Getting Straight (1970)

Harry Bailey is two weeks away from getting his Masters degree in Education at a liberally-minded university, after his undergraduate degree in English and English literature, his goal to get a teaching certificate to teach high school English. This goal is a far cry from his renowned student activist days when he was in his undergraduate, his intermediate stint in Vietnam which has given him a view of a more stable future as a real adult. But getting his degree is not a guarantee as he tries to juggle the many facets of his life, including getting enough money not only to pay his tuition, but pay his rent, buy food and keep his broken down car running. Those many priorities lead to him often taking what he considers the most expedient route to reach his end goals, which often means getting friends and colleagues to do work for him, including taking tests, despite he having the academic smarts to pass any of his tests easily if he applied himself. But the conflict in his life that may factor into what he does in these two weeks is that goal of a relatively conservative teaching future, albeit in doing what he thinks is a lofty goal of shaping impressionable young minds, versus the pull by his activist friends on campus to go back into activism as they prepare for one protest after another, many related to student rights. This conflict is highlighted in his relationship with fellow student Jan. While the two seem to love each other, their outward goals for their future, both individually and as a potential couple, may be incompatible.