Many students are urged to take advanced placement classes in high school to get college credits and get ahead. I was one of them. I was told taking AP English and AP Psychology would allow me to either relax for a semester with less classes or advance in my degree and get out of college sooner, neither were true.

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My college career is not like many others, but I can still relate to trying to push my way out into the real world. I started out going to Indiana University of Pennsylvania. I was a nursing major, loved my life and my AP credits did absolutely nothing for me. I had to take specialized classes that counted for English and Psychology, but were more focused on the nursing side of things. Once I decided to switch majors and come to Penn State, those courses did not count as the basic courses and I had to retake general education courses, courses that are currently still on my last semester schedule, to make up for it. Again, those AP courses did nothing for me.

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I’ve changed my major a few times, but stayed at Penn State so credits transferred from major to major luckily. Then I get to my last major, Digital Media, Arts and Technology. I transferred from University Park to Behrend to be in this major and was told initially I would only graduate a semester behind my original date.

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When I got to Behrend, I was told differently and made a schedule that would keep me in college for an entire extra year. This is something I struggled with internally. Not because all my friends were graduating on time, getting careers, living life, but because I was exhausted. I have been done with school since it started and WANTED OUT.

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I took it upon myself to go to this Registrar's office and get my classes organized so that I knew exactly what I needed left to graduate. I took the classes that I was told to take that first semester, and added an extra without my advisor knowing. I took the classes I was told to take that spring semester and again added some more. I then took two classes in the summer without my advisor knowing and ended up only needed one class left to graduate, DIGIT 400. If offered more often, I could have graduated on time.

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I worked really hard that year and summer and now I can graduate with only a semester behind because of DIGIT 400. Because of this, I decided to pick up a communications minor and I am currently taking ALL the classes needed for that minor in one semester.

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Even though this is what I did, I don’t advise it. I missed out on a lot because of my schedule. I was constantly doing homework, projects and studying for exams. I forced myself to do an entire research project in three weeks to get things done. I can’t even count how many all nighters I did, just to graduate earlier than told. All to sit here waiting for December, to not use my degree.

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I can’t say that AP classes or rushing your way through college and taking way more credits than you should each semester is a bad thing for everyone, but not everyone can say they stuck with what they thought they wanted to do in high school and graduated with that degree. Not everyone can say they plan on using their degree, like me.