How to Get the Most Out of Your College Experience

Think you're ready to get your college degree? You probably don't need to be told for the thousandth time that there's a major life change on the way. If you're a determined student, you've probably already spent time getting ready to meet the challenges of your degree program in Toronto. But as ready as you think you are, life can take you by surprise. In case you've missed anything, here's a few other factors you should be ready for.

Make sure the rest of your life is in order
Firstly, this includes your money. Know where it is, how much you have, and whether or not you'll be getting more, as it can run away from you at school if you're not careful. Make a budget, and try and stick to it. Secondly, if you're at home, or living off campus, work out where you'll work, where you'll sleep, when you're doing your laundry, and any other little details. You can't make the rest of your life run like clockwork, but you can come close, and the more automated the rest of your life is, the more mental energy you can give to your schooling.

Get a physical calendar and use it
I could say "manage your time," but I'll cut to the chase and say that getting a calendar is the easiest way to do it. And it's got to be physical, because putting it on your phone or computer puts it two clicks away from Facebook. Maybe it's a wall calendar, or maybe it's an agenda book, either way, you need something physical. Write all your due dates out, and cross out each day as you finish it. Nothing will keep your time organized like a visual reminder of what has to be done by when, and how much time you have.

Do something outside class
At the same time, don't let this stuff stress you out. It's important that you have at least one activity during your college years you can use to "check out" mentally. It's good for your well being on both a physical and emotional level. And it doesn't have to be a completely frivolous pursuit, either. Joining a club on campus can ensure that you both have fun and advance your academics, by getting involved in the network of students around you.

Know your limits academically, and focus on the right things
Don't do too much! You may be tempted to rush through your schooling, and take a big, heavy course load in the name of finishing the program early, but you won't benefit yourself if you burn out early. Take things at a slower pace, and focus instead on what the college can do for you. Passing an exam and getting a solid GPA won't land you a job. That's not why you're at college. You're there to acquire practical job skills. So instead of looking at the work you can do for the college, instead examine what you can acquire from them. Its your career you're trying to forge, after all.

Continuing Education: Not Just for Mature Students

What image does the idea of a Continuing Education Program conjure up? For many, it's mature students returning to school after decades, attempting to re-invent themselves and acquire new relevance in the working world. Certainly, mature students are a recipient of continuing education, but there's a new client who can also benefit from that continued education: The young, recent graduate, looking for something a bit more specialized from their education in Toronto

Sometimes, you need that specialization
A common reason a student might avoid continuing education is the cost and time sink, particularly after spending years and dollars in the college system already. It may be seen as a bad investment, time that could be better spent job hunting. Worse than that, continuing education has picked up a negative stereotype of serving as a haven for students avoiding the real world.

None of these things are true. With the job market for young people being far more competitive than ever before, any advantage is a good investment. That extra year can be a saner, more helpful alternative than spending multiple years job hunting. And that's the thing: It can and will only be an extra year, since postgrads like the ones at Centennial College don't generally last longer than that.

Specified skills lead to specific jobs
What you get in that time is specialization. For example, it's a common career path for journalism graduates to go into public relations. You could graduate and begin applying for public relations jobs, trying your luck. But doing an actual public relations postgrad will train you in the skills necessary for the specific profession, letting you cut in line ahead of all the journalists applying to PR work with only their somewhat-applicable experience. Similarly, if you're a media graduate looking to get into developing and producing television and film, a "Script to Screen" postgrad can give you the exact skill set needed to break into the field.

Other times, you may want to redirect your career
The good thing about Centennial's postgrads is that they accept applicants from multiple academic backgrounds, meaning you could be taking the program for the sake of a change rather than as an enhancement. It's less common than you'd think for someone entering college to have a perfect, solid idea of what they want to do with their career, and if you feel like you need a change, a postgrad means you don't have to spend another major chunk of your life course-correcting.

A final word on that stereotype, the idea of post-grads being exclusively full of mature students. While that's not true, there will be a broad variety of students from different backgrounds and walks of life, and that's hardly a detriment. Indeed, interacting with a group of people that aren't simply early-20's college students can be good for your social development, by giving you a circle of peers that more accurately reflects the broad demographic variety of the rest of the world.

