yeah... So im thinkin' of dropping out of college. advice???

so im in my first semester of college(seattle university) and its kicking my ass royally. I came to try computer sciences, but I found quickly that's not what I want to do, not im not sure on anything. I know college is supposed to be hard and I knew there were gonna be alot of papers and blah blah blah, but with my ADHD and learning disabilities its really taken an extra toll on me.  
            
          If you think school is tough try having a particularly bad short term memory, the hand writing of a 4th grader (the notes on my pshyc. test for learning disabilities), a processing disorder (takes me longer to do assignments), and depression to boot... Its not like im dumb or anything I have an IQ of 130.
 
        My depression has really kicked in too, im living in Seattle far away from any family or friends, Im finding it really hard to make friends, and im failing my classes now, even though ive dedicated mass amounts of time to work with no social life. Im not sure what the hell to do.  

    
         Im thinking of leaving and just getting an A+ cert. and take a single class here or there on my own time. Maybe some graphic design or web design classes (im fairly proficient in the adobe suite)
 
Is there any advice or guidance anyone can give me? Can anyone help my situation out here? 

This might not be the best place to go for womthing like this, but it never hurts to try.

With the issues you describe, an analytical field probably isn't the best choice for you, especially if you don't enjoy on some level. 
 
You mention graphic design and web design, are you an artistic person?  Do you think of how you could make things better on existing sites you go to?  Are you interested in coding?  It might be something to look into.

Isn't there a place you can go at the University to talk to someone? They'd have some decent advice.

Dont be a quitter.  First off you cannot come in here telling me you have all these problems and then say, but I have an IQ of 130!!!! No, it doesnt work that way, you are trying to find an out.  It really is just you feeling that things should be easier.  Something tells me its not as clear cut as you make it seem because somehow you were able to come post this here and really do a good job of describing what you are going through, so why not put the same effort into school?
As for your depression, i have been away from family and friends for school too, but college friends are some of the best you could have and will help you out.  Dont be afraid to go to club meetings and the like, its the easiest way to meet people who have similar interests.

I don't have learning disabilities so I don't know how you feel, but if its really that hard for you then maybe you shouldn't do this. If you are interested in graphic design and are pretty familiar with the Adobe suite then you can do freelancing.

IMO if you've started it you should probably try and hold out till the end of the semester or year if you can.  I have a few friends who decided to drop out mid course/class and regret not just finishing the few months they had left.  Due to the money they invested in it and the only partial knowledge they have now.  If you have a plan for after that's obviously a good idea like your graphics design thing or whatever.  Or a class here and there is good whatever fits your lifestyle.  
 
But no point in starting something, going through however much you've been through, and then having nothing to show for it at the end.

By law, if you disclose and have a adhd assement done, they have to accomadate you a bit by giving you more time to finish your homework and stuff. Technically without having dopamine which regulates focus at the front part of your frontalobe part of your brain, you can't compete against your other classmates no matter how much effort you try. They really have to give you more time by law if you disclose you really have adhd.
 
Btw, art also takes alot of focus and patience, which might be difficult if you want to get better at it or finish whatever you started. 

I'd say give college a little more time before you throw in the towel. It sucks that you've got learning disabilities, but dropping out isn't going to make them go away. We all have our hurdles. You've just have to try that much harder. At least finish your first semester (I'd actually recommend going a full year), before you decide that you're done. 
 
The most important thing is what your really want to do with your life. If you truly believe you'd be happier doing something else, then go for that instead. It sounds to me like you're looking to settle though, and that's no good. An A+ cert is nice (I have it myself), but it won't guarantee you a great career. If you start down the path of "I'll take a class here or there on my own time", you'll probably end up at some dead-end job at 40 wondering what happened. Not to say it can't be done, but I've been there before too. Luckily I was able to figure out exactly what I wanted and got things turned around, but I really wish I had gotten things in order when I was a bit younger. 
 
It sounds to me like you're just not sure what you want. That's ok. Lots of people go through that. You just have to figure out what makes you happy. I always see folks who go for a career that they think will make them good money, and offer security, but so few people actually go for a career they will have fun with. My wife started out like that, and she quickly got bored, and frustrated with her classes. We decided she should switch majors, and she was much happier after that, even though she's not actually working in the field of her degree (haha). Good luck with whatever you do. It's tough getting past stuff like learning disabilities, or in my case a major fear of failure, but it makes the end result SOOOOOOO much more rewarding.

i know how u feel. i also have a learning disability i go to a community college. i do bad in my classes. i took an english class 4 times, math  3 times. the math is only a high school level math >_> the classes that are my major like animation i'm doing good in.

@blackbird415 said:

"so im in my first semester of college(seattle university) and its kicking my ass royally. I came to try computer sciences, but I found quickly that's not what I want to do, not im not sure on anything. I know college is supposed to be hard and I knew there were gonna be alot of papers and blah blah blah, but with my ADHD and learning disabilities its really taken an extra toll on me.  
            
