The Pressures of Preparing for College
Which college are you applying for? What are you going to major in? How are you going to manage this? Have you applied for any scholarships yet? Will you have to take out loans? Prepping for college is a pain in the butt. It’s stressful and emotionally draining, trying to keep up with everything. There’s so many factors in college decisions that make everything overwhelming, which has led many students to decide not to go at all.
Juniors and seniors seem to face the most stress and pressure about college as they are the ones preparing for it. SATs, applications, etc, all fall to the juniors and seniors. As dumb as school may seem, most of us don’t realize how important it can be until it’s almost time for college.
“The way people talk about college and the hype of it causes it to feel a lot more stressful. It’s an important moment in people’s lives and everyone talks about their college years. It feels like a right of passage.”
The Pressure to Go
One of our sophomore friends spoke about how his parents want him to go to college to succeed and make a good living for himself. “My parents are always asking about the colleges I’ve looked into, but I’ve never had much interest in going. Really the only use I can get out of it is riding through on a scholarship to help get me in front of the big scouts for the NFL.” -Anonymous Sophomore.
Pressures to go to college come from every direction for us high schoolers. Our high schools bring in college representatives to talk to us, we get emails about colleges, for those who participate in sports they have scouts coming to their games to recruit students and give out scholarships. Our parents or family members may want us to go to certain colleges that they went to, or want us going to top schools.
“Really think about what you want to do before making any decision you’re pressured into.”
-Colin Copeland
The Stress of College Decisions.
We interviewed some students of different grades to see different opinions on how they feel about pressure to attend college. First, we interviewed a couple freshmen. They said pretty similar things. Two said that they are pretty stressed about how to get into the right college, trying to get an early start on their college preparations. They still have plenty of time to think about it and start preparing.
Next we interviewed sophomores. The sophomores that we interviewed said that they aren’t as stressed because they have support from people while they decide what they are gonna do, but they don’t know where to start or be able to decide what they wanna do.
Multiple students spoke about where they will go for college. Are you following in the footsteps of your parents/family or going your own way? Which college offers the best programs for your degree?
“I’m stressed out about which college I’m going to go to, the stuff they offer, if I should go in state or not.
“I’m a sophomore, and I only have a few years to think about it. I have to make up my mind. I’m also going to be away from my parents for the first time and be all on my own.”
Lastly, we got some input from juniors. One source said that she’s never been stressed about school until this year. “I’ve always been waylaid back when it comes to school, but being a junior and needing to get ready for the SATs and everything, I kinda realized that I need to start paying attention and working. No one’s going to get into a good college without trying in high school.” -Anonymous Junior.
Talking about Alternatives
“In my high school days, college was pushed as the only option for students,” reports Ms. Halboth. “We still see a heavy focus on it today, and it’s a good option for some, but there are a lot of opportunities out there that don’t require a four-year degree and debt.”
There’s many things to do with your life other than going to college. Some alternatives for going to college could be trade school, going right into the workforce, coding bootcamps, law enforcement, military, foundations degree, become an influencer, certificate program, gap year, apprenticeship, real estate, volunteer, personal trainer, coach, entrepreneurship, learn a trade, travel, etc. there are so many things we can do after high school that don’t include college, which could definitely fit better for those of us who don’t care about college or having fancy degrees and all. “I don’t think college is for everyone. Some people think that it’s better to go straight into the workforce.”
A word of advice from your teachers.
“If you pay attention to the classes and focus on what you want, it won’t be hard to succeed”
“Don’t let people get in the way of what you want to do, in the end it’ll make YOU happier”
“Have fun, but don’t ignore the outside world. As important as studying is, college is all about the memories you make.”