College Students: Make sure You Do This, or You're Putting Your Career at Risk

The good news: By attending a Toronto College, you've already taken a smart step towards building your career. More than any other post-secondary institution, college is about connecting you to the workplace through practical training that sees a student earning their job skills in an active environment. The bad news: It's a two-way exchange, and as a student, you'll have to ensure that you're taking the right actions in that setting, so that you'll have a career when your schooling is over. Fear not, though. Here's a few things you need to make sure you're doing during your education.

Don't limit your education to the classroom
As stated above, College already tries to avoid this pitfall by putting students in labs and facilities and out in the field whenever possible. Perhaps a more apt description of what you should be aiming for it "don't limit your education to the syllabus." Join some clubs, participate in the social experience, and don't let the assignments and tests turn you into a hermit. Social skills and life experiences are just as important to your intellectual development, and important to developing a network as well.

Build a professional network
In the working world, who you know will be just as important as what you know. That's the purpose of a professional network. It's a group of friends and colleagues in your career field you know and communicate with, who can provide you with opportunities and tips. Getting one started in college is simple: Get to know your classmates and professors well enough that you can communicate with them post-graduation, and you'll have a running start.

Build a portfolio
You will one day need to prove your skills to a prospective employer, and simply having your degree to show may not be enough. Instead, you need tangible evidence of the things you've created, and fresh out of school, that will be your assignments and projects. So whatever you accomplish that you're proud of, document it. Keep the papers, keep the photos and video, keep some evidence. If you can build a personal website, even a Wordpress to stash it all on, then do so. In the long run, you'll want to eventually cease using schoolwork in your portfolio, but for now, it's a good foundation.

Do at least one internship
A lot of college programs have some sort of internship, field placement, or co-op built in, and they're well worth doing. On the off chance your program of choice doesn't have one, it's worth seeking it out independently. While you might balk at the idea of free or underpaid work (though that is rapidly changing thanks to new legislation,) it does provide you with valuable real-world work experience of a type the best college class can never simulate, as well as a link to more portfolio and networking opportunities. Obviously, you'll also have to make sure you're doing more than getting coffee for your boss, and after that first internship, you should only accept paid work, but doing at least one can enhance all of the above actions.

How a University Background can Enhance the College Experience

Too often, university is referred to as the ivory tower, a place where you pick up a liberal arts degree that leads to nowhere. This is why students worried about job prospects go to college, since it's about practical job skills, with the goal of putting students to work as much as possible prior to graduation. College programs place less of an emphasis on lectures, and more on getting participants on their feet, both in campus labs and facilities, and in the outside world through co-op and placement opportunities. The other side of the coin, the university experience, instead offers the theory behind the practical. A university education can allow students practicing their craft in college settings know why they're doing what they're doing, through knowledge of rules and best practices

If you're worried about your future, and want a path to employment while still getting that university education, a joint program may be the solution. Now offered by several Ontario colleges and universities, these programs start you off at a university for a bachelor degree program, then have you head to college for a practical diploma. Getting a university education along with your college program comes with a number of benefits.

An educational foundation breeds confidence
Some people enjoy living life by the seat of their pants, making it up as they go along. Unfortunately, you can't do that as a working professional. Before you get up and move, you need to make sure you have a solid grasp of what it is you're doing. University is about theory, so taking a university program followed by college practicals reframes that university education as an extended introduction to college, letting you understand the rules, regulations, and ideas behind your vocation. It eliminates uncertainty by teaching you the right way to do things, ensuring confidence and security, that every move you make is an informed one.

Creativity requires theory
Media and journalism are among the courses offered in Centennial College's joint programs, and creative fields such as those require creative minds. That's where university education comes in handy, with its emphasis on analysis, and the philosophies and cultural rules behind media creation. It doesn't have to simply apply to media, either. Many careers will require one level of creativity or another, and a university education naturally leads to informed, thoughtful creators.

Double the campuses equals double the network
It goes without saying that a program placing you at two different schools will bring you to two different campuses. Post-secondary education is a time of new experiences and personal expansion, and attending two separate campuses is an easy way to effectively double that life experience. After all, you're looking at two campuses worth of people, clubs, student life and opportunities, with two different demographics of attendee. They say these years are important for formulating your adult, working self, so getting a broader experience in can only benefit your personal growth.

