Was anyone else disappointed when they got to college with the lack of intellectuals?

StuporCollider · 3 months

If you're wandering around aimlessly, you'll run into people wandering aimlessly. Your college will have lecture series, exhibitions, readings, extracurricular clubs...

I bet you a dollar that if you give us the name of the college, we can find ten intellectual things for you to do in the next week.

EDIT: OP has declared that his school is the University of Pittsburgh - Oakland. Let's get to it, folks! 10 intellectual things to do in that town in the next week!

Current exhibitions at the Carnegie Museum of Art. Check out Art Gallery Talks. Maya Lin is coming to speak on February 10, dude!
Sunday lectures at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
Okay, this is just outside the limit, but there's a free symphony concert on February 8.
Guys, what have you got? I'm going to stop there (actual work) - but this neighborhood is filled with opportunities if you want to look for them. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakland_(Pittsburgh)

GCanuck · 3 months

Wait until you get to 'the real world'.

It's just high school with less alcohol, more stress and less intellectuals than college.

NoBromo1 · 3 months

I'm going to skip the endless circular debates about how this is just a circlejerk for redditors to talk about how smart they are.

Yes.

I went to one college that was devastatingly absent of any intellectual conscience. It was still 'fun', but any learning done pretty much had to be done on my own time. I can't even remember all the jokes I made about that place, e.g., I thought Zombieland was going to be a documentary about my school, or how my school doubled as a lobotomy simulator.

I transfered after my freshman year to a private school. Things are worlds better, but still not nearly as good as one would hope. At this one I haven't had any bad professors, but I've only had one or two that really stood out as brilliant. College really is underwhelming as far as actual learning goes.

Most students only desire to learn superficially, too, which adds to the problem: the professors start catering to the weakest links. This isn't about cynicism or superiority, just casual observations on how low the bar has been set.

tangowilde · 3 months

To be honest, more disappointed with the prevalence of pseudo-intellectuals. I don't like discussing life, politics, religion and things like it because people are retarded blowhards.

athennna · 3 months

If you're the smartest person in the room, then you're in the wrong room.

bot0004 · 3 months

Newsflash: You aren't an intellectual...

hatryd · 3 months

You went to the wrong college.

GreivisIsGod · 3 months

Nope. I dont walk around judging people's intelligence.

Poolstiksamurai · 3 months

ITT: pseudo-intellectual, pretentious college kids circlejerk how they aren't socially awkward, just smarter than everyone else.

CylonGlitch · 3 months

College was much more like Animal House than Dead Poet Society.

cakeonaplate · 3 months

nope. I met people who exceeded my intellect. Sure there were people who were not Mensa status but they were still awesome. I do wish that there was more discussion between students during class and less fact teaching....I want to develop my discussion skills, dammit! Also, i want to hear both sides of the story

lbeaty1981 · 3 months

My parents are both college professors, so I pretty much knew what I was getting into when I started college. There are some incredibly intellectual people who go to college, but there are also plenty who are just using it as an excuse to avoid the "real world" for a few more years.

Just curious, but have you tried out any student organizations or extracurricular activities? I personally couldn't stand most people within my college major (engineering/computer science), but I met a lot of cool people through marching band. If you aren't finding people you like in your own area of study, it might be time to branch out a bit.

jeblis · 3 months

Welcome to life.

KyleGibson · 3 months

Yes. My college is predominantly immature kids without a clue as to what matters in the real world. Most of them should not be trusted to live on their own, and the majority of them care more about their relationships with people than their self-improvement.

It's just an extension of high school.

inknade · 3 months

You're a bit full of yourself.

If you don't like who you're hanging out with, move on. That said, you will not find Utopia. People will have flaws, and their tastes will not perfectly align with yours. I know plenty of people who can talk about current politicians, talk about their roommate's latest girlfriend, throw in some tech news, then go to the bar and make a fool of themselves. The idea that everyone is going to be "mature" all the time is absurd and not particularly enjoyable.

spidersquasher · 3 months

Most of the party kids drop out after freshman year and I personally, never got along with the super-intellectual kids, don't get me wrong, I love talking about lofty subjects and whatnot, but I also enjoy just getting baked and playing mario kart.

NotChainsawJuggler · 3 months

This thought hit me the first time I saw actual graffiti in a bathroom at my conservative, midwestern university

WisdomOfTheAges · 3 months

MAD, adj. Affected with a high degree of intellectual independence.

--Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary

Maoky · 3 months

Take some extra courses that will challenge you. Don't be so presumptuous.

Brichals · 3 months

There are all types. Some very highbrow, some not. Some gifted with high intelligence, some just work hard. And it's like this in all of academia right up to professors. I am an academic so I know plenty of professors who will admit that they are not very intellectual. It's the same in all walks of life. The people who are running the country, are they smarter than the guy fixing the plumbing? Not necessarily, not at all. Mostly it's circumstances and aspirations. What I did find striking at Uni was the lack of peer groups and everybody can do their own thing and be cool. That's what Uni means to me.

