Most Valuable Class You Took in College?

[Anonymous]

I can't think of a single useful class I had in college. In high school I had a few - typing, English, history. But in college....maybe sociology, but I'm not sure that was valuable so much as just interesting. I really didn't learn much of anything until the PhD.

[Anonymous]

Statistics
Econ 101
My freshman year English class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Get good at writing.

Learn to write well.

[Anonymous]

Most valuable class in high school -- keyboarding. (It's too bad so many people did not ever learn how to type on a QWERTY keyboard. I can type so fast thanks to that 9-week class in 9th grade.)

[Anonymous]

In retrospect, classes with small discussion sections that promoted interaction/exchange between students/teachers & those that required extensive writing (frequently they're one and the same) These reflect the real world situation i find myself in now.

That said, my favorite class was evolutionary biology. Fascinating stuff!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In retrospect, classes with small discussion sections that promoted interaction/exchange between students/teachers & those that required extensive writing (frequently they're one and the same) These reflect the real world situation i find myself in now.

This was my experience, too. And sometimes it's more about the professor than the topic.

Mine were a Feminism and Ethics seminar and 17th Century Poetry. I don't work in either field, but I've used what I learned about examining complex issues through discussion and about clear analytical writing ever since.

[Anonymous]

The most helpful courses outside my major that I took in college were:

Healthy Lifestyles (an all encompassing health class that included addiction/nutrition/sex ed/mental health etc)
Business Writing (very different than writing English papers)
World Religions (valuable to learn about those different than had been raised in, especially at 18)

I like the idea of a personal finance course but feel like high school would be a better time for that.

[Anonymous]

Personal finance, and all of my writing intensive humanities like upper level literature courses and philosophy. Statistics was great, too. I was a STEM major and went on to do science in graduate school. critical thinking and writing is the most important part of what I do day to day now.
I also took a fun PE course almost every semester to try something new and stay active.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What was the most valuable class you took in college?
What would you recommend every undergrad should have?

Statistics

[Anonymous]

Heck with the writing. I cannot write to save my life. I have take so many classes here and abroad and I still hate writing because I'm bad at it.
Personal finance, on the other hand, made me free of having to work and I can hire writer. Well, not for DCUM.
Foreign language classes were good too but the ones way before college. I have studied 7 languages over the years and they just gets easier and easier to learn.

[Anonymous]

I'm surprised colleges offer personal finance. We had econ classes including one on financial markets but no personal finance class.

[Anonymous]

My independent studies class and individual seminars with professors. Because there’s no hiding what you don’t know and can’t do when there’s no one else in the class! I had to figure out project management and all kinds of other skills on my own. But I already knew how to write, think and teach myself after 3 years of a traditional liberal arts curriculum. There were no life skills classes like what’s being suggested on this thread, but we developed skills to learn those ourselves.

[Anonymous]

I'll list three - for different reasons:

1) Public speaking. Kind of goes without saying, but enormously valuable.

2)Medical terminology. I have a BS in public health. I am not in any sort of medical/health field. BUT, this class, combined with a SAT prep class in high school that focused on Latin and Greek roots, are the most helpful classes I've ever had.

3) Nutrition. I take it for granted that most people understand the basics and was flabbergasted when my spouse didn't and needed a modified diet after a medical issue came up.

[Anonymous]

Zero in college or grad school. It’s literally learned nothing of use.

In HS I took auto mechanics, wood working, small engine repair, drivers Ed, typing, cooking class as electives that were useful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Every undergrad should have:

An exercise class or 3-4 days a week in a sport or at the gym
A personal finance class ( or to know the difference between a stock and a bond, basic investing)
A basic statistics course
A nutrition class
An organizational behavior class
A negotiation class
A human sexuality class
A happiness or mental health class (like the popular happiness class at Harvard)
A non European or non American history or literature or religion class

Most of these happen in middle school and again in high school.