Pre-College Preparations: How to Make the Right Choice

There's a number of factors to consider as you look into entering the post-secondary world of college programs in Toronto. You need to chose a career, choose your college courses, get your tuition and finances in order, and prepare your life for a big change, all on top of figuring out where you're actually going to go. A lot of it comes down to yourself and your personal attitudes about education and life. Here's a few ideas to consider when it comes to making an informed decision about your education:

Know why you're going to college

This is really a pair of questions. Firstly, are you going to college because you want to get a career, or because it's just what you do after high school? If it's the latter, maybe you should stop that mad scramble to prepare, and analyze your life priorities. If you can answer that, you're probably in a position to answer the next query: Is the subject you're going to school for something you enjoy, are good at, and can net you a reasonably profitable career in the future? Take some time on that, and seriously consider it before you take the college plunge.

There's another important angle to this: If you're not sure of the answers, it's better to hold off on attending a school until you do know. Making mistakes is an important part of life, but when it comes to your education, it's better to wait and get it right the first time then spend years and dollars having a do-over. And to answer these questions, you'll need to…

Do the research

Firstly, you'll need to research your chosen career path. Check how the job market is on it. When school's done, are you going to be employed? And if so, how much money are you going to make? Search for work-life balance, too. How busy, happy, healthy, and fulfilled are the people who've chosen this career? After all, you're going to be one of them, so that's an important question.

Secondly, research your colleges of choice. This includes, but isn't limited to: Reputation, campus life, variety of programs, tuition, services, and financial compensation. Don't go in blind: Make a choice backed by knowledge. The final step to this research, though, should always be in the flesh.

Visit the campus

Never going in blind can apply to the physical space of a campus, too. For all the academic accolades you might find, you'll still need to be spending a few years on that college campus, and your education will be a lot harder if you don't care for the setting. You need to make sure it suits you. Go to the campus, go on a tour, learn what amenities the campus has, and absorb the culture and the people around you. And speaking of those people…

Be ready to make friends

You're there to develop your career, and an important part of a career will be the people around you. They'll be your support during your academic career, and a professional network when your post-grad career gets going. It's a new set of peers to interact with, and you need to make sure you're ready. If you're an introvert, or don't consider yourself particularly sociable, take the time to practice meeting new people and networking. It will put you ahead of the game right out of the gate.

In the scramble to get ready for the post-secondary world, there's a lot of important things you should consider that can get left by the wayside if you're not careful. There's questions that are essential to answer in order to ensure you enter college and the next chapter of your life ready for success.

College Degree Boot Camp:

If you're looking to enroll in a college degree program, then you've taken the first step down a productive, career-oriented path. But it won't be easy, and making the most of that education requires some tough rules with some serious lifestyle changes. I learned these rules as I went, and now I'm going to pass them along so future students can enter school smartly. While this is framed around my honest experience working my way through a Toronto degree program at Centennial College, this is really universal advice for anyone heading down the post-secondary path.

1) You need to be in a program that you're actually good at.

If you're not sure of your skills and talents by the time you enter college, that's alright. But you have to be sure to discover them while you're there. It can be a hard lesson to realize that you're not as talented of a writer or computer scientist or mathematician as you initially thought, but if you accept it, you'll be a lot stronger for it, and you'll discover what you actually are good at. To that end, don't be afraid to take electives that don't align with your chosen career, and don't grumble if your program requirements mean you have to. If you're having trouble discovering your talent, those electives can be a valuable tool.

Here's the other, more difficult part of this tip: If you discover you're not in the ideal program, or your career path isn't for you, switch out. Allowing momentum and passivity to guide you will only cost you time and money in the long run. Better to change plans and find your passion than to sleepwalk through a program with no career prospects at the end.

2) You need to schedule your time wisely.

Flying by the seat of your pants won't work anymore, and you'll need to approach each week, and even each day, with a solid plan of what you're going to get done and when.More than in high school, managing your time will become increasingly important. If you're pulling an all-nighter, you're doing it wrong. Instead, arrange things so you have enough time to catch a few hours of sleep. Get a calendar, be it digital or physical, write down when all your assignments are due, and put a red “x” through every day as it goes by. You'll need it to keep track of those due dates. And if you think you're in the clear because you don't have to worry about an assignment for a month, just remember that life will throw you curveballs. It's better to get your work done early, and be ready for whatever life throws at you, than to suddenly find you're busy every day of that same week. Be prepared, be scheduled and anticipate problems.

3) You need to mark time to make friends.

Don't let that sense of time management turn you into a hermit. You're going to need friends to succeed in life. When you're in trouble, when you need to study, when you need to work on a group assignment, they'll be who you turn to. And when school's over, they'll mark the start of a professional network of industry contacts. So be sure to block some time out of that schedule to have lunch, or dinner or a game of pool with your classmates. Treat is as mandatory, because on some level, it's an investment in success.