ProbablyGeneralizing · 3 months

In my program (ecology) I've met many knowledgeable professors, and there's plenty of passionate students that love to discuss all things ecology. Even those kids, or at least a good portion of them, are still getting trashed on weekends.

I've had plenty of discussions about life, politics and the like with people while high or drunk, or both. Although they typically take place between good friends (or not) in smaller get togethers, and it has nothing to do with the people being intellectuals. Don't go to parties expecting to debate the concept of 'self' though.

Mithrien · 3 months

Probably because most of the intellectuals are actually off doing work or in a lab somewhere, not sitting around for hours in a coffeeshop?

BenTG · 3 months

Was anyone else disappointed when they got to college with the lack of intellectuals?

Instead of complaining about how unchallenged you are at college, try figuring out how to construct a sentence.

heykidsitscox · 3 months

I found that most of the kids are morons, and the professors, aside from a handful, are awful educators.

ANNOYING_ALLCAPS_ASS · 3 months

I've always found it odd how some people are so quick to belittle the "anti-intellectualism" in universities while arrogantly touting their perceived superiority. If you really think post-secondary education should be the arena of top tier minds, then they should probably be in a field. I'm willing to bet most of the people in this circlejerk aren't the idealized person they criticize others for not being--you're not more knowledgeable than the graduate students, professors, and everyone else. If there really is a lack of intellectual activities, then make them.

TrollNumberOne · 3 months

discussing life, politics, religion

wow. that's some intellectual stuff right there.

randomjew · 3 months

Get the fuck off your high horse.

You don't even know what being an intellectual means..

Just because you're socially awkward and can't relate to your peers doesn't mean you're some almighty "intellect" who deserves more.

uberboomer · 3 months

It depends on where you are going to college. Simple as that.

schoofer · 3 months

College isn't just about intellectualism. You're on your own for the first time (usually), you're responsible for yourself, and you're making new friends. One of the most important aspects of college is making new friends. Not everyone's going to care about the same things as you and part of being an intellectual is understanding that and not looking down on people for that. All those people who you say aren't intellectuals could be brilliant at something else. That said, there are always people willing to discuss the things you listed, but they aren't just going to come to you, hence the importance of being social in college. College is a full-spectrum trans-formative experience. If you can't stop thinking about it so negatively, you're going to waste most of your college experience.

Edit:

Your entire post is summed up with the first few words of your first sentence:

I had this romanticized idea of college

WinterInJapan · 3 months

The only thing you need to get into college is money. Anyone who tells you differently is trying to sell you something.

RomanSenate · 3 months

I can't think of a worse thing than discussing life, politics, religion, and things like that with college students.

eganpe · 3 months

OLD FUCKING LECTURERS HOW HAVE NO CLUE AND SHOULD HAVE RETIRED YEARS AND YEARS AGO PISS ME OFF NO END

Pharmakoza · 3 months

Yes and no. I didn't have many illusions when I came to college. I expected a wide and varied assortment of individuals from many backgrounds. That's what I got. However, now that I'm at college, I am coming to wish I had gone somewhere with a more consistent student body, one that was more similar to myself.

In this place, I haven't made any real friends. I've mostly only met people who are focused on drinking, partying, and playing video games. That last one isn't bad, but these are predominantly COD players who can't fathom PC gaming. I don't enjoy anyone here. Even though this is a big college, but I can't seem to find the people I want to be around.

Yes, I'm thinking about transferring. The problem, however, is that I'm not sure I'd find a better place. I fear that I am succumbing to grass is greener thinking and that the moment I leave I'll be back in the same hole I was before. That said, I've decided to stick it out here and be more proactive in seeking out things to do and people to spend time with. If I don't find what I need, I'll leave.

Carpella · 3 months

yes. you know what? it gets even worse with master's and Ph.D students.

most of the people i've met who are getting Ph.D's are simply too insecure about their intelligence, as opposed to actually getting it to apply it outside of academia.

take my sister for instance. her estranged father made some comment about her being dumb and growing up in a middle class town when she was like 13 or so. now she's 40, married to a wealthy man, but still MUST get a ph.d in literature to PROVE EVERYONE WRONG.

bleh. the sad part is that plenty of brilliant people aren't cut out for universities. the world only gives a fuck about your brain when you have a ten-figure piece of paper that claims you're smart.

starlight9088 · 3 months

I'm glad I didn't run into your idea of 'intellectual'. Too much.

Sounds like a good way to run into 'pseudo-intellectuals' and I've run into people who think interest in politics or poetry makes them special. And not only that, they make it their drill to use big words and fancy phrases that make them a pain in the ass to be around.

