I don't know how to explain how the college experience is amazing without writing several paragraphs. I honestly thought my sentiments were near-universal. For several years I got to literally pick a topic out of thin air and then have seasoned professionals teach me all about it three days a week. I got to live independently and among bright people all in my age group and craft whatever life I wanted within the relatively safe confines of a university. Then there's all the tradition and legend and adventure that goes with the average college experience. Meeting so many new people from so many different places and backgrounds...
Moved from a small rural town to Chicago. Was surrounded by professors and industry professional instructors. Most of my non PhD instructors had decades of industry experience from the likes of Motorola, Comes or Bell labs/Lucent.
Classes at my school were generally pretty small, except for a few weeder classes in freshman/sophomore years.
I studied Electrical and Computer Engineering (got 2 B.S. degrees). All of the instructors in the EE department were extremely approachable and really cared about their students (at least about the students that cared for themselves and sought engagement). I had one professor that helped me move from a half tuition scholarship to a 3/4 tuition scholarship.
The school I went to also set me up well to succeed professionally. Not just theory, but leadership roles, independent projects, interprofessional projects, etc.
Not to mention the social aspects. I lived on campus my first 2 years, off campus my last 2 with a roommate. I got my internship end of my sophomore year as I replaced a graduating senior on my floor when I was an RA that year, and he referred me (he knew I was already dabbling in the tech stack he used). Spent 3 years working as an intern before I got my first salaried position in finance on a referral of my best friend from school. Spent 9 years at that job before moving on. Went from being a very junior dev in that role to owning several critical systems for trading at a hedge fund. Ive now spent 15 years in finance and have school to thank, though I never expected to be there. Hell, I wanted to design processors.
But, do I regret going to college? Not one bit. Sometimes, I wish I'd finished my masters, but I don't need it for more than resume fodder. My work experience amd the companies I've worked for open far more doors. I get at least 5-7 emails from recruiters per week.