4) Don't quit your job, or if you don't have one, get one.

If anyone's advising you to quit your current job, ignore it. It will take a chunk of your time, but the benefits are numerous. First of all, finding a place for that job in your schedule can do a lot for your finances. College isn't cheap, and having some spending money can be a boon for the days you forgot your lunch, or need a new USB drive, or need a mid-afternoon caffeine boost. Finally, even the most talented graduate could see a gap between graduation and employment, and having a cash flow during that time can keep you floating while you job hunt. So don't cash out of the working world. Even if you're only taking a single weekend shift, it's always a plus.

Four Things College has that University does not, and why you can have both

Entering the world of post-secondary education? Students exiting high school have a distressing tendency to assume that by default, this means a university education, with college being the second choice for those that can't "make it." By default, you may assume that means university. However, don't be too hasty to assume college is somehow the lesser of the two educational paths. In reality college and university offer separate, yet equally valuable experiences. College is about directly pointing the way to the workforce, by learning practical skills over theory, and getting your hands busy actually working on the things you want your career to involve.

Luckily, you can have it both ways, and don't have to choose which path you prefer. Several Ontario colleges now have joint programs, where they pair with an Ontario university to give you the practical vocational training of a college program, and the intellectual foundation of a university's bachelor degree program. If you opt for this unique combined path, you can receive several college-only benefits, including…

A mission to get you out of the classroom
University is about learning the intellectual foundations of a vocation, and college is about actually doing it, getting up and practicing your craft. Centennial College, for example, accomplishes this by having a broad variety of labs and facilities across its campuses to simulate working environments, including a restaurant for culinary arts, television and radio studios for media and journalism, and a simulated hospital for health studies. Essentially, the school lets students have a dry run at their future job in a safe environment before exiting to the real world.

Direct pathways to the workforce
Along the same lines, a college education will involve you spending as much time as possible logging work experience hours before graduating. This can be in the form of a placement, an internship, or a co-op program. As a part of your education, these placements will give you a kind of real-world experience school can't match. While internships have recently been given a bad rap by the media, Ontario colleges such as Centennial work with students to ensure that their placements are worthwhile, educational, and even paid. Aside from the experience, these work opportunities can give you industry contacts, networking opportunities, and a way to satisfy the need for job applications to have years of experience.

Industry professional instructors
Instead of professors, college instructors are frequently individuals who have logged real hours inside of the career they're teaching, and so offer wisdom from a place of true experience. If you're studying public relations, you'll be taught by PR professionals. Culinary schools are run by chefs. Media is taught by professional media makers. It adds an extra layer of relevance to the proceedings.

Double the credit
Finally, for taking a joint program, you'll receive double the credit, earning both a degree and a diploma in the program you've chosen. Aside from proving that you walked a unique educational path, you'll get a leg up on the competition when it comes to career hunting through the impressive credits on your resume.

The Different Faces of The Continuing Learner

If we're to advance our education and careers in Ontario, then we need to lose the stereotypes about continuing education and the people who attend it, because about the only trait they all share is the fact that they're 25-plus. The fact is that people from all different walks of life participate in continuing education for all different reasons. Those include, but are not limited to…

You need a job
The job market isn't kind at the moment, particularly if you're younger, and searching for employment after graduation. I know after my graduation I resisted the urge to go back to school, even as I saw my career stalling. In my mind, that phase of my life was over, and returning was taking a step backwards in terms of both my life path and my finances. I assumed what was best for me was to grit my teeth, save my money, and keep shooting out resumes. The reality is that continuing education can be an investment in the future, and aside from the additional skills you'll receive, if nothing else, the networking and field placement opportunities you can gain will let you cut to the head of the line in the job hunt, and you're wiser now than you were the first time around. And if you already have a job and you're looking to start climbing the corporate ladder, what better way to show proof of your skill with some accreditation?

You need to stay up to date
Technology is changing, and innovation continuously impacts employment in the 21st century. As things change, you'll need to keep up. Sometimes, it won't be to climb that corporate ladder, but rather to keep your spot on it. Learning is a lifelong journey, after all, and technology doesn't stop advancing as soon as you leave school behind.