And anyone who talks about 'life','religion',or 'politics' sounds dreadful to me sorry but I'm just not an intellecutal so.

I think a real 'intellectual' is someone who easily gets higher mathematics and I haven't seen a shortage of those.

enginerd11 · 3 months

If you're disappointed with the lack of intellectuals in your college then you should have gone to a better college.

OverinflatedEgo · 3 months

I don't think you're an intellectual if you can't even put your prepositions in the correct place in your title.

Unless of course you meant to say that you traveled to school with few people of high academic caliber.

Elegnan · 3 months

College changed how I view intellectuals. Throughout High School I viewed myself as an intellectual and had a variety of philosophical discussions with friends and occasionally teachers. I looked down on people that weren't intellectually motivated and generally assumed I was more intelligent than the people around me.

The first inkling that something was wrong came during my first month of college in an environmental sciences class. I was paired with two guys that I assumed were Animal House style frat neanderthals. They were loud, talked a lot about partying, and didn't seem interested in discussing environmental sciences unless they had to. I figured I would take charge of the group and end up doing most of the work. Except, that's not at all what happened. These guys were fantastic, knew exactly what we needed to do (presentation), and the work was fairly divided and completed on time.

This, along with becoming friends with the people in my dorm, completely changed the way I behave. I realized that I was judging people on bullshit criteria and holding myself to some fictional ideal. Yeah, there were a lot of stupid people that still thought they were in High School, but they were the minority. I finally understood that socializing is generally about lighter topics than religion and politics. That someone that parties and talks mostly football can still be an intelligent, hard working, individual.

All these prejudices and cliques that I had thought carried over from High School completely broke down. I played Halo with a girl I assumed was a prep and an athlete I assumed was a jock. I got completely crushed in a drunken game of Trivial Pursuit by people I initially labeled as vapid.

That was 2004 at the University of Maryland. It could have been the time or the region, but what I observed was the opposite of the OPs experience. That freshmen year made me the person I am today.

komichi1168 · 3 months

Was anyone else disappointed when they got to college at the sheer number of psuedo-intellectuals?

There FTFY.

Pizzadude · 3 months

They have more important things to study and discuss.

umbrellarequiem · 3 months

No, it was refreshing to find a bunch of incredibly intelligent people who didn't go around self-styling themselves as "intellectuals". You can be smart and NOT be a douche rocket.

brosinski · 3 months

[deleted]

DrWallyHayes · 3 months

Instead, I've found it's mostly high school with alcohol more readily available.

That just about nails it. I found very few people in college whose company I enjoyed; almost everybody else seemed to care about nothing but getting drunk at every available opportunity.

peetss · 3 months

No, but after I finished college I was.

Dan_the_moto_man · 3 months

I hope you're not expecting the professional world to be any different. It amazes me that a bunch middle aged men will gossip just like high school girls.

knowledgeoverswag · 3 months

It's not really the lack of intellectuals. They're there. It's the prevalence of those who think they're on Greek or Jersey Shore.

FAPSLOCK · 3 months

Only when they talk to you.

InferiousX · 3 months

This is one thing I fear.

I'm old enough to where I can feel myself outgrowing my party/young guy phase but haven't gone to college yet. I feel that once I start, I'll be jumping right back into a mix of 'Bro Culture' and 19 year olds who read 'Atlas Shrugged' once and now think they know fucking everything

lookylieu · 3 months

Yeah, it seems like nowadays everyone goes to college. I was an aid for the guidance office my senior year of high school and just...holy shit. In Maryland (not sure about other states...) there are these tests called HSA's that you have to pass in order to graduate. You take the Biology, Algebra, and US Government your freshman year and then the English one your sophomore year. If you cannot pass them, you're put into a special class dedicated to passing that particular test and you retake it every year until you do. I'll never forget one student that came in:partial schedule, his classes were Walking Wellness, Art, Passing the HSA: Algebra and Passing the HSA: English. He was a C student in all of them....yet my counselors still pushed him to go to University. I just don't get it.

BayBeauty420X · 3 months

I went to a school notorious for not being a party school. This rep helped keep the idiots out and I felt surrounded by smart people. Love it.

jonny80 · 3 months

I am not just disappointed about the lack of intellectuals at that point in my life. It gets worse the older you get, you start to realize how many dumb people are out there.

malbrecht92 · 3 months

At my school, 8 brand new dorms were just built for this past fall semester. They're already being destroyed by the drunken idiots I am forced to call my peers. It's disgusting.

