The Frustrations of College

Okay, so I know I haven't started college yet and I know I have complained about this before, but I am a complainer. Although now, I am sending out a formal complaint to the college. I have entirely enough of being led in the wrong direction! My very first meeting with the admissions adviser went really well. I didn't have too many complaints. She answered my questions and was great about emailing me and putting up with me. So I got my acceptance letter and all is well. I was entirely excited. Although it left a lot of be desired. It was literally just a letter saying, "Welcome to Miami!" But the thing that got me was the statement, "You admission is dependent upon your last quarter grades." Okay....that's wonderful and great, but I haven't been in school in well over 5 years!!! So I thought, okay, it must be a standard letter. But that's still crap! Because there has to be more people like me who are coming in off their GED or older adults returning to get a higher education. So there must be another letter they can send!
My next issue comes when I receive my financial aid info. With no CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS on what to return and sign or what can be done online. Some of it is suggested and that's great! I really do think I can figure this out on my own. They have an estimated charge for room and board. Okay, that's weird, because when I submitted my app. I checked off that I would be living OFF CAMPUS! So I make a phone call to financial aid. I get some student who is doing work to pay off his loans, who really has no clue. He tells me, "Oh really, you won't be living on campus?" Yes, I do mean really. Oh please, please, please let me move into the dorms and bunk with someone who I will want to tear up in 2 days and with all these other girls that will drive me crazy. Oh and by the way, can I bring my 2 toddlers and husband?
Sorry, I know I got off track. I also ask this genius if I can use my Pell Grant for childcare if need be. (Like the director or childcare told me I could). He did not know the answer to that, so he transferred me to someone else. She than proceeds to tell me that they are not the people I need to talk to. She than gives me another number to call. I call it. This lady can not even understand why I was given the number for their dept. and she can't fathom why he transferred me to the previous. The kicker, she has no idea who I need to call and talk to about using Pell Grants for childcare! So another friend, from a different college, calls me back and clears a lot of the air on my basic childcare questions, but can't do much else for me, because obviously he doesn't work there.
So I am at another dead end. At this point, I have taken my COMPASS test and can officially start scheduling my classes. So I call the dept that is required to do that, but I ask them, since I am "Pre-Nursing" would I have to talk to a Nursing Dept. Academic Adviser? They didn't know!!! So they give me the number for the Nursing Dept. They do not call me back for over 3 days, so I'm mad. So I call the regular advising dept and they set me up an appt. When I show up for the appt, I have to sign on using a computer. All is well, until they ask me which adviser I would meeting with. Well, that would be wonderful to know, but they didn't tell me. Which is a shocker to the lady behind the desk, because there is no way someone would have forgotten something as important as that. (It's just another eye roller for me.) So I go in and meet with the adviser. When we talk about pre-nursing, I specifically ask her, "What do I have to do to have the BEST chance to get accepted into the nursing program?!?!" She replies, keep a 2.5 gpa and take a science class, but she's not too sure which one I would have to take, so she goes to ask another adviser. She comes back and tells me, "we're pretty sure it doesn't matter which one, but we'll do one you have to take your first year if you were in nursing." Oh thank you so much, that is so reassuring! Before I leave, I ask her about a book list. She told me, "just take it over to the bookstore and they can tell you what books you need. You can start purchasing I think after the 1st of May." Another I think, of great, but she has to be somewhere right on this one, because after all, she's advising me on which classes I should take.
When I get home, I email the head of the nursing dept. and she tells me something much different. I MUST have between a 3.3 and 3.5 to be considered. Yes, I will be considered with anything higher than a 2.5, but they pretty much only accept anyone with a 3.3 or higher. They get this average by taking my overall gpa and my science gpa. These to combined give me what I want to achieve. So it means I have to kick butt in all the rest of my courses, to pull my science up. Was the advice she gave me. I shouldn't have a problem with the science class.
The last of headaches comes with the bookstore. So last monday night, Ernie, the boys and I take a road trip up to get my books. When I get there, the lady tells me they don't start selling them until next Monday. So I round up 3 toddlers today to go up and purchase my books. (I have got my state refund back and that should help with a big chunk of the purchase.) When I get there, this other lady and guy tell me, I can only start buying for the summer semester. That I can't start buying until A WEEK before classes start. Now, I know I have never gone to college, but this sounds totally ridiculous to me. I am a very organized person and I want everything ready to go WEEKS/MONTHS before it happens. I start making packing lists at least a month before vacations. That I couldn't possibly been mislead when I was in the bookstore before. I am livid at this point! I tell them it was entirely a breeze purchasing my house against getting into college. That I would prefer to have gone through my 2 c-sections without an epidural than go through this process. I ask before I leave if they could possibly JUST tell me the books I will need so I can ORDER them off of Amazon. I get told, "No, we don't know the books you will need for fall semester. Not all the professors have been selected for classes yet." My response, "So if I call up in the beginning of August, you could tell me than.?" Response, "No, afraid not." What CRAP!!! ARRRGH! Whatever! Never in my life.....
So the tip of the iceberg that makes me want to cry, the other guy working the store tells me, "Why do you want them now?" Response, "I have the money now." He stupidly says, "So put it in a cd." Oh yes, let's put it in a cd, that makes sense! Retard, there are penalties for pulling money out of cds before they roll over. And I'm not saying I'm bad at saving money, I can handle it. But it's just the point.....