Yeah. If you have the opportunity to do the "Harvard Math 55" thing in your field, you need to take it.
But most people take community college courses for the first two years of university. At every non-elite university I've worked at or had a family member work at, the most-subscribed Mathematics courses are College Algebra and Calculus I -- ie, high school-level courses where the instruction is probably better in community colleges.
Also: Mathematics is an outlier in that the instructional staff is fucking amazing at community colleges because of the dismal job market. The situation is quite different in CS. But, again, it doesn't matter, because most people at most universities are taking high school and CC level material their first 1-2 years.
" Go to community college for 2-3 years, then matriculate from the university. Way cheaper, better teacher/instructors, more time to mature, start early in 12th grade, and the diploma is from the university.
What do you lose? 2-3 years of goofing off at a country club.
What do you gain? time and money. "
This really isn't one-size fits all - it's great for the typical college kid who has no idea what they want to do and isn't all that mature or academically inclined. But it's terrible advice for those who are academically ambitious (aside from taking CC classes while still in HS). You can quickly tap out CC curricula if you're advanced, and there are still lots of merit scholarships available in many state and private schools that will have you end up paying even less at a 4y college than a 2y.
Also, regarding instructional staff, it kind of depends. The failure modes are different. At a CC you're a lot more likely to get someone who wants to help but is just incompetent or has a lower bound on their knowledge (for math - can they prove something like the Intermediate Value Theorem and really understand it?). At a university you'll get professors who are terrible teachers, and don't want to teach, but usually aren't ignorant. If you're testing out or skipping massive oversubscribed intro/weeder classes you may not run into that much at a 4y. If you are taking those kinds of classes you'd be better off at a CC though.
But most people take community college courses for the first two years of university. At every non-elite university I've worked at or had a family member work at, the most-subscribed Mathematics courses are College Algebra and Calculus I -- ie, high school-level courses where the instruction is probably better in community colleges.
Also: Mathematics is an outlier in that the instructional staff is fucking amazing at community colleges because of the dismal job market. The situation is quite different in CS. But, again, it doesn't matter, because most people at most universities are taking high school and CC level material their first 1-2 years.