KillahHills10304 · 3 months

An undergrad degree is the new high school diploma. They will let most anyone into college (the transfer requirement for my school was a 2.75 GPA- and that was guaranteed acceptance)

Allisgoodandright · 3 months

I'm not quite sure what American college equates to in my British sense of things, but my University experience is so far ridiculous. I pumped myself up for hard work and high standards expected from tutors, but the work I'm given is ridiculously easy - a work sheet a week. The standard of essays, as seen through example A-grade essays, is something I'd be embarrassed to write at A-Level. Don't get me wrong, I'll still treat the work like a chore, but for one of Britain's top ten Unis I guess I was expecting to feel like I'd been thrown in the deep end ... not so ...

audreyality · 3 months

People are people everywhere and at every level of academia. Just because someone has a doctorate or is interested in attending college does not mean they are more intelligent outside of their particular domain specialty. It also doesn't mean they're nicer, more refined in some way, or more socially acceptable. It just means they know something about one thing really well.

Resource: I've worked at a public and a private university since completing my own degree.

[deleted] · 3 months

College is what you make of it. You can be as involved as you want or as laid back as you want.

My first year I got a full ride and chose to go to a primarily commuter college, not a community college, just most of the kids left on weekends because they were close to home. After that painful year, I switched to an in-state school that had such a plethora of things to do.

JackalsNose · 3 months

Nah. I went to a private engineer school. We all talked technical stuff and drank. It was awesome.

SmashThSilence · 3 months

Yes. I was really surprised how dumb some of the people were. A lot of people had no idea how to write a good essay which was strange to me because my high school had put a big emphasis on building that skill.

sorryforthehangover · 3 months

Being a college dropout out get more dissapointed when meeting a graduate who lacks communication skills, the ability to write properly or a basic knowledge of the world around them. I'm not sure if I notice it because I am looking for it, but I encounter these people often.

Wizzlebee · 3 months

I go to an inner city community college in a bad part of town, so yes.

huggableplum · 3 months

I believe I saw this on reddit, but I forgot who said it...

"College is just like kindergarten with a higher potential for people to hurt themselves."

Everyone in my high school talked about people being more "mature" when they reached college. Yes, Michigan State University and the famous "Beer Riots" were very mature...

KuriousInu · 3 months

i wouldnt say there is a lack of intellectuals as much as there is an overabundance of idiots/ high school archetypes. As a chemical engineer I usually feel average among my classmates but when i go to some of my elective classes I see what you describe. Branch out and you will find what you seek

allistercatly · 3 months

Yes. There are even complete idiots even in the science majors such as chemistry and biology. I know that probably one quarter of all biology majors who graduate still will not know what the fuck Hardy-Weinberg theory is. I learned Hardy-Weinberg in AP Bio as a senior in HS.

mindless_spots · 3 months

Sometimes I wonder how these people got in. There are some very very intelligent people here and then there are people who stick stuff up their butt and post pics on the school forum.

I wonder if they're both the same people actually.

rediculous_fuck · 3 months

No. College is full of normal people hopefully trying to learn things, it isn't some gathering of intellectuals. It isn't hard when in college to find people with whom you can discuss life, politics, religion, if you want, but you can't expect to walk up to a stranger and have a successful conversation about that stuff. I for one went to college not to talk about politics or religion but to learn a specific, hands-on trade that has enough science behind it that it requires 4 years of study.

(that said I'm down to talk about "life, politics, religion" when I'm in the mood).

Frankenfish · 3 months

It was a mix...in my experience sometimes there was insightful discussions sometimes it was just fucking around.

The thing is, not everyone wants to spend all their free time sitting around discussing deep things. Yeah its fun, but when you spend 8+ hours a day learning science and philosophy, sometimes you just like to take a break and get hammered

OnlyStandard · 3 months

I go to vocational school. It's worse here.

Currently i'm taking a "Professional Development" class and we just went over cultural differences. One of the questions in the book was, "Thumbs up means good job in the US. Research what it may mean in other cultures."

Someone had written in big girly handwriting:

Rome: Wither yau live or dye middle eastern is like fliping the bird

facepalm

skooma714 · 3 months

I go to a Cal State. This is a glorified community college.

Then again I'm in the business department, which was never going to be intellectual.

bigfreakingnerd · 3 months

I was so very disappointed when I started college to meet and see the same dumb kids who did the minimum to get by and whined about everything. My 2nd year I noticed many of the want to be gangstas and other trash had dropped out and left. I always thought when I was a kid "How can someone fail school or not want to go to college, it is easy" then as I got older I quickly realized, some people just don't get it and don't want to. This is why like Reddit, good mix of people, but I can tell most of you have an IQ above the bell curve.

Dakster11 · 3 months

My generation seems to laugh at intellectuals for the most part.

Mikes42 · 3 months

Find a college with a lot of acid if you want a school filled with people with diverse intellectual theories.

explosiveasshole · 3 months

it is kinda disappointing. when i first got to college I imagined huge auditorium classes like i had seen in movies. My first class was composed of 30 people.

incen · 3 months

Go hang out at the honors dorm.

