By Rachel Nguyen
Across the nation, anxious high school seniors are finding out whether they’ve been accepted to the college of their choice. Waiting is tough, and sometimes figuring out what to do after given the word, “accepted,” “rejected,” or “waitlisted” is just as difficult.
A school's “no” is a crushing thing to hear after a long, difficult process. There is no doubt that many senior applicants are not feeling the emotional side of college admissions. Some people like to talk through the stress, while others like to distract themselves after applications are sent out.
But finally the month of March has now arrived, and many high schools seniors are receiving countless notifications from their colleges, anxiously logging into their college portals as colleges have released their decisions at different dates and time.
The overall process has been painful for many students, as the long wait is finally over and they are learning where they have been admitted, while watching others celebrate their admissions on social media.
Leighann Tran, a senior at Yerba Buena High School, says that she has trouble sleeping at night because she couldn’t stop thinking about the colleges that are going to be sending out decision letters.
“I was really nervous and anticipating my admission decision. I kept on thinking of what would happen if I didn’t get in or not,” she says.
As seniors learn which colleges have accepted them conditionally, a supportive family affair is also very important to help these young people realize they have powerful options. Good communication is an absolute when you are trying to manage your parents’ involvement in college applications, as most parents of college applicants want to be in the application process. Most importantly, adults should help their students move beyond any college notification to a state of self-acceptance when the time comes.
A school's “no” is a crushing thing to hear after a long, difficult process. There is no doubt that many senior applicants are not feeling the emotional side of college admissions. Some people like to talk through the stress, while others like to distract themselves after applications are sent out.
But finally the month of March has now arrived, and many high schools seniors are receiving countless notifications from their colleges, anxiously logging into their college portals as colleges have released their decisions at different dates and time.
The overall process has been painful for many students, as the long wait is finally over and they are learning where they have been admitted, while watching others celebrate their admissions on social media.
Leighann Tran, a senior at Yerba Buena High School, says that she has trouble sleeping at night because she couldn’t stop thinking about the colleges that are going to be sending out decision letters.
“I was really nervous and anticipating my admission decision. I kept on thinking of what would happen if I didn’t get in or not,” she says.
As seniors learn which colleges have accepted them conditionally, a supportive family affair is also very important to help these young people realize they have powerful options. Good communication is an absolute when you are trying to manage your parents’ involvement in college applications, as most parents of college applicants want to be in the application process. Most importantly, adults should help their students move beyond any college notification to a state of self-acceptance when the time comes.
Joshua Tran, an alumni at Evergreen Valley High School, describes his experience of finding a world of inner acceptance as he decides to not apply to any universities during the fall of 2016. After conversing with his family that it was best to save money and stay home, Joshua made the difficult decision to stay and considered his next best option for his upcoming two years ahead of him: community college.
“It was definitely heartbreaking to know that so many of my friends were going to be able to explore more of the world while I had to stay at home. I really did not want to stay at home because I spent so much of my life at home already, so I felt robbed of the opportunity to go to college away from home,” he says.
Similarly, a rejection or being wait-listed doesn’t necessarily mean you are not good enough, but that highly selective and competitive schools just couldn’t take all the qualified applicants. Many students who are denied their dream school choose another school with hopes of transferring eventually. Yet, it hasn’t stopped students from experiencing an emotional roller coaster throughout all the pressure to do well.
“I think the most frustrating part for me was to have to see so many friends have the opportunity to experience the entire application process, whereas I really had nothing to wait for or look forward to,” says Joshua.
While attending the college of choice will change the course of students’ lives, no college can change who or what students have already become. For Joshua, it is how he takes advantage of the resources at his college that makes the ultimate difference. He is grateful for his time spent at a community college, having been able to stay optimistic and was able to finish a tremendous amount of his core classes by the end of his first year.
I can relate to all the craziness of being a senior awaiting college admissions. I am definitely the most anxious during March, where many of my friends and I would hear back from the schools we had applied to. A part of me wants to celebrate my own successes, but I also really wanted to see my friends get accepted into their dream schools. Although many colleges have been reaching out to us in different ways, I have learned to suppressed my frustration into something that I can look forward to in college despite the hefty letters of decisions.
While acceptances are also being sent out, it should mean your work trying to get accepted is not over. One remaining task is to follow up with senior grades and additional test scores. Most importantly, it is very crucial to students meet all the required deadlines such as registration, housing, and orientation deadlines.
But do not fear! Some ways students can help themselves lessen the college notification madness to survive the admission process is by staying entirely focused on grades and to keep Plan B in mind, all while enjoying senior year as much as possible.
Try not to worry - the focus is on the exciting journey ahead filled with new opportunities come fall whatever happens.
“It was definitely heartbreaking to know that so many of my friends were going to be able to explore more of the world while I had to stay at home. I really did not want to stay at home because I spent so much of my life at home already, so I felt robbed of the opportunity to go to college away from home,” he says.
Similarly, a rejection or being wait-listed doesn’t necessarily mean you are not good enough, but that highly selective and competitive schools just couldn’t take all the qualified applicants. Many students who are denied their dream school choose another school with hopes of transferring eventually. Yet, it hasn’t stopped students from experiencing an emotional roller coaster throughout all the pressure to do well.
“I think the most frustrating part for me was to have to see so many friends have the opportunity to experience the entire application process, whereas I really had nothing to wait for or look forward to,” says Joshua.
While attending the college of choice will change the course of students’ lives, no college can change who or what students have already become. For Joshua, it is how he takes advantage of the resources at his college that makes the ultimate difference. He is grateful for his time spent at a community college, having been able to stay optimistic and was able to finish a tremendous amount of his core classes by the end of his first year.
I can relate to all the craziness of being a senior awaiting college admissions. I am definitely the most anxious during March, where many of my friends and I would hear back from the schools we had applied to. A part of me wants to celebrate my own successes, but I also really wanted to see my friends get accepted into their dream schools. Although many colleges have been reaching out to us in different ways, I have learned to suppressed my frustration into something that I can look forward to in college despite the hefty letters of decisions.
While acceptances are also being sent out, it should mean your work trying to get accepted is not over. One remaining task is to follow up with senior grades and additional test scores. Most importantly, it is very crucial to students meet all the required deadlines such as registration, housing, and orientation deadlines.
But do not fear! Some ways students can help themselves lessen the college notification madness to survive the admission process is by staying entirely focused on grades and to keep Plan B in mind, all while enjoying senior year as much as possible.
Try not to worry - the focus is on the exciting journey ahead filled with new opportunities come fall whatever happens.