What are good High Schools in San Diego area?

Colleges in San Diego?

• Hi! My husband and I are moving to San Diego, North Island in October (maybe sooner) with the Navy. I am hoping to start school as soon as possible but with being there it is hard to decide where to apply to, what there really IS and what kind of schools there are. I did OK in high school and now that I have taken a year of and gotten married, done a lot of personal time and thinking, I feel like I am ready to go back to school and challenge myself. What are some schools that you guys suggest? My Mother-in-law suggested San Diego City College but I really have no idea what that is, can you guys give me some advice on schools in the area? I want to work with kids I believe, that is what I have spent the past year doing, broadening my experience by babysitting and watching after a LOT of different kids. I think I want to become a teacher but at the same time I might want to be a pediatrician; or a social worker, or perhaps a guardian ad litem. There is just so many children out there that need good doctors, good teachers, good social workers, good lawyers, I wish I could help them all.

• Answer:

  The San Diego Community College system is excellent. The main campuses are San Diego City College downtown and Mesa College in Clairemont. They also have an extension in Miramar, which is up the 15 freeway a bit and it doesn't offer as extensive a curriculum. Other community colleges include Grossmont College in La Mesa, Southwestern Community College in Chula Vista, Cuyamaca College in Rancho San Diego, and Palomar College in San Marcos (way up by Escondido). For your location, I would recommend Mesa College. That's where I got my associates degree by going to school at night on tuition reimbursement from my employer. A lot of the instructors at Mesa are tenured professors at SDSU or are working toward it. So, the quality of the education you get at Mesa is comparable to SDSU at a fraction of the price ($20 a unit at Mesa). It's also a much easier campus to access than City College, unless you take public transportation. On drawback about Mesa College, though, is it's in a residential neighborhood that has permit parking for residents only. And, the parking facilities on campus are inadequate during the peak hours, especially at the start of each term. So, unless you schedule your classes right to avoid the rush, you may end up having to park quite a ways away and figuring some way (bike, bus, etc.) to get from your car to the school. Second choice would be either City College or Southwestern. Chula Vista isn't that far south of the Coronado Bridge (if you're going to be living on Coronado). If you end up living out east of the city, Grossmont is a great school (I took some classes there when I lived out that way). But, if you're living somewhere around Clairemont or other more central location, definitely look into Mesa.