VividLotus · 3 months

No, because I went to a college that was full of very intellectual people. Perhaps you're not at a school that's a good fit for you?

theslowwonder · 3 months

This was my exact thought as a freshman, but by the time I was a senior I was exhausted by the academic crowd.

tick_tock_clock · 3 months

r/doesanybodyelse

DinosaurWizard · 3 months

I had this problem, too. Now I'm trying to get into the Naval Academy.

baultista · 3 months

For every bright, hard-working, or passionate person I met in college (and believe me I met quite a few), I'd say I met two people who were any combination of stupid, lazy, or apathetic. You'll find pockets of both at any university. It really depends what crowd you hang around.

What you end up learning over time is that different people prioritize different things, and while it can be frustrating for you (especially when you're dependent on them to get work done) you can't really fault them for doing so. For some, college was just a means to an end (a full-time job) rather than a learning experience, so as long as they passed everything while minimizing the amount of time/effort put forth, they were happy. For others it revolved around whatever major club/activity they were in (IE the school newspaper, school radio, varsity sports team, etc) and going to class was just something they did on the side. Other still just wanted to make some friends, have fun drinking and partying, and maybe cruise through a four year program in six with a C- average.

johnsmcjohn · 3 months

I was genuinely dissappointed with the peer group I encountered in college. Having said that I think a major reason for this was the fact that I wasn't attending a prestiegous school. So perhaps the experience would've been better at a big name university but there's no way to tell now.

Note: typing this on a cellphone. There are probably errors in this post. Please disregard them.

knockdown58 · 3 months

I realized there were a lot of smart people that went to my school. But was definitely more shocked by how absolutely fucking stupid a lot of them were. Made me wonder how the hell they even got in.

BitchItsTyranitar · 3 months

I wasn't that surprised, really - in Edinburgh, for every well-informed, well-mannered student you meet, there are ten wankers who frequent the path outside the student union who pester you to attend their "MAD AS FUCK CLUBBIN NYT" (genuine quote from a flyer I was handed). There are idiots everywhere, particularly at college/university, where you're less likely to be told off for being a twat (unlike high school, where teachers kept you in check).

Proxysetting · 3 months

Me: 22 Year old Male. Air Force Computer Programer.

I just started taking college classes this semester (Joined the AF after I left High School) and can somewhat agree with OP. In a field where everyone is considered somewhat to have "above average intellegence," I personally feel like I am in the middle of that group. There are those who know and can do a great deal more than me, and those that should probably not even come in to work. I attend two freshman level classes and feel as if the teacher is the sole person in the room who knows more than me. I am not cocky about my intellegence nor do I believe that without any interaction with a person that I am probably smarter than them. As I said, in my career field, you usually aren't the smartest person. Usually the person that is, doesn't talk much anyways so you'd never know it. With all of that said, my classes are full of mouth breathers absent of the teacher.

gratedjuice · 3 months

It really depends what school you go to and who you hang out with. There are people who spend time debating their majors and various topics of the like but I found that it rarely left the classroom unless it was directly linked to an assignment. I was actually grateful for this though because senior year it was almost inescapable with the number of assignments I had on my plate. After a while I just wanted to take a break from talking about work 24/7. Full disclosure: I studied engineering at a tech school and I had very little interest in philosophical debates

[deleted] · 3 months

Went to business college, and got exactly what I figured I would.

orwhat · 3 months

Yes. But looking back, I don't think that was important. A few years out of college, I find myself looking past politics, religion, more than I used to. Instead, I am more focused on living well. An intellectual discussion is fun every so often but I have other outlets for exercising my mind, mainly through my work.

raw031979b · 3 months

My experience was that college (like a business) only seeks to grow its revenues because tenured professors and administrative staff see it as a job. Hence they need more pay, more benefits, and more notarity. The easiest way to do this is to grow the incoming student group; develop a competitive atheletic department; and rake in the dough from those who seek to learn.

Between this and the ever growing gap between the speed of technology and the speed of education; I fully believe that apprenticeships will soon be replacing college educations. Most people argue this is the reason for internships, but this way you get to underpay a growing employee (all while building an emotional growth connection --emotional debt if you will) that will help retain employees long term. Also, you teach them only the skills that you need. They are now less useful to outsider firms.

AZRugger · 3 months

Intellectuals aren't really common until grad school.

Ahrounmoon · 3 months

The numbers have probably changed, but 12 years ago when I first went to college they said that 60% of the people who entered Freshman year would fail to graduate. Time told me the truth of that statement and many of the people who treated college like extended high school failed out. I will admit that because of various personal issues I was dealing with as well as my own lack of direction I was among them.

