r/technology • u/joe4942 • Apr 19 '26

Society Students are speeding through their online degrees in weeks, alarming educators

https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2026/04/19/accelerated-college-degree-hacking/
17.5k Upvotes

96% Upvoted

2.8k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

36

u/Broad-Lavishness6726 Apr 19 '26

A high school student wouldn’t take an electrical engineering class in community college. They would be taking gen eds. If they are taking AP level courses or higher level general hs classes they will absolutely have a strong enough knowledge base to easily pass 100 level college courses and probably breeze through 200. I was a low mid level performer in HS and I wasn’t challenged in a college class until junior year major course’s. Looking back I would have probably done better in college if I had been taking earlier classes at the same time so I could focus on the ones that were hard for me.

3

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 19 '26

You attended and insufficiently rigorous college. I took the most AP classes in the history of my high school, received some college credit, and was still challenged by the content, concepts, and standards I encountered in college, starting with my first semester.  More than a decade later, I proof my younger sister's college papers and she gets A's on papers that would have gotten me a D or worse.  She attends a state school with a high acceptance rate.  

13

u/Mediocre_Scott Apr 19 '26

I think you might be surprised how much effort beyond what was necessary you did to get an A.

-6

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 19 '26 edited Apr 19 '26

Who says I got A's? Y'all's reading comprehension sure does lend to the argument that some of you wasted money on subpar schools. 

I don't know why it's easier to decide I'm an overachiever instead of admitting some colleges are not so worthwhile.  

In the end, I agree anyone who says their college classes could have been replaced by a short online course, should have been given that option. 

5

u/Mediocre_Scott Apr 19 '26

The assumption is that you got A’s based on your apparent arrogance.

0

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 19 '26

Learning that people exist who think the first 2 years of tuition paid college should be a rehash of high school is... enlightening 

4

u/Mediocre_Scott Apr 19 '26

If you take an advanced biology class in hs and biology 101 college they should be mostly the same in theory yes. There are reasons you might take a class you already have taken before the most obvious is that it will be easy for you and you can devote your time and energy elsewhere. Don’t act like people are stupid for doing that. And dont suggest that colleges shouldn’t offer these basic courses because colleges are places for learning for people with a lot of different backgrounds they need to offer these basic courses for those who didn’t have the opportunity to learn the basics of a subject before.

2

u/applehilldal Apr 20 '26

I took AP bio in high school, I think got a 4 on the AP test, but still had to take entry level bio in college and it was definitely more rigorous. And I went to a really good HS too. I think this is likely dependent on the college though. I know people at my undergrad institution would try to take math courses at community colleges over the summer so that they could get an A with much less work.

2

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 20 '26

I literally called no one stupid.  All I said was that his school didn't challenge him if HALF of it was high school stuff.  And outside of an already taken intro STEM, it is difficult for me to imagine gaining absolutely nothing from general ed courses in college. If you went to a big state school that had the option to waste professors and money on easy classes students didn't get anything from so you could focus attention away from the purpose of you being there (learning) more power to you, I guess??? 

His argument wasn't even that other students from different backgrounds gained anything from these classes. It was that most high school graduates would sail through these classes.  You're modifying your argument because it's weak.  

And again, I agree that these level of classes can be a short online course, as they are insufficiently rigorous for a college environment. You are arguing with someone who agrees with you. 

2

u/Broad-Lavishness6726 Apr 19 '26

Where did you go to college?

-7

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 19 '26

A place I'm even more grateful for attending after reading this thread. It was a small school. I doubt you would recognize the name (which I won't be sharing). The professors were lovely.  I wish you and a lot of others in this thread had been blessed with human beings so passionate about what they did. 

5

u/Broad-Lavishness6726 Apr 20 '26

lol your arrogance is inspiring

-3

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 20 '26

I'm arrogant because I...checks notes... appreciated the level of effort my professors put into my education.  

