Misconceptions: A Rant

Hello Raptors, how is your week going? We’re halfway there, stick it out, you got this.

I wanted to talk about a subject that Alexandra introduced (go watch her video if you haven’t already!) about the negative perceptions of Montgomery College.
In high school, the college and career counselors, helpful as they were, seemed to have a very anti-MC attitude. I was encouraged to apply to any and all liberal arts colleges, and my dream at the time was Loyola University (50k a semester, tuition alone).
Montgomery College was sort of the option that would be there “in case the others fell through.” As a safety net, or a last resort. I even applied to Catholic University (I’m not even Catholic), and would have taken out an enormous loan even WITH financial aid, had my mother not smacked some sense into me. I was encouraged to go anywhere BUT MC.

Even among my peers, MC was looked down upon. One classmate even suggested, in an extremely condescending way, that while he was applying to the UMBC Honors program and I would probably just “end up” at MC. What’s wrong with MC? It’s one of the top community colleges in the country. It’s EXTREMELY affordable – with FAFSA and the Pell grant, I’ve got free tuition.
Not everyone can afford a 4-year college right out of high school, or sometimes, at all. Unfortunately, since this country’s tuition is so astronomically expensive, some can’t afford university — yes, even with scholarships and grants.
Even if you can afford it, why not get your credits for a fraction of the price? And, taking tuition costs completely out of the picture, Montgomery College is not “thirteenth grade.” The students make it that experience, not the college. Harvard University can be thirteenth grade if you slack off enough!
The theory that community college is “lesser” is shunning people who don’t have the resources for more expensive universities. Besides, the quality of your credits doesn’t change because it’s a community college – hell, there’s a seamless transfer program to UMD! Get your associate’s degree! Montgomery College has exceptional professors and is an all around great school. I’m tired of this weird negative stigma surrounding MC that seems to start in high school.
This is a call to all MC Students: show your pride! Let others know how amazing the Raptors are!
Purple is the color of royalty, after all.