However, meanwhile I had a circle of friends who were very intelligent people and they enjoyed discussing high minded things. Many of them went on to various doctorate or masters programs. They worked hard and spent much of their time doing upper level coursework. If it's stimulation you're looking for, try getting past the intro level courses and get really involved in whatever subjects spark your interest. Particularly if they have a club or anything along those lines that you can join.

dieabetic · 3 months

I didn't have a romanticized view of college because I was just as young and stupid then, and to be honest I was more about the social partying scene than my studies (at least in the first 2 years). But I did have this built-up idea when I went to law school (and this probably applies to all grad schools). I'm not saying I'm the smartest guy around, nor was I the best student - but sometimes I just thought to myself 'How the FUCK did these people get out of primary school, let alone college?'

I think ignorance runs rampant everywhere, and does not necessarily get extinguished from education. Some people can go through school, take hard classes, and perfectly spit out exactly what the teacher told them they had to memorize/know (thus getting the good grades and progressing on without actually learning anything). Then you turn and talk to them about a relatively common knowledge subject and they go full-retard. You never go full retard, man. Never.

Afterburned · 3 months

I've found that the wide majority of people in my classes are idiots. I don't claim to be a genius or anything, but compared to my classmates I'm Archimedes crossed with Feynman.

I'm constantly astounded at the inability of people to do simple things like read or write a paper. The amount of people who will openly complain to the teacher about having too much work (when they only have a ten page paper to write) is absurd.

skinofaginger · 3 months

yes.

notamustache · 3 months

I attend a very good school full of very intelligent people. However, simply because people are intelligent does not mean that they want to discuss and debate over "intelligent" ideas, nor does it mean that when situations do arise, that the debates are intelligent.

I'm not much of an arguer, but frankly I'm more annoyed by people who do know a lot, but feel as though they know everything, and because they're louder than you and have no problem interrupting you, they are always "winning" the argument. There are countless meaningless arguments every week in my dorm that quickly mount to people yelling and throwing half-assed attempts at facts to dismount their opponents. It's incredibly annoying and unnecessary.

Also, if you're going to argue about something serious, don't throw in a half-joke randomly in your argument. I'm not going to argue against your joke that stretches reality and bends the facts. Let's be real here.

BanditTheDolphin · 3 months

I was accepted to the University of Chicago, but I couldn't afford it and now I'm at a school that's pretty much its exact opposite. I expected a total lack of intellectually curious people, and because of that I spent a lot of my first semester feeling bitter at a school climate where people wouldn't discuss academics outside of class. Of course, I totally needed to get over myself. There were talks every day where distinguished speakers would come to campus, student groups where advocacy was a serious focus, and lots of pockets of people who were entirely interested in discussing the serious things in life. I wrote them off as pretentious, presuming above their space, or ignorant and doing these things on a lower level than I could find elsewhere. The thing is, that attitude made me snub all of the opportunities around me and prevented me from accessing the resources around me.

I know you've clarified, and said you come from a totally different direction, but I urge anyone else who's reading through this thread that they need to try everything that might interest them just a little in college, and give it a chance. Look at university event directories, drop in on clubs - and take charge of your intellectual development.

[deleted] · 3 months

Not really, my expectations weren't all that hight to being with. Most people I know went to university. If you attend your average university, you will be surrounded by average people.

lordhadri · 3 months

I attended three colleges in three years. The first was a flagship football school in another state that lured me away from home, chose most of my classes for me and took all my money. I spent that year watching bad powerpoint presentations and other people get drunk.

The alcoholism of the overrated "college experience" saddens me, but I think you can still get a good academic, intellectual experience if you surround yourself with the right people. If you can't, you aren't in the right place. People still drink a lot at my current school, but it's also in a more sophisticated place and that suits me fine. I also have better access to my professors and challenge them instead when I want a bit of a mental kick.

If you really feel you don't fit in, consider doing what I did and trying somewhere else. You couldn't do that in high school. I don't regret it. Hell, in my case it saved me money. In the meantime, there's always Reddit.

jackya · 3 months

I had to sit through a painful speech given by a girl in my communications class my first quarter about "like gun control and stuff". I don't even know how she got into college, she referred to the pre-colonized United States as "Indian times". It made me cringe and I thought I saw steam going out my professors ears. To top it all of she ended her speech with a Daniel Tosh. I'm a Tosh fan myself but I would never end a college class speech with it.

fafafohi · 3 months

Alcoholic here, I can confirm this.

G8torDontPlay · 3 months

It gets better. When you first start you'll be surrounded by people who are pretty much still in highschool. As the years pass and you move up the kids who aren't as serious (stupid freshman) tend to drop out or get serious. Cheers!

mgt99 · 3 months

Oh my goodness, I go to Pitt too and feel the exact same way!

fmlfml1 · 3 months

I think it depends a lot on where you go. If you go to a really competitive school, i.e. Harvard, Berkeley, Stanford, you'll be able to find these 'intellectuals.' If you go to some state school or any school where you pretty much have guaranteed acceptance, you probably won't find the same caliber of people. However, I think it is more often than not based on who you look for and try to associate with.

