My views on college & BTEC

As some of you may already know, I am studying at my local college - Shrewsbury College of Arts and Technology - on a Level 3 BTEC National Diploma course. To some of you, this may mean nothing, but to others it might mean something. This article goes over my feelings towards both my college and the course I am on. I also cover the other options I could have taken.

But first, a short back-story. I finished school with very good GCSE results, Maths being my favourite subject: 1 A and 1 A* grade proves it. The logical step for me would be to move on to the town's Sixth Form College. I chose not to for a few reasons. I had friends at the Sixth Form and at Shrewsbury College - all I knew was that my friends at Sixth Form were having a terrible time and those at Shrewsbury College were having a great time and doing substantially better than those at the Sixth Form. Another reason was that my college gave better IT resources, a better IT course overall, Degree level progression routes and kick-ass lecturers.

Year 1

Year 1 was a very weird year. The first month was odd, everyone had to get to know each other - apart from a few who came up from a Level 2 course. Overall the first month was a great time, we had already split up into our own little cliques until an event occurred that swapped these cliques around. From then on the whole dynamic of the group changed. I guess this is something that can, and does, happen everywhere, but I digress.

The content of Year 1 of my BTEC National Diploma was modest. It included Web Production, Event Driven Programming, Databases and Information Systems - all topics I have at least touched upon prior to beginning my course. I received the highest grade for all of my modules - Distinction. The first year was actually quite a breeze. I remember we all had a bit of a mad rush at the end but it was fun and was a big challenge.

Year 2

The start of Year 2 was very much like the large block of Year 1. The groups were pretty much the same until once again, a small chain of events happened that is gradually seeing the original cliques form once again. A few of those vents were centred around myself. But something that I could not foresee or stop from happening. I simply had to ride the waves.

Year 2 has also seen around half of the group apply to University and the Higher National Diploma (HND) offered by the college. All of us who have applied (or is in the process of applying) has applied to go onto the HND - so we could all stay together for another 2 years.

The advent of applying to go to a University in another city, and for some another country (Ok, it's only Wales but it's still another country!) is a big event and cannot be taken lightly. There are some members of the group though who do not take anything seriously, and have to mock and force the group into short periods of unrest. Once again this is probably the same elsewhere, it's just darn right annoying and soon it will stop.

Sixth Form Woes

The whole point to me not going to Sixth Form was mainly because others had a terrible time there. But I am now looking back upon my time at college, and although I am not finished and still have 7 - 8 months left, I am casting my mind back to the start of college and thinking about what would happen if I had gone.

College is great, usually, but I am not being challenged and I feel this is leading me to periods of demotivation. I don't get anything done, things get boring and I fall behind. Only to find one of the 'children' of the group decides to laugh or poke fun, and I jump right back into it with bursts of high productivity; sometimes finishing whole assignments to Distinction level in one short lesson.

I keep thinking that going to Sixth Form would keep me challenged and therefore more motivated. It may have also set me up much better for University. Although I have the technical skills to carry myself through the University process, I haven't done any exams so will not have the experience behind me to get through exams. I'm not a big fan of exams.

However, if I went to Sixth Form I probably wouldn't have created The Authentication Library - written anything on Programmers Voice and quite possibly never have even thought about writing a book. In fact, writing this all out has made me feel that I have taken the right path. Being a Determinist also helps. Everything that has happened has effects on what is to come. This was supposed to happen.