Applying To Colleges

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

To all the vets out there: 13k a year in tuition is pretty manageable, right?

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

Rejected from UC Santa Cruz. LOL.

Also Davis, but I was expecting that.

I guess what I read about the UCs being intensely focused on grades was true...

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

I got into American. Someone who's currently on their waiting-list will be taking my spot.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

I got into NYU but I'm still committed to Reed.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

Just our of interest: How much time and effort goes into these university applications in the U.S.? It seems incredibly difficult and annoying, from what I've been reading in this thread.

The process is drawn out and depressing. Many colleges place emphasis on perspective students actually visiting the school and being interviewed. While I enjoyed visiting Reed and my interview, there's no denying that it was a hassle for my family and that if I was of lesser means such activities would be impossible.

The competitive aspect of the process is getting to the point of absurdity and this raises the stress levels of applicants to atmospheric levels. It's all too easy for essays to become contrived pieces of Inks for this reason.

I'm just thankful that I was able to get into a great LAC without going through the pressure cooker that is an "Ivy League"-prep education (I don't know what else to term it) that forces you to get straight A's on a full AP or IB schedule for all of your high school career along with a bunch of BS extracurriculars and sports. Getting a fairly SAT score was easy for me and I'm sure if I took more difficult classes that interested me, I would have done even better but in order to really be considered by a few of the schools I desired to attend I'd have to take AP Chemistry or other such horrors that literally had nothing to do with my future.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

It's also reminding me that where you went to school doesn't mean all that much.

It really, really, really doesn't, as I've been trying to yell at the Ben et als who are so excited to get themselves shoulder-deep in debt.

I'll disagree with this: different schools offer vastly different experiences. The difference between some crunchy LAC like Oberlin and Harvard or UC-Berkeley and Texas A&M is extreme. As far as academics/grad school/employment goes, it doesn't have to matter at all though.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

ilikeverin will be pleased to know that I've gotten into Maryland and am now strongly considering attending.

Even though it's only vaguely relevant to College Park, it's time for you to start watching the Wire.

Congrats.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

Yeah, US university applications seem a nightmare from Hell.

Not entirely sure, but I think they have to sometimes even pay for the privilege of having their application reviewed.

And then when you even do get into a university their degree requirements seem to also be rather absurd, having a round of basic courses in Math, literature, etc. (although some universities might be different) in the first couple of semesters. Either high schools aren't doing what they need to be doing or the universities, as dependent as they are on tuition fees, are just trying to make a buck.

The whole system is very odd.

We nearly always have to pay...

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

So, it looks like out of my graduating class I will be the one attending the school most difficult to get into and that is the most prestigious. I really don't understand how this happened...

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

This forum is quickly becoming a haven for kids who go to selective colleges. At this rate, in five years all the youngins will exclusively go to Ivy League schools and be Jewish, Asian or WASPs.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

Man, you guys make me feel dumb.  My list consists of UGA, Georgia State, and the lesser Georgia public schools I'd rather not think about.

Try out LACs, they're well-suited for you and if your parents are low income, you'll get a large amount of student aid that will make it comparable to a in-state public (probably not in Georgia though considering that scholarship program).

Don't select schools based on prestige, it's a recipe for self-loathing for many.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

The college application process is horrible and I'm not looking forward to going through the gauntlet again. Grad school, gotta attain dat human capital.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

Good luck lil ones! As stressful as the application process is, the joyous month-long afterglow after you're accepted makes it worth it.