SweetLeafKush · 3 months

Nah... Then again, I'm not a pretentious prick who labels himself and others as "Intellectuals."

Get off your high horse and enjoy people for who they are. Not who you romanticized them being.

ItsaBirdaPlane · 3 months

I felt the same sometimes, but I found that if I wanted to do something I considered intellectual, my hall mates/ friends were more than happy to join me and participate in such activities. For example, there was an exhibition inspired by Yoko Ono in the university art gallery to which I brought all of my friends. Afterwards we talked about it (it was surprisingly analytical), and then proceeded to go on with the rest of our days. To this day, it was one of the most "intellectual" or cultured experiences I have had on campus.

TL;DR Bring your friends to an intellectual situation and let them rise to the occasion.

lee_ror · 3 months

How far into your college experience are you? You'll find the percentage of people who enjoy that type of stuff will go up as you get further along. Because:

you'll have more in common with people in your major/area of study
the dumb ones will drop out.

Just out of curiosity, what is your major?

ErosAccosted · 3 months

Wait and see if you end up going to Grad School. The disappointment is even greater considering the gap between expectation and reality is larger.

AtomicGarden · 3 months

The non-intellectual party going type stand out more than the quiet intellectual person who likes reading alone. They may still be a minority but just sit back in your class and look around, you don't know everyone, you just see the loudest person and assume that this is the majority.

ThaHarterIII · 3 months

well if you're at a public university, what the fuck do you expect.

top private schools tend to have better teaching professors, but unless you go one renowned for its "intellectualness", yes, basically college is high school with harder classes and more booze. sounds like you fell for the college "image" the media has been feeding us, where the nerds magically take over and are cool, while still being nerds. what you really need to do is go party and talk with people there. or get involved with some clubs. you cant expect people to just want to talk about what YOU want to talk about, sober and alone in your dorm.

poorsoi · 3 months

Nah. They were letting me in, how hard could it be?

phailcakez · 3 months

Maybe its because you're taking mostly prerequitite classes and lower level classes before you've really gotten into your major area of study, so people are less serious and less interesting to you now? I know that since I've started taking upperlevel classes, things have gotten more stimulating in class. Outside of class I mostly see people studying, not partying, but my school, while a large public university, is no party school especially for a commuter like myself.

Time_for_Stories · 3 months

I love it. Classes are curved so I get great grades with minimal effort.

em_son · 3 months

Well, sort of. When I considered this problem in my first quarter at college, I tried to think about how I looked on the exterior and how my old HS friends probably look on the outside. I've had some great intellectual conversations with them. I wouldn't say we're intellectuals but we're nerds and we like arguing about things and we know stuff and it's cool.

Anyway, I'd venture a guess that these "intellectuals" you're looking for do exist and you walk by them every day. You just can't tell because they aren't wearing signs saying "HEY LET'S HAVE A DEEP AND MEANINGFUL CONVERSATION".

JPmoneyman · 3 months

Have you never seen movies like Animal House or Old School? Did you honestly expect college to be some place where everybody goes and magically becomes a mature intellectual adult? If you are looking for intellectual discussion join a club, I guarantee there is at least one club at your university that you would enjoy. You'll make friends who don't want to sit around and just drink their time away. Freshman dorm culture revolves very heavily on partying because this is the first time any of these people have had this level of freedom. Maybe try and make some friends who are a little older and have gotten over the initial shock of freedom. And in the meantime maybe try and sound a little less like a pretentious dick and have some fun.

weezermc78 · 3 months

There are so many fucking bros here for it being a liberal arts college. Jesus Christ.

Ben-Zero · 3 months

Yes, totally agree especially with so many athletes at my school, they are literally stupider than many high school kids, and so many don't even care about school and studying, its like why are you even here then????

Orchard7 · 3 months

EVERY. FUCKING. DAY.

happywafflez · 3 months

Meh, considering 40% of your submission and comments are to /r/fffffffuuuuuuuuuuuu you're probably not very smart.

Melivora · 3 months

University here, but it's the same thing:
No. I was too busy celebrating escaping the pretentious twats who thought grades mattered and wanted to talk about philosophy and the merits of oxford vs cambridge.
Everyone I know got As in A level, or else they wouldn't be in my course, so now we just judge each other on the bant and how fast we can win wizard sticks.

Wizard sticks is so much better than politics.

Fritzguyes · 3 months

Note: undergraduates.

suckstoyerassmar · 3 months

i was just surprised to find that so many college students were there when their intelligence level was clearly not up to par. my freshman biology class actually had creationists who would argue with the professor about adam and eve. she would not correct them.

i went to my dream school for two years before having to leave for a medical emergency. biggest regret of my life. i have been to three different universities, and have not found one as challenging. out of four semesters since leaving, i have had to write two essays total. two. i wrote at least thirty or so during my two years at dream school. and when reading the essays of other students at sub-par schools, i could not believe how indequate the writing skills were. as in, people still mixing up their, there, they're. elementary mistakes. i agree, it can be pretty disheartening.

