Major Differences between High School and College
High School
- Teacher/Student Contact: Contact is closer and more frequent (five days a week).
- Competition/Grades: Academic competition is not as strong; good grades can often be obtained with minimal effort.
- Status: Students establish a personal status in academic and social activities based on family and community factors.
- Counseling/Dependence: Students can rely on parents, teachers and counselors to help make decisions and give advice. Students must abide by rules of parents, teachers and counselors.
- Freedom: Students’ freedom is limited. Parents will often help students out of a crisis.
- Distractions: There are distractions from school, but these are partially controlled by school and home.
- Value Judgments: Students often make value judgments based on parental values; thus, many of their value judgments are made for them.
College
- Teacher/Student Contact: Faculty are available during office hours (only a few hours a week) and by appointment to address students’ concerns.
- Competition/Grades: Academic competition is much stronger; minimal effort may produce poor grades.
- Status: Students can build their status as they wish; high school status can be repeated or changed.
- Counseling/Dependence: Students rely on themselves; they see the results of making their own decisions. It is their responsibility to seek advice as needed. Students set their own restrictions.
- Freedom: Students have much more freedom. They must accept responsibility for their own actions.
- Distractions: The opportunity for more distractions exists. Time management will become more important.
- Value Judgments: Students have the opportunity to see the world through their own eyes and develop their own opinions and values.
“As a student I wanted an intimate community. As an aspiring journalist I wanted a big city. Dominican gave me both—and so much more.”
Tracy Samantha
Schmidt
2005
TIME Magazine
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