Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with adulteducation

Recreational adult education classes and groups in Maryland/DC?

mishtamesh — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 08:57:26 -0800

Anyone know of Recreational adult education classes and groups in Montgomery County, MD / Northwest DC for 20-somethings? I graduated from college last summer and have been working as an engineer in Montgomery County, Maryland since. I went to a liberal arts school and miss being able to take classes for fun in humanities subjects such as history, English literature, and foreign languages. I would like to find courses or groups in these subjects on evenings or weekends. I am interested in meeting other people in addition to self-englightenment, and would prefer classmates in my age range (early-mid 20's).

I have looked at the local community college (Montgomery College) and American University, but they don't seem to cater to people in my situation. I have joined a couple bookclubs and an informal Hebrew literature course at the DC JCC, and while I'm happy with these, the other members are usually older than me. I'm thinking of taking French classes at the Alliance Francaise this summer.

Does anyone have any experiences or suggestions? I am mainly interested in the Rockville/Bethesda/Northwest DC area around the Metro red line.

Seeking AFA in Seattle; evening classes?

TochterAusElysium — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 22:22:45 -0800

Is it possible to earn a Fine Arts degree in the Seattle area taking solely evening classes? Thanks in part to the many positive answers I got on my question about going back to school in my 40s, I am now attending a local community college and taking classes towards an AFA. The problem is that because the school (Shoreline CC) doesn't offer some of the required classes (specifically, art history) as evening classes, it isn't possible for me to actually finish the degree there.

I've called around to several other community colleges, and so far I've found none that have a program which allows a student to complete the degree taking just evening classes.

Quitting my job, or finding a different one, as the unhelpful adviser at my current school suggested, is not an option. I make good money, and am working toward the degree not for financial but for personal gain. I hope to transfer to the University of Washington after earning the two-year degree and continue my fine arts education, possibly ending with an MFA someday before I turn 50...but I'm constrained by my conventional work hours.

So I'm hoping that some MeFite in the Seattle area will happen to know of a school in this area that does offer a complete evening fine arts program. North of Seattle is preferred. Thanks!

What should I be when I "grow up"?

weirdoactor — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 08:45:00 -0800

Based on my job skills, what should I go back to school and study, in order to have one of those "career" thingys? I’ve recently come to the realization that my dream of being a working actor may be just that; a dream. I’m not giving up on my artistic pursuits; I’m just trying to rearrange my life in order to maximize my ability to earn money (that sounds better than “I’m giving up on my dreams and selling out to the man”).

I’m thisclose to being engaged to a really wonderful woman (literally, days away), and I’d like to start living my life in a slightly more adult fashion (i.e., I’d like to have health insurance, a pension, and be able to save some money). I’m one of those “smart people” who got sick of high school and dropped out. I went to college for a short time, but stopped, and never went back. I’ll be 36 next year, so I’m not a spring chicken, but I’m also not ready for shuffleboard and prune juice just yet.

I currently do a lot of temp/contract work. Over the last 18 months, I’ve discovered that I’m really great at database management; I’m currently on a long-term contract in the recruiting department of a big company, helping them clean-up, organize and maintain their candidate database. It’s a terribly healthy outlet for my OCD, and unlike many jobs I’ve had in the past, I may even love it! Most temp jobs make me want to just goof off most of the day, doing the bare minimum to not get fired; at this job, I’m sad to go home (overtime is encouraged, and there’s plenty to do), and happy to get to work in the morning.

In terms of other job skills, my theatre experience has also made me good at managing logistics, manpower, and time. I also have a lot of experience in event management and party planning. Jeez, this post is starting to sound like a cover letter. Sorry.

I’ve decided to go back to college in order to expand my career options beyond the temp/contract world. Based on my love of/great skill at organizing data, managing logistics, event planning, and generally bringing order to chaos, what would be a good path for me to take? I apologize for the length of this post, and would appreciate any advice the hive mind could provide, especially from individuals who have been in similar situations before. Thanks!