The Competitive Game of College Admissions: Is High School Just Preparation for a Win?

By Eshaan Dey

High school is meant to be an experience that enriches our concept of what we will pursue in the future. After graduation, some may choose to receive a collegiate education, some may choose to directly enter the workforce, and some may choose to enter their nation's military to valiantly serve their country. The latter two options, as well as the countless other paths students may take after receiving their diplomas, show initiative and work for many students. However, they are consistently overlooked by the promise of a college degree, which is said to launch you miles ahead of those without a degree. The data supporting this is overwhelming; according to the National Center for Education Statistics, the percentage of high school graduates who enrolled in a post secondary institution was around 62%, with the remaining 38% comprising mostly of people who directly enter the workforce.

But the purpose of college isn’t being harnessed as it was intended to be. The first college in the United States of America, Harvard University, was aimed to produce "learned" men and community leaders in New England and beyond. While we have broadened the demographics of accredited universities, the purpose behind them remains largely the same. Colleges are meant to create active and informed members of society. People should desire to go to college for one, important reason - to learn and grow as a human being. Those who choose this path should view the piece of paper that they receive on the last day of high school as a bittersweet but triumphant indicator of 4 years of hard work and dedication that will set them up for the next few years of their lives.

But as I walk the halls of my high school, I don’t feel like I am in an environment where people come to learn. There are those who entirely brush off their education, those who may attempt a few assignments but not pay attention to accumulation of knowledge, and a small minority who are highly accomplished but still care about more than grades. Unfortunately, the majority of students looking to get into top universities strive for perfection in academics to a point where they fabricate an entirely different personality. 

In recent years, our collective perspective has shifted from using high school as an aptitude test to predict collegiate success, to needing internships and requiring published research at 16. While I do believe that it is necessary that high school students understand the ‘real world’, it is highly unproductive to look for opportunities only for them to be placeholders on a resume. I recently overheard a conversation that some of my peers were having and they were debating who in our grade would get into a T20 university and who wouldn’t, solely based on their LinkedIn profiles. Since when did high school become a competition for who could go to the best colleges? 

I agree that a good indicator of “achieving your potential” is attending a highly regarded university. But our society has put too much pressure on high schoolers to solve adult-level problems in order to strive for the best colleges. Kids are now more focused on the name of the university rather than the education they will receive. With this, students are forced into believing that they need some exceptional extracurriculars to even stand a chance to get into their top choice college. As a result, kids start a non-profit for a cause that they don’t care about, or pay for opportunities that will ‘look good’ on an application, or they beg their parents to hand them a fake internship where all they do is observe and hand out coffees. Many students looking to the top colleges don’t do things that they are truly passionate about, showcasing a loss of personal identity in our youth. 

And although this aspect is harmful, it is the unhealthy and competitive environment that this creates that should be questioned to a higher extent. School is about taking the most APs and getting straight As rather than retaining information to expand our knowledge. Casual talks with friends can no longer last 10 minutes without mentioning what you got on the SAT or what activities you are involved in. You can test this for yourself- ask a high achieving friend of yours to describe another high achieving person in your school in one word. Most times rather than not, they will use the adjective “smart”. And then when college decisions actually come out, it is like opening a letter that will decide the fate of your life even though in the grand scheme, it is relatively inconsequential. 

What’s even more interesting to talk about is the negative impacts of social media in spreading this message. TikTok is flooded with college prep ‘advisors’ who claim their roadmap will somehow guarantee admission into an ivy league college. I have even seen videos where students hyperventilate and break down into tears of stress when opening their decision letters. Sometimes, I find myself mindlessly scrolling down those pages where they mention a student’s stats, extracurriculars, and awards and I always compare myself to them, attempting to triangulate how likely I am to get into a certain college. Now, reflecting on it, I realize how pointless it is to do everything for the sole purpose of getting into a college. 

You may agree with my take on our country’s high school into college pathway, you may completely disagree, or you may even hold a more radical opinion than me. All I ask you to do is to question whether or not manufactured stats and ECs in high school, that may lead to great college results, hold significant influence on your life 20 years down the line. Most times rather than not, you will find that they don’t. And so I request that you truly analyze what you want to achieve, and see if the insurmountable pressure that you might be putting on yourself is truly worth it.