Community colleges often receive a bad rap. A representative from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, an organization that focuses on community college student development, underscored this when he said "the top students at community colleges are among our country's greatest assets."

Ross Perot, Tom Hanks, Calvin Klein, Walt Disney and Pulitzer Prize-winning authors and poets are counted among proud alumni of community colleges. According to the U.S. Department of Education, 40 percent of all traditional-aged college students start out at community college.

Let's dispel some myths about community colleges:

Myth: Getting a degree at a community college is not worth as much as a degree from a university.

Reality: Students who do well in community colleges have the ability to transfer to many of the country's most prestigious colleges and universities. Many community college graduates head straight into the labor force, making up more than 80 percent of law enforcement officers and firefighters and more than 62 percent of allied health professionals.

Myth: Community college credits don't transfer to a four-year college or university.

Reality: It is the student's responsibility to be on top of what courses are accepted for transfer and which ones are not. There are more "articulation agreements" now between community colleges and universities that specify what classes receive credit for comparable courses at their institution. According to the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs, some 50 to 60 percent of community college students transfer to four-year universities.

Myth: Only older students and kids who were rejected everywhere go to community colleges.

Reality: Community colleges are designed to be flexible, therefore attracting students who work full-time; but 18- to 24-year-old students make up one of the largest groups on community college campuses.

Myth: Community college is only for vocational and technical students.

Reality: Community colleges offer an exciting variety of majors. Many students choose to start at a community college where they can take many (if not all) of the prerequisites for their major, and then transfer to a four-year college. This allows them a smaller class size for the introductory classes and enables them to jump right into the higher-level classes at a four-year college or university.Interest in community colleges is soaring with families needing to cut costs and analyzing their budgets more carefully. But besides the financial benefits, many students find the adjustment to college life at a community college an easier transition than being dropped at a huge campus. Many students might go to community college reluctantly but come to appreciate its virtues.Lee Bierer is an independent college adviser based in Charlotte, N.C. For more information, visit www.collegeadmissionsstrategies.com.