Dear high school student applying to college,
I’m sure that all anyone wants to talk to you about right now is senior year and college. I know how you feel, but I’m going to talk to you about it a little more.
There’s a lot of information out there about college admissions. It can be overwhelming, I know. And, while adults also throw out a lot of information, few of them are actually qualified to empathize with you and offer assistance. I just survived the admissions process so I am here to share my wisdom with you because I might have been very, very obsessive. So here it goes:
- Listen when you’re told to have “reach,” “target,” and “safety” schools. I know how this can be hard; I was someone who only wanted to apply to reach schools. I thought if I only applied to schools with really low acceptance rates that it would somehow make it so I was accepted to one. Eventually, I got it through my head that I needed to apply to a variety of schools. I had friends who only wanted to apply to safety schools because they assumed those were the only ones at which they would get accepted. Don’t be afraid; after all, you will never be accepted if you never send in your application. So truly, apply to schools in all 3 categories!
- Apply to a few different types of school. Throughout my junior year in high school and during the beginning of my senior year, I was convinced I wanted to go to a medium-sized school in New England because that’s where I’m originally from. But, again, I was a bit obsessive and I applied to 14 schools so some were bound to be closer to home than New England. I’m so glad I did because, by the end of senior year, I had matured and realized that I wanted to stay closer to home and go to a small school. I know that it seems like you’re an adult who knows exactly what she wants but you can—and probably will—change throughout the year and that is okay. Remember to have options, though.
- Be aware of financial aid. I am extremely fortunate because this didn’t have to be the top of my priority list. But, after I got all of my acceptances and rejections, I chose a school. And…found out that they were not offering me as much financial aid as my family was hoping to receive. It ended up working out, obviously, because I’m writing for Gettysburg’s Her Campus Chapter, but it is important to be cognizant of you and your family’s needs before setting your heart on a school.
- This tip might be the most important. Remember that life moves on. Life moves on from people asking you about college applications; life moves on from rejections, from waitlists that don’t end the way you want. College is important, but it is not the “end all be all” of your life; remember to enjoy senior year. Image via: http://www.kurtsevillano.com/wpcontent/uploads/2013/01/in-three-words-i-…
Sincerely,
A college freshman who went through it all