          If you think school is tough try having a particularly bad short term memory, the hand writing of a 4th grader (the notes on my pshyc. test for learning disabilities), a processing disorder (takes me longer to do assignments), and depression to boot... Its not like im dumb or anything I have an IQ of 130.
 
        My depression has really kicked in too, im living in Seattle far away from any family or friends, Im finding it really hard to make friends, and im failing my classes now, even though ive dedicated mass amounts of time to work with no social life. Im not sure what the hell to do.  

    
         Im thinking of leaving and just getting an A+ cert. and take a single class here or there on my own time. Maybe some graphic design or web design classes (im fairly proficient in the adobe suite)
 
Is there any advice or guidance anyone can give me? Can anyone help my situation out here? 

This might not be the best place to go for womthing like this, but it never hurts to try. "

prostitution?

I've just recently dropped out of university. Not through choice, I failed my second year, I wanted to resit but my university's student welfare department were worried I would get myself into more debt to just fail again, so I had no choice but to leave. Now I'm unemployed & trying to live on £50 a week until I find a job (which isn't easy at the moment). It's really depressing & not easy. Obviously since you're really finding college hard and problematic, and you're a completely different person, it might not be as bad for you, but just remember that it isn't going to be plain sailing if you leave college either.
 
Either way, you should probably talk to someone at your college about it. They will have people there that can give you advice on it. They are used to dealing with situations like this, and they will definitely be able give you advice on making the workload easier, and may even be able to reduce your workload because of your problems. Listen to their advice and take it from there. Take it slowly, don't make any rushed decisions that you may regret.

Coming from someone who also has ADHD and a horrible short term memory, I think you just need to take time and find out what really makes you happy as a career path for your college.
 
I don't do particularly well in my classes, just get by on the minimum, but when it comes to the important classes for major, I love them!  I remember everything without even really taking extensive notes because I am really motivated to learn the material.  
 
I think straight computer science might not be your thing, as someone said earlier, maybe you should look into more artistic aspects of it if CS the specific field that you find you are looking for.

Change your major. I also intended to go for Comp Sci until I had a bunch of people warn me away from that. Use ratemyprofessors.com and find teachers that aren't hardasses and will cut you some slack. Balance your schedule so you don't have too many rigorous classes at once. Dropping out of college is probably only going to make your depression worse in the long run.
 
Sounds to me like you made the classic mistake of overloading your first semester which is bound for disaster as just moving out and starting college can be so overwhelming at first. There is no reason your first semester should be that difficult for a person with a 130 IQ.

" @septim:   I didnt overload, this school creates your schedule for you the first semester. initially I had seventeen credit hours with calculus, precalculus, anthropology, and fundamentals of computer science. I dropped calculus and now im running with 12 credit hours, I dropped the calculus class. "

When you ask "would you like fries with that" don't forget to tell them to super size it. Its all about the $$$. 
 
Joking aside, if you dont like the direction you are taking in college, chances are you wont want that as your career either. Do yourself a favor and take a semester off to think about what you want to do next. Thats what I did, but I never thought of it as dropping out. Think of it more like re-evaluating your goals.

" Use ratemyprofessors.com and find teachers that aren't hardasses and will cut you some slack. Balance your schedule so you don't have too many rigorous classes at once. "

I know how tough it is, man. I've been diagnosed with ADD as a child. It's not easy to overcome, but it's definitely not impossible.
 
But, if I had to guess, I'd say your depression is doing far more damage than your ADHD. You know what helps? Going out on a bike ride or a walk, or any other physical activity. It helps take your mind off all the shit in life. 
 
Also, watch this video, it's pretty cool.  
 
  

Yeah I am a second year CS student at least here at UT Austin I feel like a lot of the classes are pretty hard for me it was just a matter of managing my expectations, ok I am gonna take the C in this class just to get through it. As far as being away form family, friends thats a normal thing everyone goes through in their first year I did last year eventually you get used it.
 
I also I know the feeling of like "man I am studying really hard but nothing seems like it matters I am still making 40s on my tests", for me personally it came down to in my first semester in college I took 16 hours which was pretty hell on earth so from then on I have decided to only take the bare minimum 12 hours and its been good, so I would suggest you maybe try that.
 
For me though I really loved CS and even though its difficult i know its something i want to do the rest of my life, if you dont feel that way you might wanna switch your major that combined with a lighter class load should be good. 
 
The most frustrating thing for me and I dont know if thats true for you at your college but like atm I am in this stupid electrical engineering class that I need to graduate in CS and there are a lot of classes that really dont interest me and I know I will never use but I try and keep things in perspective that I enjoy the coding higher level stuff and some classes will not interest me at all but I need to get through to reach my goal.
 
