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Recently, I got a call from my old college that was asking for money. This already happened shortly after graduation, but I was surprised this happened again. I live in America and college education is not necessarily cheap and I saw many of my friends go into a lot of debt to go to college and it was sad to see. I find it rude and appalling that the university has the balls to call people for "donations" when they already invested so much in their education in terms of tuition and much more, and they don't have much to give (To play devil's advocate, it was only 20-something dollars, but I find this kind of offensive as you will see why).
To give a little background about my old university, it is VERY large. Incoming freshmen numbers around ten thousand people and total enrollment numbers around fifty thousand. It also has large and prominent athletic programs, particularly football and basketball and it profits greatly from those two programs. There are also a great deal of Greek houses on or near campus and the Greek life and the university are very intertwined; in fact Greek people have quite an influence on university decisions, especially student government. So, the university is big and the undergrads who go there consists a lot of frat guys and sorority girls. Also, students take a big role in sports by participation, which the Greek people love. Hence, it is a prime definition of a party school.
Now, to give a little background about myself. I am a nerdy guy. I am smart, socially awkward, and not very athletic. I like games, books, music, and computers. I do like sports, but I prefer watching them. I have lived in the city where the university is located for 12 years, so I have known about it for a long time and I knew I would be comfortable going there for college (or so I thought). When I went to college there, it was quite an eye-opener. I won't go into too much detail about my college experience, but I will say that I had little to nothing to do with the Greek life and sports, and the university was not very supportive of me in general.
After graduation, the tone of the university kind of sounded like this, "Ok, you've graduated. Bye!" There was pretty much no support or encouragement, in terms of finance or opportunity, from the institution during my time there, so I shouldn't expect any of it after. It felt shallow to aptly put it. However, let's go into the call and my reasoning a bit further.
So, the first call was about tradition and how students donate to the university after graduation. I wonder if people at the other end of phone line know of alumni's financial situation or their attitude toward the university itself. I have a feeling that they don't and most people probably don't donate because they need to pay off their debts and are probably living paycheck to paycheck. Now, back in the 60s and 70's, I believe people were willing because education was so affordable, but this is hardly the case today. Also, I would imagine there are quite a few that are dissatisfied with the university and probably wouldn't donate even if they had the money. This also raises the question of where the tuition money goes and it feels like donating to a charity in that I don't know where the money is going and how it is used. I'm also quite certain the university is doing well financially and really doesn't need my money to keep it going. The second call was about "funding a scholarship for other students". I don't know why but this angered me more than the first one in that how the university doesn't seem to subsidize its profits from its sports program into education and how getting such a scholarship is a pretty rare feat indeed and will not benefit most people.
Like I said before, I find these calls rude and appalling. Most alumni today are broke as it is and some aren't really fond of the university. FYI, I politely said no to the both of them because I said I was broke, but I have a feeling they're going to call again.
UPDATE: I forgot to mention another critical reason on why I don't like, or even hate, my old university. I graduated with a Bachelor's in computer science, but I almost did not because the university almost slashed the entire department on the basis that "O, there's no money to be had with this department". Naturally, a lot of people were upset, students and faculty alike, and thankfully, it didn't happen. I would donate to my old department, but not by the administration.
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United States24673 Posts
The first time I got a call from my university I told them I'll be happy to make a donation as soon as I don't owe tens of thousands of dollars for my education. IIRC they said something about how the two generally are not connected and people typically donate regardless of that, which I too found somewhat offensive.
Since then, I have donated (to two of my three alma maters, actually). It depends on your situation. They generally don't know your situation and will ask because whatever money they get helps. Donating is a way to give back. Sometimes you want to, and sometimes you don't.
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I have never been called for something like this, but I know I wouldn't do it. I paid enough in tuition and for each class. No thanks, not going to donate when I already owe 10k.
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On May 21 2016 12:12 micronesia wrote:
The first time I got a call from my university I told them I'll be happy to make a donation as soon as I don't owe tens of thousands of dollars for my education. IIRC they said something about how the two generally are not connected and people typically donate regardless of that, which I too found somewhat offensive.
Since then, I have donated (to two of my three alma maters, actually). It depends on your situation. They generally don't know your situation and will ask because whatever money they get helps. Donating is a way to give back. Sometimes you want to, and sometimes you don't.
Dang, I would've hung up immediately after that statement. That's just disgraceful.
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Pretty disgraceful if you ask me.
They provide a service, you pay for the service, that is that.
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I go to a small liberal arts school in PA and I've had a very enjoyable three years so far, so I understand the appeal to giving back to the college-- I actually know the professors, administration, etc.