You want to pick up a new skill
It doesn't have to be about your career. Learning can be a fun process, and you can opt to continue your education solely for personal fulfillment. At Centennial College, continuing education courses like French, Spanish, Auto Mechanics, Motorcycle Riding, Professional Writing, and Webisodes can be taken not by a working professional looking to upgrade, or a job-hungry post-graduate student, but by anyone looking to pick up a life-enhancing talent or ability in their spare time. And it can be in their spare time, because between weekend classes, night classes, and distance education, there's plenty of options available for a busy professional who has to juggle the rest of their life on top of this education. You can get it however you want, and fit it around your needs.

When Picking Your College Courses…

When it comes time to apply to your college courses, you may find yourself fretting over your choice. It's understandable, considering it has the potential to frame the path the rest of your life will take. Perhaps you don't know what you want to do, or you have your doubts about what you have chosen. It doesn't have to be stressful, though. Instead, simply ask yourself a few questions about what you're applying for. If you can answer these to your satisfaction, you'll know you've made a good choice:

1. Will I enjoy what I'm doing?

Work-life balance can be a tricky thing, especially in the current economy, which means you may find yourself involved in your career for a larger percent of your time than your personal life. This makes it more important than ever that your chosen job is something you'll enjoy spending time at, and won't dread going to when you wake up every morning. Admittedly, people have a tendency to place too much weight on this question. However, it's still valid. Nevertheless, consider the following against this, too.

2. Am I good at what I want to do?

Be honest with this one. You may like outer space, but unless you know a lot about aerospace, you're probably not going to become an astronaut. While liking a career is important, you need skills if you're actually going to go far in it. The two factors don't have to be mutually exclusive, though. If you're innately good at something, it'll be easier, and therefore more enjoyable. Your skill is doubly important in the face of the following, too.

3. Is it a profitable sector? Can I live with it not being one?

This can be a tricky one, as you have to measure your enjoyment and skill versus the ability to make a living off what you want to do. Take a look at the employment numbers, and literature surrounding your chosen career path, and figure out what the job and pay grade prospects are now, and what they'll eventually be as the industry changes and evolves. If they're not good, you may need to ask yourself if it's really the best field to go into. If you're still determined, ask yourself what the standard of living you're willing to operate with is. Money isn't happiness, but it is reliable food and shelter.

4. Am I willing to put the work in?

No matter the profession, you're going to have to work hard to succeed. Even if you're super-talented, you enjoy what you do, and you're in an income bracket your comfortable with, there's still going to be long hours, a heavy workload, and stressful situations. It's important that you find a career path that offers you something you're willing to be stressed over, something you're passionate enough about to go above and beyond with.

Centennial College's college programs in Toronto are designed to prepare you for this, by simulating the working environment of your chosen career through interactive labs and facilities, and through a mandate to put students through the paces of a career before they even graduate. If you know the answers to these questions, then the road to a rewarding lifetime career can begin there.

Aim for Winning Career with Graduate Programs Toronto

When is the right time to go back to school? For college grads who are finding out that their degrees aren't enough to get a career in the unpredictable economy, it's a tough question that they're not looking forward to answering. But it doesn't have to be that way. If you're struggling to get your career moving, or even just thinking you could use an educational upgrade or refocusing, then graduate programs in Toronto at schools like Centennial College may be right for you. Here's a few extra reasons:

• They're short
  You don't have to devote a significant chunk of your life to a graduate certificate, since they don't take long to complete. Most of Centennial's post-grads only run for two semesters, followed by a field placement, meaning you're out in no time, ready to move on with your life.
  
  Another advantage of the accelerated timeline: It will cost you less. Instead of paying four year's worth of tuition, you only pay for a single semester, making it less of a financial hit than it initially seems.

• They're streamlined and focused
  Really, that's what this short span gets you: A streamlined, focused education. There's no longer general education in a post-grad program. These short programs are about one thing, and one thing only: The specific career you want to get into. There's no fat on the meat, so to speak. Instead, it's a crash-course in making you "hireable." If you're in media, you can take Sports Journalism, or Corporate Communications and Public Relations, or Advanced Television and be doing that and only that, in a practical, laboratory-based setting. This specific focus also means that the class sizes will be smaller, ensuring personalized, specific education, and a network of like-minded people with your specific focus, while your instructors will know your name and face/ And that will benefit you in the long run, because….