Hope that helps,

Don't drop out.  That's my advice for you.

 @lead_farmer:  
 
yeah, registration for next semester came up, I had to register just in case I do decide to keep with it.
  
my classes are english 110 college writing, phil-110 philosophy and critical thinking, and webdesign in the fine arts department. I  pretty much know it wont be as bad as this semester, but I also have to talk to financial services about my financial aid considering im basically failing this semester.
 
O: I also read 10 pages an hour, ive timed it. any faster and I don't retain any of the information so classes with alot of reading screw me up. I get books on tape where I can, but its still hell to get through reading esp. when the teacher scans in parts of a textbook or some book into a pdf. reading programs cant really tell the words from those

I'm in my second year, and although i can't really relate to having a mental disorder (I was tested once for ADHD and the psychologist said i didn't have it even though I have suspicions), I have lived all my life with Cerebral Palsy. Luckily, it is very mild and doesn't have much of an effect on me commuting to school and such (I usually ride my bike), but I found myself in the same boat.  I believe that college is made to basically mentally kill you to prepare you for the real world. Last year, I had times where I was depressed, but as time progressed, I realized how to cope with the really hard times.  Like for me, living in the dorms KILLED me, my grades dropped really low, and my parents have threatened to pull me out multiple times if i don't get good grades this term.  I guess the final point i am trying to make is to give it a year, see if it gets any better.  I know what helped the most for me was finding a schedule that fits mine, in addition to living off campus. 
 
Hopefully you do better!

You should take ritalin, you get your focus back at least. Also yes I used to be on it, I have adhd and terrible grades just like you. I also dropped out of a program, I won't say what, however I regretted it because on your resume you can only say you attended this class.
 
Look you have to tell them you have adhd, or you have to get an assessment for it. Then they will have no choice except to give you more time to finish stuff. I'm not making this stuff up, it's actually by law they have to help you out that way, it's the same for other learning disabilities.

Change your major. Don't drop out.

I took what I like to consider a "break" from college for this year, and it's been the most depressing and degrading year of my life, I'm not kidding. I'm getting my ass back into college starting next semester, and this time I'm going to finish my degree. :|

I advise finishing this semester or year to the best of your abilities, and thinking about this more after that so that you have the clearest head about it. 
It's a good idea to ask around as you're doing. You don't want to rush a decision this pivotal.
 
Good luck. Sounds like a tough call.

im not naysaying taking drugs if necessary, i just like to be really precaucious about these things, especially considering how these drugs might effect other disorders or might bring out something that was dormant. I have many friends with ADHD I have friends who do and friends who dont take medication. I just like to be precauscious about prescription drugs.

that might be a good starting point. thanks i'll see what I can do with omega pills, I just. I just dont know and thats my big problem. I dont know and I cant seem to make decisions

Stay strong friend, and possibly chose a different course. Computer science is quite difficult and is not for everyone.  Just don't completely drop out of college... It will pay off in the end. 
Stay strong!!

 Whoa... this seems like it quickly became a "take drugs or don't" discussion instead of school advice. Don't you think that should be between OP, his family, and his doctor? I personally am very anti meds whenever possible, but to each his/her own. OP, putting chemicals in your body isn't something anybody here should have a say in. You do what you feel is best there.
 
As far as the original question goes, I was very much in the same spot you were. I took two years of computer science at UMD and HATED it. I don't use the term "hate" often, but in this case it's accurate. I jumped from major to major for a third year before finally deciding that, unless I had a major I cared about, I was never going to be able to make myself commit enough to really succeed in class. I dropped out, hung around College Park to still be near my buddies, and started working all sorts of jobs to make ends meet.
 
Long story short, it's now 4 years later, I'm a network administrator for a local business and, while not wealthy by any means, I'm able to make ends meet comfortably.  I do much better in the workforce than I do in full time classes, and now my office is going to pay to put me through some certs and classes. I've gotten a few lucky breaks, but I can definitively say that the decision to stop taking classes was a great one for me. It may serve as a glass ceiling of sorts when I try and move up the ranks, but I can always finish up taking night and weekend classes if it comes to that.
 
While I wouldn't suggest you just drop out and run away, I'm living proof that, for some people, dropping out of classes can actually work out well for you in the end. It's certainly not glamorous, not fun to tell friends or relatives, and not a decision to be taken lightly. However, if you truly feel like you're not motivated in school, don't have direction, and want to try something else awhile then it may very well be an option for you.
 
Whatever you decide, it's gonna be a lot of long hours and hard work. Good luck either way.

" @blackbird415: I wont give you the story of my life, you probably don't care, but i'll give you the best advice i could give you, coming from a guy who dropped a few classes in his life.  find out what you like to do in life and stick to it, commit to it and fuck the rest.  There. Have a nice life. "

"Is there any advice or guidance anyone can give me? Can anyone help my situation out here?"