My dad went to Michigan State a long time ago and had a terrible time; he had a wife and had to pay his way through with shitty jobs. They've asked him for donations multiple times and he feels exactly as you do. It's one of the reasons I stayed away from big state schools actually. Love the liberal arts aspect of school
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TLADT24920 Posts
You can just politely refuse to donate. I don't see what the big issue is tbh. As in, it's not like they forced you to do so. I can understand being appalled at the call if they made such a rude statement like in micronesia's case.
In the end, it's similar to what darthfoley stated above. Some people who liked their university experience would be willing/are more likely to donate while others will just refuse to do so.
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fuck athletic programs.. fuck the NCAA... fuck joe paterno who knew since 1976 what his assistant coach was doing.
i went to a working class co-op university where academics are #1;i graduated with zero debt and donate a thousand a year. during my university years i transformed from a soft, spoiled brat into a productive, small business owner.
my school's CIAU teams all suck balls and i couldn't care less. the second they start spending big money on their sports teams is the second i stop donating.
the football team went 0-8 last year; the basketball team is 1-19 this year; and who cares about canadian university hockey. i hope the teams are crap forever because they're a waste of time.
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If colleges had top level starcraft teams would you donate ;p
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On May 21 2016 13:52 BigFan wrote:
You can just politely refuse to donate. I don't see what the big issue is tbh. As in, it's not like they forced you to do so. I can understand being appalled at the call if they made such a rude statement like in micronesia's case.
In the end, it's similar to what darthfoley stated above. Some people who liked their university experience would be willing/are more likely to donate while others will just refuse to do so.
Or you can just as equally be mad about and discuss your story over the internet. When you get to hear people from other perspectives, you learn sth from it, and later you may respond more appropriately on the matter.
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I think the big concern is that they act(?) like they need that money. In certain cases that's true, but I am getting the vibe that that's not the case. For those who haven't I would advise them to do some good research on the financial state on the university before you do anything -- you never know.
Personally, I can't stand helping institutions that don't even need financial backings yet they act like it when they need your money. It just feels like a flat out lie to me.
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There's no responsibility to donate, and I personally haven't. With that being said, I do think there's a misconception about how expensive education is. Universities are non-profit and are not getting rich off your tuition dollars. It's true that some have very large endowments, but that comes from alumni donations (probably other sources too that I don't know of). If my financial situation was different, I wouldn't be opposed to giving towards tuition relief to people who wouldn't be able to go to university without it.
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My University also asks the graduates for donations. But over here its different, university education is (almost) free. (I pay 500€ a year but I get free theater / opera tickets, free tickets for all busses, subways and trains, etc)
But they also seem to use that money good. They often do events where they bring big corporations and students together so that they can meet and build connections. The students also get a chance to ask questions and find out what work life is about. I am actually quite pleased with my university and I think I am going to donate when I am finally done with my master.
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Sometimes I get the feeling tons of institutions ask you for donations in America, just recently saw that political parties ask people for donations as well. They seem really up in your face about it, looks very weird to me.
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If my University were to cold call me and ask for a donation I would not be the happiest of chaps. I assume in America there is no obligation to?
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The first few times my university called I politely, but firmly told them not to call again. However, I understand donating. Most people who went to my university got some form of financial aid and donations help make that possible. My school doesn't have a billion dollar endowment and isn't government funded. I like the idea of reconsidering once I've repaid my student loans.
That being said, I didn't donate because I don't agree with how the school has spent its money in the past and plans to spend it in the future. During my four years at school their main focus was a new student union that none of the students wanted and would have ruined the landscape of the campus.
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When I have a job over $40k / year after my 2 degrees and about 20k of student debt I might consider donating...at this point as far as I'm concerned I'd rather ship them my diplomas and have my money back.
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I don't get why you are whining about it, colleges all over do that. Maybe if you get a job you'll be fine
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On May 21 2016 13:52 BigFan wrote:
You can just politely refuse to donate. I don't see what the big issue is tbh. As in, it's not like they forced you to do so. I can understand being appalled at the call if they made such a rude statement like in micronesia's case.
In the end, it's similar to what darthfoley stated above. Some people who liked their university experience would be willing/are more likely to donate while others will just refuse to do so.
If I said no the first time for the reason I said above, then I wouldn't expect them to call again because it takes years on average to pay off student debt. Plus, cold calling is just annoying.
Like I already said, I'm not that fond of the university because they know nothing about me and they don't care. Hence, the feeling is mutual. I'm also not saying that people shouldn't donate either.
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On May 21 2016 23:24 HeeroFX wrote:
I don't get why you are whining about it, colleges all over do that. Maybe if you get a job you'll be fine
Did you not read about the part on why I don't like my old university? And the fact they did it again?
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EPT