• They make you stand out
  Having a grad certificate says that you've received specialized training, and that you're unique qualified to work on the skill you've trained for. In that year of education, you'll ensure you've actually marked time working on your chosen profession, rather than just learning about it. Specific job skills for a specific position, designed to make you ready to go to market with valuable abilities. A graduate certificate provides you with a competitive, appealing edge to employers, and allows you to get the most value out of your plunge back into the world of post-secondary education.

How to Make Your College Experience Worth it

One of the debates the recession has brought on is whether or not a post-secondary degree is worthwhile, in a world where employment is uncertain. On some level, this is understandable. After all, school isn't cheap. And statistically speaking, if you're a young person, the quality and amount of work you have to fund it is probably lower than previous generations. A recession seems like a good reason not to attend college, when in actuality it's the best reason to. For all the difficulties you might have funding and getting that education, you'll still be better off for it, especially if you're attending a community college such as Centennial, where the focus is on creating employable graduates with hands-on experience in their career of choice, ready to get down to business in the jobs they want. There are two things you can do in advance of that, though, to improve your experience, and ensure you make the most of that education.

Choose a career path with opportunities

We all have our talents, and the key to picking your major is to figure out what you can do with that talent that's personally profitable. It isn't cynical to advise a student to go where the money is, since that money will buy them stability and security in the long run, and pay for that education. So if you have your heart set on something, have a look at the field and figure out if it's changing, expanding, or shrinking and have a serious look at what the job prospects are. If it's a field that's hard to get into you may have to let your own financial and career needs override your desire to enter it. Fortunately, Centennial College's extensive list of programs includes some of the more profitable college careers, including engineering, business, and nursing, so browsing what's available is certainly a good start.

Know your career path post-grad

Don't just assume that everything will work out. College is designed to give you a foundation of real skills, and network you with the industry you want to enter, but the onus will still be on your to use those skills and opportunities, and make that job happen. So while you're at college, look less at sitting in lectures and acing exams, and more at picking up life skills you'll use when you graduate. Build a resume, and start hunting before your school's over. And if your program offers a field placement like many of Centennial's, do your best to leave a strong impression and make industry contacts. Centennial College will open the path for your success, you'll just have to take the steps yourself.

Four Unique Advantages to Distance Learning

It's never too late to get your college education, and in today's shifting economy, it can be a smart investment in your financial future. Maybe your career has stalled, and you want to advance it further by learning about the newest developments in your field of choice. Or maybe you want to do something new completely.

But if you're a working professional, it's hard to make that leap. You have bills to pay, a family to support, and, well, you need to stay employed, and taking time off so you can get a different career won't sit well with your current employer. That's why distance learning exists. Either online or through mail, you can access course materials and a 24-hour virtual classroom, and get education on your own time, by your own rules. Still not convinced? Here's four more reasons it's the right choice for a mature student:

1. You can learn in the comfort of your own home, or any other place that works for you.
   Don't like a classroom? How's your living room sound? You can settle in with a cup of coffee, a blanket, some music, and a cell phone that's not turned off, and learn in whatever environment is most comfortable to you. Or leave your house and hit a library, a community centre, or even a coffee shop. When you're distance learning, you can choose the venue.
   
2. Schedule your life in previously impossible ways
   That ideal learning setting I mentioned? That can be at any time of the day, be it three in the afternoon, nine at night, or any other time you wish. Distance education doesn't work on any clock but your own. The important factor here is you can still go to work, take care of your family, and do any other leisure activities you want, and still have time for your education, because you can get that education at any time.
   
3. Save money on food and transportation.
   Gas is expensive, and if you're trying to park anywhere in the GTA, it comes with hefty fees. And if you don't have a car, be prepared to shell out triple digits for a Metropass. When you're learning from home, it's not something you have to worry about, unless you want to travel. Along a similar line, cafeteria food isn't cheap, and not everyone has the time or supplies to make their own lunch. Learning from home lets you eat where and when you choose, with grocery store supplies that both cost less and are better for you than a burger and fries. Or you can chow down on chips and chocolate, I won't judge.
   
4. You're not getting a compromised education
   Admittedly, there's a lingering negative perception of online-only schools. It's a changing workforce and a new economy we live in. The public view of distance learning has already begun to change, and will likely continue to shift to becoming a mainstream option for post-secondary learners.
   
   Beware of online-only colleges, though. Instead, pick one like Centennial College, a school with regular day programs, as you'll be sure to have an experience backed by a solid, real institution. You get the same education you'd get in a classroom, taught by the same industry professionals, and get the tools you need to get whatever career you wish moving.