviews.

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

Oh, I agree with every single thing you just said. On the other hand, the job pool around here is such a joke that the good ones that aren't in nursing or long-haul trucking won't let you in the door unless you can name the college degree you have. I've tried not getting into heavy description of my college experiences and no dice. And I'd move, but since I can barely afford to buy groceries most of the time that's out of the question.

And of course, there's always shutting up the relatives who want to know when I'm going back to college.

[elorie.livejournal.com]

My credit sucks unimaginably, and I still got financial aid. You can but try.

Speaking as someone who DID go to college and is currently going to graduate school after about fifteen years of a career, it's neither a racket nor a leisure pursuit. I learned things there I could not have easily learned elsewhere or by any other means. There is no substitute for learning from a *good* teacher in real time, especially if that person is currently engaged in the work they are talking about.

[angry-geologist.livejournal.com]

Wow- not even online courses? I know of a few offered through Penn State that would at least let you get gen-eds out of the way. Let me know if there's something I can do to help.

[swingangel.livejournal.com]

This is how i've done almost all of my gen ed - online courses through the community college. And honestly, grants dont' care what your credit score is -they just care that your broke. It's a thought.

[the-ellcrys.livejournal.com]

Hi! I'm mostly a lurker, but I thought I'd chime in here to offer some additional info. I know mona gave you some info in your first post on this, but here's a link talking about Stafford loans. Stafford loans are based on income and financial need, not your credit score. So even if you have massively shitty credit, you can typically get a Stafford loan. They also have a variety of different repayment plans when you're done to help defer out the expesnes of it.

Also, as you're looking at schools, talk to their Financial Aid department. Unless they're completely useless tools, they should be able to help you track down whatever loans and grants you're eligible for.

http://www.staffordloan.com/stafford-loan-info/index.php

I'll be going back to lurking now.

[mona1347.livejournal.com]

*points* What Ell said. I had a Pell grant and two Stafford loans, among other things.

THIS IS NOT ALL TO SAY that most Financial Aid departments ARE INDEED useless tools. *cough* But talk to them anyway. You're smart, Jenn, and you are more than capable of working the system.

[mona1347.livejournal.com]

No, I mean seriously, do the FAFSA thing anyway. I know it feels futile to you, but I swear to god, federal student aid is not at all like going to a bank and trying to get a car loan or something. My mother was in debt up to her eyes when she died and she was my 'primary custodian' or whatever on the FAFSA and my BFF had serious credit issues - 10s of thousands of dollars of unpaid hospital bills, collections against her for that and other things, including breaking a lease - and when she went back to college as a "non-traditional", she got mad aid. You may need a co-signer for some loans but it seems like your parents are pretty supportive and whatnot.

I know we don't even really know each other that well and I'm being all rambly and forceful about this but it's my THING - fenagling education without money, both personally and ideologically - and I just don't want you to give up before you even start, you know?

[tsiankiio.livejournal.com]

Check out your local YWCA. Seriously. Ours has a program that either helps impoverished women find better jobs or go to college (getting them credit for life experience and nontraditional aide and such). I qualified as impoverished (even though no one else would think so) and they were really helpful. They also run a program helping people get apprenticeships for union type jobs, just in case you might want to pick up welding or carpentry.

[septembergrrl.livejournal.com]

Take this for what it's worth, but it sounds to me like you're talking yourself out of trying for this. Which is fine if you don't actually want to go to college -- but if you do, it's not so good.

I know this is easy for me to say, but you might have better luck with scheduling and loans than you think you will. Just a thought, but maybe you could do a fashion class at a community college, or a similar low-level thing, just to see how you feel about being back in the environment?