By Noah Shifter,
Co-Editor-in-Chief
I want to take a second to acknowledge that it’s been a tough college acceptance season. I don’t know anyone without multiple college rejections or waitlists, and I know far too many people who feel like they weren’t good enough. If nobody has told you yet, or if you haven’t believed them, you are not a failure. I know a quiet voice in the back of your mind might say that (I hear it), but it is not true. College rejections do not invalidate your past achievements and struggles or cut you off from a successful future.
I know many worry that not attending an elite university — including many UCs at this point — will prevent us from being successful in the future. However, “Estimating the Payoff to Attending a More Selective College” by researchers Stacy Dale and Alan Krueger finds that attending an extremely selective college doesn’t increase future earnings for students of comparable high school achievement. Going forward, what really matters is the work we put into college and life.
Though the future may seem intimidating, I know what’s heavy on many of our hearts is the feeling that we didn’t work hard enough — but we all know how much heart you’ve put into this. Your friends see it, your teachers see it, and I hope that you can see it too. College admissions this year haven’t reflected that work, but that is a problem with the system and not with you.
This experience has changed my view of what high school should. Since middle school, I’ve seen high school as a game to play to get into college, but that view isn’t entirely accurate. You can take every AP, hold leadership positions in multiple prestigious groups on campus, compete in a sport and do every extracurricular imaginable, and colleges simply will not care.
To every student reading this who hasn’t applied to college yet: Above all else, do what you love. I’m lucky to love what I’ve done in high school, but if you hate your current grind for college, it might be time to reexamine your priorities. After all, college admissions will always be a gamble, and they’re becoming more competitive year after year.
Seniors, you should be proud of getting this far. You can look at your past with satisfaction, and into your future with optimism, knowing you can work your way to the success you seek.