Public Speaking Informative Essays

Public Speaking Informative Essays Public Speaking Informative Essay Public Speaking Informative Essay Essay Topic: Informative Public Speaking Informative Speech Outline SPE 102, January 8th 2009 TITLE: Obtaining a 4 year degree through Burlington County College GENERAL PURPOSE: To inform my audience of different methods they can use to obtain a four year degree through Burlington County College. SPECIFIC PURPOSE: Burlington County College offers many opportunities for advancement whether it is a stepping stone to a 4 year college, an entry into an accredited program through guarantee transfer, or the ever expanding bachelor degree completion program at Burlington County College. INTRODUCTION I attended Rutgers for a year. I was also actively involved in Air Force ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corps) for those two semesters. I maintained a respectable GPA and made quite a few friends. With that being said, I’m sure some of you are thinking â€Å"well then why is he standing up in front of a class at BCC right now then? † The honest truth is because I was not well informed on the different degree seeking programs offered here at Burlington County College so that’s what I am here to discuss with you today. Burlington County College offers many opportunities for advancement whether it is a stepping stone to a 4 year college, an entry into an accredited program through guarantee transfer, or the ever expanding bachelor degree completion program at the college. If you have the determination, Burlington County College can get you there. BODY I. Some students prefer to use BCC as a stepping stone to four year institutions. 1. There is a significant cost difference when attending a community college and a four year institution. . According to collegeboard. com, the most up to date source on college related material, the average surcharge for full time, out-of-state students tuition at a public four year institution is $10,867 per year. b. According to Burlington County College, the most up to date tuition pricing chart states an in-county student pays $96. 50 per credit hour or the equivalent of $1,351 for full time status, assuming the student is taking 14 credits. c. Without consideration of other fees and expenses related to attending a four year institution, the average student can expect to save an excess of $9,500 a year on credits alone by attending Burlington County College. 2. Many four year degree programs follow a generic outline of four semesters of core classes and four semesters of classes geared towards the appropriate major. a. With this four and four design, students can seamlessly transfer credits and still be on track for the same graduation date of someone that attended the four year institution from the start. . Another reason to consider doing the first four semesters at a community college is the classroom design. A student could expect to have an excess of 300 people in a lecture at a large four year institution where as Burlington County College lectured classes hold a max capacity of around 80 students. 3. Many Students coming out of high school are still undecided on their major or may switch majors during their college c areer. According to Louie Bottaro, an academic advisor for the college of liberal arts at Oregon State University, about 80% of students who start college will switch their major at least once. a. By attending a 2 year institution, a student has the capability to switch their major with little or no impact on future ambitions with regards to graduation. b. By giving a student the opportunity to freely change their major with little impact, they are given a longer opportunity to mature and make career decisions that could affect them for the rest of their lives II. A unique opportunity that some 2 year college’s offer, including Burlington County College, is a program called the guarantee transfer program. This program is designed to place students that meet certain criteria into a particular four year institution for a seamless, uninterrupted flow for obtaining their four year degree. 1. For some students attending college, high school grades may be an issue for admittance into some four year institutions. a. Many accredited four year institutions require a certain standard in which their prospective students must meet. For some, these standards include a particular GPA, or Grade Point Average, in which they may not comply with by the end of their high school career. The guarantee transfer program gives the prospective student the ability to enter a program they may have been previously ineligible for, assuming they meet all criteria for that program. b. By establishing criteria for admittance into these programs, a student is able to clearly establish their baseline and thus set themselves up for success early on. 2. Not only does the program give the student the opportunity to enter programs they may have been previously ineligible for, it gives them the same opportunity to graduate with in the same time frame of a student who attended all four years at the same institution, but for a fraction of the cost. a. As stated earlier, tuition rates amongst community colleges and four year colleges are substantially different. By entering the guaranteed transfer program, a student could expect to save an average of over $19,000 by attending the first two years at a community college. b. In doing so, if a student desired to work they could continue to do so at their current place of employment (assuming they had one). By continuing to work it gives students a couple more years to save so the financial burden isn’t as great. 3. For Some students, the thought of entering college could send them into panic mode. a. By entering a two year institution knowing you have the same opportunities as an individual who entered a four year institution direct out of high school, a two year institution could help with the transition phase from high school to college without the initial huge lifestyle adjustment. b. You know the expectations you have to work towards in order to achieve your goals and in doing so, you can eliminate the interruptions that many students face regarding their first year of college when attending a four year university. III. Another unique opportunity that BCC students have is bachelor degree competition programs at BCC. The bachelor degree completion programs allow students to not only obtain their bachelors degree at BCC but it allows them to do it at a fraction of the cost of attending the particular school in which it is hosted through. 1. Perhaps the best feature in regards to the bachelor degree completion program is the savings the student can expect to see by doing so. These savings come not only in cost per credit hour but these savings can be attributed to other situations as well. a. Many college students are strapped for cash as it is so they tend to find places to save. One of the most expensive luxuries in life is having a place to stay that puts a roof over your head. By attending one of the BCC bachelor’s degree completion programs, a student is usually able to stay within their current living situation whether it is with their parents, guardians, or an apartment they share with friends. b. If a student were to stay on campus at a four year institution, they could expect to pay an average of $7,748 a year on room and board alone according collegeboard. om for the 2008-2009 school year. 2. In saving money with the bachelor’s degree completion program, a student could also expect to save a considerable amount of time in travel. Most bachelor degree completion program centers can be found on either the Mt. Laurel campus or the Willingboro campus. By centrally locating these degree completion centers a student is able to spend considerably much les s time traveling thus allowing for more time studying. 3. By attending one of the bachelor degree programs at BCC, it gives you the opportunity to earn the same degree that an individual would earn that actually attended that school on campus. a. The degree you earn is a degree direct from the college in which you earned it from. It does not note anywhere that the degree was completed at BCC and the certificate holds no less value then one of someone who obtained theirs from attending on that specific college’s campus. b. Along with obtaining the same degree, you have the opportunity to earn it in the same amount of time as someone that would have earned it the CONCLUSION So whether you just need Burlington County College as a stepping stone for your future or you have intentions of utilizing their guarantee transfer or bachelor degree completion program, Burlington County College can help get you there. If I had the opportunity to start all over again, you can guarantee Burlington County College would have been my first stop. Visual aid: Hand Out