TypewriterKey · 3 months

I joined the Air Force because I craved structure and maturity. 90% of my time in the Air Force was an unstructured clusterfuck, and maturity was non-existant.

The worst for me was when I moved into the dorms and they talked about all the rules they had for orderly conduct. One of them was no working on your car in the parking lot or playing loud music. I was excited as hell because I had previously lived in the ghetto.

Turns out a group of black Airmen (not racist, they really were black) decided to say 'fuck that' and spent all day every day working on their broken down pieces of shit in the parking lot blaring loud rap music and glaring at anyone who walked by, or cat-calling if it was a woman.

capernoited · 3 months

Thish ish a common mishconception, I don't know why. Plenty of dumb people find waysh of finding shuccessh and ash long ash shomeone pays, mosht collegesh don't care too much about gradesh.

gx1400 · 3 months

I went to a fairly well known Engineering school in the midwest and I was DUMBFOUNDED at how computer illiterate some of the engineering students were. Especially mechanical engineers.

bijida · 3 months

guess you went to a shitty college

Eisaykela · 3 months

I went to a large public University for a year and a half. I had plenty of late night conversations about life, spirituality, etc... It depends on the people you are around and the context in which you're hanging out. There has to be a level of comfort and something shallower to spark the discussion. For example, at one point a group of my friends were just hanging out in my room. I found the video of Anonymous vs. Westboro Baptist Church and made some comment about it. That spurred a conversation about Christianity, religion vs. spirituality, etc...

I recently transferred to a small liberal arts school. The one thing that I noticed is that at a big school, classes are lectures (often with 200+ students). Discussion sections are not discussions. At a smaller school, there are fewer people in classes. It is easier to ask questions. Especially in humanity classes, often discussions are at the core of the class. There is still alcohol and plenty of partying.

I think that there are plenty of people at ANY school willing and wanting to talk about stuff. There are also plenty of people at ANY school wanting to party. There are a lot of people who do BOTH!!! These conversations don't just pop up. I bet if you make some effort, even asking people about their opinions on a topic, you can start a discussion.

nagelwithlox · 3 months

Yes. Not that I'm an intellectual by any means, but it sure would have been cool to meet a few more than I did.

eMigo · 3 months

My brain fucking atrophied in college.

Dolewhip · 3 months

You're an intellectual at 18? Get the fuck out of here fat boy.

GinAndTrees · 3 months

No, but I went to a good college. That comes off 100 times more douchey than I mean for it to. Sorry.

exbtard · 3 months

No. Most likely, none of the interesting people want to be friends with you.

Feed_Me_Seymour · 3 months

Lots of students in college considers themselves intellectuals...but the truth is that most college "intellectuals" are the sort of vapid, pondering, self-indulgent slackers that everyone avoids.

The real "intellectuals" are too busy studying for grad school to engage in your silly pondering discussions.

trimalchio-worktime · 3 months

Gotta find better friends. Some of my friends were just there for the booze, some of them were there for Descartes.

dwightmoody · 3 months

You're in Western Pennsylvania, home of people who are upset that they can no longer live downwind of ancient coal power plants...

Try New England for intellectuals.

BigNikiStyle · 3 months

Holy shit yes. The amount of assholes I saw who majored in Euchre made me sick. I paid for all bit one semester of university on my own, so I did not have the time to fuck around like these people did. University for the first two years is just all-star high school. But even at the higher levels, yeah, you'll meet an 'intellectual.' But he's also a communist. A for real fucking communist. Then you're hit with the feminism and anti-Israel stuff and I just had to shake my head.

core1129 · 3 months

Oh my fucking god yes... even my teachers were complete idiots. I dropped out because of this (and other reasons) but still people are like, "why didn't you finish college??" "Because everyone was fucking stupid!!" "Thats no reason to drop out of school!" "Wow... you are fucking stupid... you should go to that school."

mawilso · 3 months

I had assumed graduate school would be highly intellectual and that I would be one of the dumb ones. The total opposite.

apenostic · 3 months

You should read "I am Charlotte Simmons" by Tom Wolfe, he deals with this feeling awesomely. (And yes, I was a bit disappointed.)

g1bb0n · 3 months

Have you never seen a movie intended for early 20 y/o's?

[deleted] · 3 months

what is your major? if you're in a liberal arts program that isn't politics or religion or philosophy, there probably aren't going to be a lot of good debates. If your in the right program, there are plenty of intellectuals. You just have to find out if the college is stealing your money, or if they are actually prestigious.

AssDan · 3 months

zzzaz · 3 months

Nope. I went to a good school, most of the kids went out and had a good time and did stupid college shit like anywhere else, but in the classroom and extracurriculars I was consistently impressed with just how smart the people around me were.

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