As soon as you enter high school, you are surrounded by questions regarding your future goals. All of us have endured the recurring conversation with our teachers, parents, and friends regarding our plans related to universities and colleges. We are all provided with several tips and tricks to ace our college applications, but what we never talk about is the stress that is associated with this taxing process.
The college application process is extremely intricate and complex. The process varies from college to college. Several counseling institutions have established a business by providing professional help to students to decode and ace their college applications. The process starts with preparing a Curriculum Vitae (CV). Students find this part extremely tough, as cognition and concentration are required to prepare a concise and efficient CV.
After writing the CV, students must prepare a detailed Statement of Purpose (SOP). This Statement of Purpose requires proper comprehension and communication skills. It might become difficult for students to follow the standard format of an SOP and fulfill every minute requirement. Besides these basic SOPs, many universities also ask critical questions to test one’s critical and problem-solving skills.
A few universities also organize aptitude tests to filter students with commendable caliber and cognizance. In the majority of the cases, the interview round is considered to be the most stressful aspect of the entire college application process. This is because the candidate tries to put his/her best foot forward to make an impressive first impression.
Not only is the application process stressful, but the anxiety with the results is extremely straining as well. Moreover, many students are apprehensive about moving to a new city, making new friends, adjusting to a new environment, and the worry about starting a new chapter of life.
Indeed, the college application process can be stressful for students. But there are many ways to minimize this stressful journey for students. A few ways are proper planning, formulating a timeline, preliminary research about colleges, preparing different drafts for different essays, and exploring more college options by not fixating on a single university.
Anxiety and stress are inevitably a part of all new beginnings. The process of applying to a college can definitely be daunting at first, but the reward of the effort is incomparable. After all, the college application process is the first step towards starting a new chapter of life and should be cherished too!