College admissions, all college students have all gone through numerous of them now its my turn. Many high school students go through the process of college admissions in the hope to get into the college of there choosing, some get rejected as others get accepted. Through all the work that students put in throughout their high school careers it all comes down to college admissions. Now is my time to take part in the college admission process by carefully choosing the perfect school for myself and worrying about the different factors in my application process. It takes time to find the right school, there are many factors to look at such as ones major, location, and weather. These all can depend on the college of my choosing. In fact, you can test any college simply to see if it "fails The Tortilla Test"(Steinberg 22). The test test can simply be in my case if the college is near the beach or has a paintball field within a fifty mile radius. The Tortilla test can simply help decide whether someone applies to a college, because everyone has there own needs. Another factor that comes into play is "scrambling to take the SAT and to compose their college essays"(Steingberg viii). The SAT is a major factor when it comes down to college admissions. It is one test every high school student will take if they plan on going to college,“ The SAT was being used in ways for which it had never been intended. Lemann had written that it was originally developed more than a half a century earlier as a determinant of merit scholarships at Harvard, not a yardstick against which every college in the country would measure their applicants”(144). If one does not have average or high SAT scores it can determine what colleges accept or deny an applicant. Overall if I do not do well on my SAT's it will effect the outcome of any of my applications to the colleges I would wish to attend. The odds can sometimes be against an applicant as “Wesleyan intended to offer admission to about eighteen hundred of the sixty-eight hundred students who applied, or 26 percent.”(145). This shows that there are hundreds of students looking to get into similar colleges to apply to, although there are many different colleges the few that I am considering are San Diego State, CSULB, Northridge, and UCLA. These are the colleges I have considered because they pass my Tortilla test, which consist of my major,population, and a paintball field in the near distance.
The application process is something I worry about, mostly because of the deadlines and the importance it means to my future as well as the competition.There is plenty of competition out there“As in other numerous professions, often the only way to advance in the admissions field was by being traded to, or seeking a better position with, a competitor.” (61). With the competition at a peak many student put tons of effort into getting there application noticed. Whether it be with extra circulars or community service. Other than that there are few other decisions that take role in whether I may be accepted such as "test scores,race, social class, grades, athletic ability, family connections"(Steinberg vii). This shows some of the factors that may help me get accepted as others will not help or even affect me. Family connections will not help me in any college because I do not have any connection that I know of that would be able help with acceptance to any college that I wish to attend. In this case race might help me get accepted since I am Hispanic decent which may help with admission acceptance in some schools but not with all. All Schools have different preferences in which most have mixed race“The freshman class that was admitted the year before Aggie applied was 2.5 percent black and 3.5 percent Hispanic. Wesleyan, by comparison, had a freshman class that was 9 percent black and 7 percent Hispanic.” (224). Colleges are usually mixed very well but there are also the colleges with the all girls or African American decent. I am not all interested in those schools though, really just interested in school activities such as sporting events and fraternities. I do not agree with how acceptance happens"It took five votes to be admitted to Wesleyan, and this candidate had come up one short. But it also took five votes to be rejected"(Steinberg 90). How are the five voters picked, what makes them special to decide whether I may be accepted or not. For acceptance a“day alone, Ralph had voted, however tentatively, to admit ten of the twenty-three applicants whose files he had read, or about 43 percent.”(145). This Shows that only forty-three percent of students get accepted. So depending on which schools I choose and how impacted they are will also help with my application being noticed. It really just comes down to "a form of sudden death, each applicant would be discussed by the committee for no more than five minutes, after which a vote would be called" (59). Five minutes is all I get this shows that within those five minutes what college I will be attending in my near future. College admission is not something I totally agree with,but it works though.
The college admission process is can be difficult and become stress full if you do not stay on track. I look forward to continuing with my admissions and getting into one of the college that I wish to attend. Steinbeck, Jacques. (2002) The gatekeepers: Inside the admissions process of a premier
college. New York: Penguin Books.
This is not MLA. It's APA.
You still have only one source. 4 more needed. 70/100. (generous) |