Comparison

             Anyone who chooses to attend a college makes this decision based on what he or she likes and for social reasons. However, the benefits of college are different, from country to country. For instance, the differences between going to college in Romania and in US are varied.

            Romania is still a developing country, and its struggles to rebuild the economy after 40 years of communism are still present. After the Revolution, private colleges developed throughout the country but public universities remain most attended because of lower costs.  That’s why the majority of people go to public universities, where tuition is lower and more affordable. Financial aid is rarely used, because it is almost nonexistent.  The government is unable to afford paying tuition for the thousands of students who attend public universities every year, because most of them would qualify for financial aid. The students’ expenses are supported in general by their parents.  There are some scholarships available for students with disabilities and students with good grades, but there are no student loan programs.

            Going to college in Romania is not easy.  When the student is ready to enroll, he knows he has to go there in person several times.  There isn’t an on-line application process and because of this the student is required to travel at times, just to hand in his application.  He goes back again whenever he’s scheduled for the placement test, which could take several days, and if he is not accepted he has to return once more to get all his paperwork back from the college.

            Once in college, a freshman can’t be a part-time student, and he or she has to pass all the tests and finish all the classes to be able to attend the next academic year.  If for any reason the student is unable to continue college, he or she may interrupt their studies for no more than two years, otherwise they may be expelled.

            Because of lack of technology and a low budget, the teachers still use chalk and the blackboards to teach.  There are no projectors in classrooms and internet access is very poor.

            At “Cluj-Napoca Technical University”, (a well known institution in Romania) in the computer based courses, at times there were three students to every computer.  They couldn’t afford to buy a computer of their own either, so it was very hard to work on a computer thus many times their computer homework was done by hand on paper. Students in all classes have to take notes and handwriting is a very used method in college. 

            A good thing in the Romanian universities is that a student has the same classmates from the first day of college until graduation.  He is able to develop good relationships and gets a lot of support from his classmates.  They help each other during difficult times and they get to know the comfort of unity.  This is an important factor, knowing that there aren’t any tutoring or counseling centers.  Being together in every single class for several years makes graduation dramatic.  Although college years are the best years in everyone’s life, in Romania, the moment of truth comes after graduation.  The biggest problem to any graduate is finding a job.  Every student knows even from the beginning of college that finding a job after graduation is very difficult and even if they find a job, salaries are very low.  That’s why some of the students feel like they have no motivation to learn and for them going to college means an escape from home, from under their parent’s supervision and a lot of them turn to alcohol, plagiarism and they end up being expelled or repeating several academic years. 

            On the other hand, going to college in U.S. is a totally different story. First of all the high school student has to decide what major he wants to pursue after he graduates high school when he is 18, an age when he is more mature and he looks at things differently than 14. Than even if his parents are unable to pay for his college there are multiple choices to go with: if the student has good academic history in school he or she may be eligible for a scholarship and grant, if he’s an average student he can get financial aid, he can get part-time job or he can be a part-time student with a full-time job. Practically, everyone has a chance to go to college. Poor or rich, everybody just needs the ambition for the college.

            Applying to college is the easy part because the applications are available online. It’s not necessary to travel, or to have paperwork and more than anything it’s saving of time and money. Another step that can be taken right from home is choosing the college. The amount of information is enormous and internet access is not an issue. The electronic products like, computers, printers, scanners, and others are affordable and less expensive than in other countries, that is why internet has become a way of life.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nine millions Americans use the internet at home and that’s not all. More and more people choose to get a diploma by taking classes online. Another disadvantage that comes with the technologies is the lack of hand writing in school. Practically, a student graduate college without any writing skills. Using the “Word” program will solve all the writing problems.

            Another fact that caught the attention is that in every class are different classmates. This new system prepares students for an individualistic way of life and it is really hard to build a relationship with somebody when all classmates are different in every class. On the other hand if a student feels lost and confused, he or she can always visit a tutoring or counseling center for an answer of the questions. Beside that, the teachers are very flexible and the teacher-student relation is more open and casual. The teachers pay more attention to the students and are more cooperative.

            There are many reasons why somebody should go to college in the U.S. The most important one is that a college education gives more choices. Whether he or she plans on attending a four years college or university, community college or technical school, a student will gain knowledge and skills that will help succeed for the rest of the life.