Applying to colleges is one of the most stressful processes in a young person’s life. Teens across the country are all fighting for spots at some of the top schools everywhere. Because there are so many people that want to go to college, this creates the serious option of being rejected from many schools. This is the factor that makes high school students nervous. The thought of rejection and failure bleeds though the minds of these people, and is the driving force of the hundreds of thousands that work the hardest they possibly can in high school so that they do not have to experience that feeling. College admissions being the arduous and stressful process that it is, forces kids to try to fit everyone of the criteria critiqued and causes months of extreme anticipation.

Competition is what has driven the Earth’s species since the beginning of time. With that said, competition is just at prevalent now as it was billions of years ago. The competition to see who can have the most extracurricular activities and who had the best overall GPA in the school. For example, when referring to the criteria to get into college the author states, “Below the test scores, an applicants’ class rank was noted… Beneath that was the race or ethnicity… whether a student has been captain of a team… whether the applicant has taken four years of a foreign language and a year of calculus… an absence of any of these [would] be a red flag” (95). This shows that there are numerous items that a student must have in order to go that school. Much stress is causes upon high school students everywhere by trying to meet these high standards. In addition, one of the most important criteria for college is race which is being referenced, “She also had the advantage of being Asian American…. Like so many colleges, [she] wanted to reflect the ethnic and racial composition of the country” (130). Race is one of the most important factors in being admitted depending on which school you want to go to. For me, because I’m Caucasian, this makes it difficult for me to be admitted to many schools because they are constantly looking for minorities to diversify their student body. This puts an unfair advantage to many Caucasians in the U.S. in that it forces us to have to succeed more than we should have to simply because of our race. Lastly, the admission process now not only requires one to be an outstanding student but also an, “able young man, the versatile, the adventuresome…the independent young man who stands the best chance of accomplishing something in his lifetime” (152). This is yet another indication of how difficult it is becoming just to go to college. Now, to accompany great test scores, there has to be a certain personality and certain characteristics to go along with that person.

Waiting for anything in life can sometimes cause much anxiety and tension. With waiting to see if a college accepted me or not, the same feelings are being experienced. The apprehension continues to build as each day grows closer. For example, the wait is being described as an, “agonizing month of waiting to learn who would accept Wesleyan’s offer” (205). The months before one is about to be told whether they are accepted or not is gut wrenching. The college that a person goes to could potentially change that person’s life, so it is an important experience to get accepted to the school that he or she thinks their lives will benefit in the future. Also, when Becca’s experience of waiting was upon her she was, “She was giddy with the thought that for the first time since October, the college admissions process was officially out of her hands. There was nothing more she could do but wait” (234). I am sure that it is an intense feeling to know that after much hard work which should reward success, is never a guarantee and completely out of someone’s control. This just seems a little unfair. In addition, when the counselors’ choices are about to be selected, they are said to raise,” The stakes, and emotions, would be a lot higher in that last round of meetings…” (58). This is evidence that there is much at “stake” in terms of getting into college. When the time comes for the counselors to pick their students, everything is raised an extra level.

College is arguably the most important part of someone’s life. This is the time when you are becoming an adult and that a person must be able to take care of their responsibilities and be self-reliant. College can affect the future so greatly that is has to be taken seriously. That is why high school students around the country are all feeling the same type of anxiety around this time of the year. They, and I, know that in a short period of time we will all know whether we were accepted or not. The mold that is constantly attempted in trying to be exactly what colleges are looking for, and the stress of waiting to find out if you are going to college are two factors that play the biggest parts in the apprehension felt by all of those teens. It continues to become more difficult after every year to be accepted to colleges, and by the look of things, it is only looking to increase in difficulty.

Works Cited

Steinbeck, Jacques. (2002) The Gatekeepers: Inside the Admissions Process of a Premier

College. New York: Penguin Books.