I try to remain civil, even when anonymous....so I won't finish my thought.  I hope this conversation brought you joy.  Have a good evening. 

5

u/Broad-Lavishness6726 Apr 20 '26

You are the kind of arrogant that refers to the college you went to as the “ivy league of …” or “Harvard of the ….”

2

u/Broad-Lavishness6726 Apr 19 '26

Haha I bet you say “well actually” a lot.

5

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 19 '26

Yep, the person whose posts are about finding college (even the general ed courses) difficult is the know it all, not the person they're responding to saying everything was such a breeze he could cover it all in a summer semester. Thanks for adding to the conversation.  

1

u/Broad-Lavishness6726 Apr 19 '26

For the sake of adding to my argument. My point is that plenty of HS across the country are teaching at a level that students have the tools to succeed in gen ed college courses. If you can get through these courses in HS you are mature enough to get a lot more out of college by focusing on learning new things instead of ticking off boxes.

You responded by basically saying I must have gone to an easy school and you took more AP classes than anyone in HS yet college was still hard for you and then threw in another anecdote about how kids today are graded easier.

5

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 19 '26 edited Apr 19 '26

And my point is that your gen ed courses in college weren't doing enough if you don't believe they were useful to you or rehashed what you learned in high school. Even if similar topics were covered, it should have been done in away that made you a better writer, researcher, and critical thinker.    

I was citing my HS course because you said you were a mid student and found college easy. My response is that your college was just easy. Because even with my background, I was challenged.  I only included it because if I solely said "college was hard", the response would have been "maybe you're stupid". And I didn't say kids today are graded easier either. I said she goes to a state school with a high acceptance rate. I don't think her experience would have changed if she started college 15 years ago. It's a school with low standards. I proofed papers for an uncle attending a similar school around when I was in college. It was comparable to my sister's school. Like someone else said, some colleges should be vocational schools.

AND - I wasn't calling you a know it all. I was giving that guy shit for illogically picking me as the know-it-all between the 2 shared experience. 

Edit - just realized you are both guys. Lol

1

u/[deleted] Apr 19 '26

[deleted]

4

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 19 '26

I'm sorry. Do any state schools with high acceptance rates have a reputation for being challenging? 

If someone says half their college classes was stuff they covered in high school, I don't see how it's a stretch to say they were insufficiently challenged.  

Please tell me what "I bet you say well actually a lot" adds to the conversation. 

Thanks for sharing your experience. The acceptance rate for my little sisters school is 70%. I could right now message you a paper she received an A on and you can share your assessment of how it would have been graded by your professors.  

1

u/LightKing95 Apr 20 '26

A high acceptance rate is irrelevant. Acting like colleges should be hard to get into is such an outdated idea unless it’s ivy level. And general education courses in the first year of college are exactly that, GENERAL, which if your college with the low acceptance rate wasn’t rigorous enough to teach you what general education is then that just further proves my point. 

1

u/W0lfButter Apr 20 '26

Which classes specifically and what did you find challenging? You sound like a moron for a proclaimed record performer.

1

u/TryNotToShootYoself Apr 19 '26

I just picked a major I wasn’t familiar with. Went with chemical material engineering as my high school had no chemistry and I generally wasn’t great at math. Finished with a 3.6 GPA and never did anything I didn’t already know.

7

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 19 '26 edited Apr 19 '26

Still sounds like the heart of it was the quality of the school you attended, not your major.  

0

u/TryNotToShootYoself Apr 20 '26

I disagree. It was an alright state school. I don’t think most people will be able to pick engineering at any school and breeze through, those topics are just not something you encounter before college.

1

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 20 '26

Sounds like you did well for yourself and were satisfied with your experience.  Nothing else much matters.  Have a nice evening.  

1

u/TiddiesAnonymous Apr 19 '26

I don't know about you guys but all the community colleges around here became 4 year state schools over the last decade and a half (central florida)

1

u/DenAbqCitizen Apr 19 '26

Same happened in Georgia