Why do our high school lives revolve around college admissions?

“What college do you want to go to?” It’s a simple question, but it was one that always scared me. As early as third grade I remember doing a project where we listed the top three colleges we wanted to go to. But, at that time, are you really supposed to know anything about college? All I knew was that it was the thing after high school, which just felt far away. Flash forward to the beginning of 10th grade where I’m sitting in a quiet classroom with my classmates, the daunting PSAT in front of us, giving us a preview of the SAT. It was just practice, a predictor that would tell us where we were, yet it still felt nerve-wracking. Everything we did or learned after that point in school just felt like it was about college. 

The SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) has been used for decades as a standardized test to evaluate seniors during the college admissions process. The test only lasts a few hours, consisting of reading, writing, math and an optional essay, yet many high schoolers will spend hours on end and possibly lots of money studying for it. GPA (Grade Point Average) is a numerical average that serves to show how well students are doing in their classes. SATs and GPAs are important aspects when a student is applying to college, yet it comes with a lot of stress.  

As kids, it feels like we are always thinking “what’s next?” and we’re not able to enjoy the moment. In middle school, we think about high school and in high school, we think about college. When do we allow kids to just be kids? In high school, kids should be allowed to be kids without having such a big focus on SATs, GPA and college admissions. While these things are important for when college rolls around, for the time being, teens should be able to explore and experiment with their interests, academic and otherwise, and prepare for college when the time comes. 

According to NYU, in the article NYU Study Examines Top High School Students’ Stress and Coping Mechanisms, “Nearly half (49%) of all students reported feeling a great deal of stress on a daily basis and 31 percent reported feeling somewhat stressed. Grades, homework, and preparing for college were the greatest sources of stress for both genders.” This study points to the fact that all the academic pressure on high schoolers leads to stress issues. When you’re in high school, sometimes it feels like the only things that matter are academics and doing whatever it takes to get into college. This kind of mindset is so dangerous, because of how much stress it can cause. When they’re only focusing on academics, students don’t get to fully enjoy their youth and miss out on opportunities to just relax and have fun. 

GPA is one thing, but there’s also the SAT. I used to study a lot for the SAT. I know friends who spent hundreds of dollars to get tutoring so that they can get a good score. I remember spending all of my February break junior year studying for the SAT instead of having fun and relaxing. On school days, I would stay up for an extra hour to do some SAT prep right after a long day of school, extracurriculars and homework. Usually, all this studying would finish after midnight. I was exhausted. It felt like I had no time left for myself. 

It’s also not just getting good grades that matter but how rigorous the course is, and that is where AP classes come in. Taking APs was constantly seen as “impressive” since it would show colleges that you were ready for the challenge. An AP class typically has more work than the regular class and due to that, it’s weighted more when GPAs are calculated. Sometimes it felt like I had to take an AP class because it would look impressive to colleges or it would boost my GPA, even if I didn’t have that much interest in the class. In junior year I took AP Statistics because it fit well with my future college major and would show colleges I was ready and had an early interest in the field. I wanted to take AP US History but heard of how hard the class was and wanted to protect my GPA. The same thing happened senior year when I was deciding between AP Microeconomics and AP Psychology. I picked AP Microeconomics for similar reasons, as it fits well with my intended college major and would give my GPA a boost.

 It felt like I didn’t have time to take classes I wanted to try. I also wanted to take more “fun” classes such as piano or ceramics, but there was no more room in my schedule after I threw in all those APs. Extracurriculars were also something that was always on my mind too. I felt like I had to join lots of clubs and I always had to be doing something if I wanted to show colleges I was well-rounded. 

According to Victoria Tong from The Tide (Richard Montgomery High School’s student newspaper), “There exists a certain pressure to do as many extracurriculars as possible, join club after resumé-boosting club and take as many AP or IB classes as possible, while still maintaining good grades and high test scores to maximize the chance of being accepted by an elite college.” This situation is way too common. It felt like if I wanted to get into my dream school, I had to make sure everything was perfect from my GPA to extracurriculars. I wish extracurriculars weren’t just seen as “resumé-boosting,” but in reality, that’s what it feels like sometimes. 

I spent more time focusing on the activities I knew I would put on my college application, things like school clubs, community service and jobs. In my free time, I like to bullet journal and crochet but because I knew I wouldn’t be showing off those activities on my college application, I spent less time on them and eventually had no time for them. There’s so much pressure on high school students to do everything if they want to get into the college of their dreams. With all the studying and worrying, kids don’t have time to just be kids and relax. It always felt like I had to do more if I wanted to see “Congratulations!” on a college letter. 

Some might argue that focusing on GPAs and SATs is what will keep structure in schools and make it productive for students who have college in mind. GPAs and SATs are indeed key factors to a student’s college application, and that’s probably not going to change. However, the way it’s drilled into students’ brains that these numbers are the things that define them is wrong. Students shouldn’t feel that their high school lives revolve around college admissions, and elevating their chances of getting into top schools. High school students should be able to enjoy the things they enjoy, experiment with classes without feeling academic pressure, and keep a healthy balance between studying and relaxing. 

As someone who just finished their high school career, there’s a list of things I wish I had done differently. I focused a lot on academics and even though that got me into Boston University, one of my top-choice schools, I should’ve cut down how much time I spent on school. I also wish I saved time for the things I did enjoy, even if they weren’t going to be shown on my college application. Not everything is about college and I wish I would’ve taken that more seriously.  

I encourage all current high schoolers to spend some time to just enjoy their last few years of youth. Don’t let school work be the thing that’s always on your mind and don’t worry too much about college. In the end, everything’s going to be fine as long as there’s a good balance. Take time out to do things that you truly enjoy or be open to finding new interests. High school and college aren’t everything in life, even if that’s what it seems like right now.