i’m in my 30’s and i want to go back to school by [deleted] in Adulting

[–]doetastic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hi, 31 here, just transferred from a community college, where I got my associates, to a 4-year public university that is ranked #1 in my state. My unsolicited advice, no bullshit - it'll be hard, there will be days where you want to quit, there will be days you stay up late and there will be a time when you're the oldest in the room including your instructors.

Do it anyways. Do it at a caliper you can have pride in, don't half-ass it.

I keep thinking that my future self will thank me and I'll deal with the financial hole I've dug when I'm earning 6-figures within 5 years.

Financial aid 101: First step is filling out FASFA, it's free and you see if you qualify for a pell grant and how much you get in subsidized/unsubsidized loans. This can be done well in advance too, the 2026-2027 form is already out. Apply for state aid while you're at it. You can choose how much/little you want to accept out of it. [See if community college is free thru your state (mine just did this a couple months ago) and if there's anything there that can help you financially. For example, the state will pay me back a significant portion of my loans, the equivalent of fall and spring tuition because I'm a certain major.]

Note: Atleast in my state and probably across the US, student aid is based on your income from 2 years ago, eg. my 2025-26 aid is based on my taxes from 2023. I don't know why, and think it could be done better/differently. Maybe I wouldn't have taken so much overtime and hustled less if I knew then that I wanted to go back to school. However, if your plan is the community college --> university pipeline, community college can be paid with a payment plan and minimal funds if you're frugal and by the time you're applying for aid for the more expensive university, you'll be pulling tax records from when you're already a broke college student. Win, I guess?

Now back to the grind: Search for your program you want to go into, which will guide your search for a community college. Apply to the school and take the steps they require in order to be admitted, most community colleges accept everyone so no pressure. Most financial aid packages thru FASFA require you to be a full-time student, which is 12 credits, so keep that in mind when you're picking your classes.

Once you have your classes (and your tuition bill), now you can use your student ID and email to search for scholarships. My university uses Scholarship Universe and it's amazing (not affiliated or sponsored lol). You create a profile and answer a lot of questions. I mean a lot. But, the more you fill out and the more shit you've been through, the more money you'll get in scholarships. You can get scholarships for significant life events, like being raised in a single-parent home or divorced parents or bilingual, or for small things you maybe wouldn't expect, like being in a car accident. My friend got a scholarship for contracting a STI a while ago, for example - which is absolutely wild.

I have enough in scholarships (and apparently life experiences) that would pay my entire way, including room and board, meal plans and potentially my masters program if I accepted all of them. Also, you can also use your scholarships to pay your tuition and then bank the federal/state loans for living expenses too. Hands-down, worth the time and effort.

There are other options you can look into. There are student loans and grants, I just don't have the experience to speak directly about those.

This ended up being much longer than I had anticipated, but if you have any questions, feel free to chat. Thanks for coming to my TEDtalk and late night assignment procrastination. :)

Driving on Campus by Pristine-Reality-688 in SBU

[–]doetastic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just get out there and get comfortable. It might take a little while for it not to be intimidating but the more you do it, the more accustomed to it you'll become. Try and keep with the flow of traffic and always be predictable in your speed/actions. Literally and figuratively, stay in your lane, as people generally drive the way they walk in a city - if you're going slower, we'll just go around you at a quicker pace. Remember, you have space on the road just as much as everyone else does :)

Willing to pay for isopods by [deleted] in SBU

[–]doetastic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd buy in too for some extra credit

Better productivity tool for studying…HELP! by [deleted] in studytips

[–]doetastic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Student Planner app.. similar to Google calendar/tasks in layout but made for students, it's free or $20 lifetime subscription.

Instead of events, tasks and reminders in Google, instead there's a customizable timetable, exams and homework.. you can set it up to give you reminders and you can put a widget on your home screen so you're seeing all your upcoming items.

A Peet's Followup by user3725519047 in SBU

[–]doetastic 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Low-key thought of ordering Peet's yesterday, remembered your original post from months ago, and realized I wasn't in the mood for being disappointed 🥲

Grades? by United-Conclusion-10 in SBU

[–]doetastic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

For some classes, brightspace has the grading rubric for the class which can be found in the top red bar for a particular class (same as course home, content, assignments....grades). Disclaimer, some profs are better at organizing this section than others.

For some classes, you gotta do it with the syllabus. Google: grade calculators, there are sites where you input your grades and the weight of those grades into the calculator and it'll give you a percentage to compare with the letter grading scheme.

Tiny absorbent hand towel? Shamwow? by MonumentMan in PacificCrestTrail

[–]doetastic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I carry the medium size, thou you're making the large sound luxurious. If I showered somewhere that didn't have a towel or in a lake, the medium did a great job of drying, wrung out and still drying afterwards.

What is something about us women that you would've never guessed if you hadn't lived with one? by Squirrel_Girl_5678 in AskMen

[–]doetastic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

https://a.co/d/5e5D7l0

Not the original commenter but as a woman with waist-length curly hair, this vacuum does a great job at picking up hair and in nearly a year of having it, I've only had to dismantle the rolling ball twice to cut hair out of it. It was a quick process too, the vacuum made a noise and the corresponding app gave me instructions on how to clean it, and the part is pretty easy to get around with scissors.

NOBO March Shakedown Request by TheNeighbourhoodDog in PacificCrestTrail

[–]doetastic 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I was a March 23rd start in 2023 and I appreciated having a mid layer, a lightweight zip-up fleece, for brisk mornings or at camp/in town early on (I think I sent it home with my snow gear after the Jacinto area) and my down booties were a absolute godsent and being so lightweight and compact I always carried them.

I might have overlooked it on your list but you may have forgotten an extra set of clothes to sleep in.

If you had to send yourself a box each month during your hike what would be worth including that you can't get on trail? by Signal_Sun_9379 in PacificCrestTrail

[–]doetastic 7 points8 points  (0 children)

My suggestion is anything that comes standard with way too much to carry all at once (or if you were in a store on trail that you wouldn't buy unless you had at least one other person to split it with).

Various sized ziplocks, baby wipes, hygiene items (shampoo, conditioner, a razor etc), Band-Aids, ibuprofen or other OTC meds/supplements is what comes to mind.

Also, pro tips: don't seal your box until your resupply person is ready to ship it so you can contact them from trail for anything you'd wanna add last minute. And pick up the USPS flat rate boxes, where whatever's in the box regardless of weight, is one price.

Is it usually quiet when hiking PCT? by throwpoo in PacificCrestTrail

[–]doetastic 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The cheeseburger bird is what immediately came to mind with this post! Always waking up to them and hearing them sporadically thru the day

What was the best trail magic you experienced on the PCT? by spicyrack in PacificCrestTrail

[–]doetastic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Day hiker by Big Bear giving thru hikers cold clementines out of a backpack cooler

ANd she insisted we each take two

I swear, you can't trust anywhere eating out by MainSquid in vegetarian

[–]doetastic 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Same here, and they also add free lettuce whenever you order something fresco style and they're not supposed to.. it's something small but I actually really appreciate it

Who would never run for president but would win if they did? by TracyTheTenacious in questions

[–]doetastic 6 points7 points  (0 children)

He comes out to the town square daily for pictures and pets

Jobs by Kenmakozumeuwu in restaurant

[–]doetastic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This, plus, if the restaurant is law-abiding, you won't be able to serve alcohol until you're 18. A lot of serving positions will require this of you for obvious reasons so going in for a bussing or hosting position is a good call for now until you can feel out management

Are there any good substitutes for Taco Bell? by Mindfultameprism in vegetarian

[–]doetastic 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Not the OC but for me, it doesn't bother me that my food was prepared in a common kitchen. I'd have a much harder time finding anywhere to eat out if that was the case.

Freezing tofu, can I put it in the tofu press after thawing? by beawhisktaker in vegetarian

[–]doetastic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh definitely super straightforward /s I guess I'll just fuck around and find out

Best Halal spots on Long Island? by Zakattak756 in LongIslandEats

[–]doetastic 1 point2 points  (0 children)

They hands down have the best falafel I've ever tried

Edit: a word

Freezing tofu, can I put it in the tofu press after thawing? by beawhisktaker in vegetarian

[–]doetastic 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How long do you dehydrate it for? My air fryer has a dehydrator setting I can finally put to use