<p>I have come to the conclusion, that the college application/acceptance process is much like the steroid scandal in professional baseball. Take the "cream and the clear" by artificially inflating your EC's maybe start a few imaginary clubs or two and appoint yourself President, train for the SAT's three times a week with expensive tutors, have your exclusive private school award you with one of many team "captain" positions and maybe a "special spirit" award. Be sure to travel on an expensive "community service" trip, but don't mention that you relaxed on a beach for the most of the time. Make sure that your elite school helps you apply the "cream and the clear", and does not mention that you cheated on the SAT's, got caught but not suspended. Make sure that they do not mention that you have been before the honor board 3 times, questioning whether you or your parents write your class papers. Make sure your elite school does not mention that half of your class has been cited by your local police for drugs, alcohol, and property damage. The entire process is flawed and artificial. Are we are creating an atmosphere where it is better for a student to hide facts, cheat, or inflate in order to be competitive in the admissions process? Is this process similar to the steroid scandal of major league baseball, that if you don't pump up you cannot compete? This is a stressful era to be a high school student.</p>
<p>Wow! You certainly must have had a BAD experience to have come out that angry and jaded. The truth is that the vast majority of kids who have been accepted are well deserving. They are hard working, goal oriented students who have dedicated a great deal of their young lives to their future dreams. I'm really sorry that you have such a jaded view of this process, and even though SOME of your observations are true for a FEW of the applicants, most admissions officers are a lot more savvy than people give them credit for. Yes, the bar has been raised over the years but the artifical inflation of accomplishments will sink under the scrutiny of a selective officer just as the steroid use has been addressed harshly by their league officials. Relax. The admissions process may not be fair, but it's a lot fairer than you think it is.</p>
<p>Hi
No I am not angry and I am not jaded. The stories I referenced are true. I stand by my post. Yes, of course many students out there have not taken the "steroid" route. Of course. What I am commenting on, is the atmosphere of acheivement stress that is weighing on the children of today. and that many of them feel they need to inflate just to compete. Are they just doing things to fill in blanks on applications, or are they truely participating in things because they want to? I feel sorry for them. I think the pressure is starting at an earlier and earlier age. There is little time to just be an unscheduled child. The elite private school I am referencing, may not be typical of every school in the country. I do know that this school is more concerned about its reputation, and where their students are accepted in the end, than holding any of them accountable for less than honorable behavior. Image is everything.... and yes, the references sound harsh.... but it is all true. I have been watching this for a long time. It is an extremely competetive time for children. I don't know how to change the atmosphere we are currently in. I am sorry if the first post sounded angry. I am just making a commentary about the process as I see it and the experience that I have had. My child had excellent responses and will be attending a great school. I am not angry in any way. I just don't like the stresses that are being placed on these wonderful children, and I think the process has to be approached in an educated way.</p>
<p>Among my daughters friends at the PUBLIC high school she attends here in NJ, there are acceptances to Brown, Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Amherst, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, Princeton, U. Penn, etc. One was even accepted to two 7 year medical programs! </p>
<p>Though I cant speak for all of them, I can tell you the following: my daughter took the SAT only once & didnt receive tutoring, maintains an A+ average with Honors & AP courses, managed to be the first alternate (not even a seeded player) on her H.S. tennis team, is a certified lifeguard who works several days a week, has her own business teaching piano for the past several years, tutors for National Honor Society several hours per week, etc.</p>
<p>She didnt falsify her tennis credentials on her college application (she did note her win/loss record for the games she played) . which certainly could have become a big problem considering that her AP History teacher & tennis coach specifically noted her lowly position on the team in the recommendations he wrote for her!</p>
<p>Though we may be guilty of paying for tennis & piano lessons, she didnt receive any other benefits and may have suffered reverse discrimination because shes not considered a minority and hails from a state that exports zillions of H.S. seniors to out-of-state colleges each year.</p>
<p>So whats the point? She and her friends are in my experience hard working, honest, kids who achieved these acceptances w/o falsification. Of course, it goes w/o saying that they were fortunate to grow up in a terrific neighborhood with involved parents. </p>
<p>Its incredibly unfortunate that there are in fact a percentage of applicants (and their parents) who might utilize the tactics you mention but these are the same people who will eventually do the same with resumes, etc. Perhaps it will catch up with them at some point (Ive seen that in action).</p>
<p>When I drive my daughter and a friend to ADOCH at Brown in two weeks, it will be comforting to know that should I have a heart attack when I start to think about tuition, aside from my daughters certifications, her friend is a certified EMT who on her own decided to devote an entire summer to taking and passing a rigorous EMT course two years ago (at the age of 16), and has since become a vital member of our towns volunteer ambulance corps.</p>
<p>Congratulations to your daughter and to her friend, and to all the college bound students out there. My posts are not an attack on them or their hard work. They were not written to make people feel defensive about any success they have. It is just a commentary on the current frenzy of college admissions. and a note to parents out there to educate themselves and understand all that is going on.</p>
<p>Your post wasn't perceived as an attack... just be aware that the circumstances you describe are not universal... which was the point of my rebuttal...</p>
<p>Are we are creating an atmosphere where it is better for a student to hide facts, cheat, or inflate in order to be competitive in the admissions process? Is this process similar to the steroid scandal of major league baseball, that if you don't pump up you cannot compete? This is a stressful era to be a high school student.</p>
<p>That stress is created by false assumptions. </p>
<p>As a student, assuming that you will fail in life if you do not get admitted to HYPS, etc. leads to stress, when the reality is that thousands of college kids attend state universities, community colleges, and tech school and still manage to succeed in life.</p>
<p>As a parent, pressuring your child to apply to a dozen or more colleges with acceptance rates below 20% despite marginal qualifications leads to stress. Having to deal with a half dozen waitlist offers lead to more stress. Trying to figure out how to come up with $30,000 or more per year for private college tuition leads to yet more stress.</p>
<p>This is a stressful time for some high school seniors; others match their qualifications to a good, affordable college and see their stress melt away.</p>
<p>If you want to grab the brass ring, you have to be willing to take the leap. Stress goes with the territory.</p>
<p>lodilady, I know there are instances of all of the things that you describe, but in the extremely competitive school which my daughter attends, I just haven't seen 'em. And this year, of 67 graduating seniors, there were 3 acceptances to Yale, 2 to Harvard (2 of these accepted to both Harvard and Yale), 1 to Columbia, 1 to Dartmouth, several to Duke, etc. etc. My D's only test prep was a single practice test, but some of her classmates did attend SAT or ACT prep courses and I know of two who had SAT tutors. I really don't think this is a bad thing considering the importance placed on these scores by the schools. But...the kids I know don't need to inflate their ECs. These kids are so busy they're not getting enough sleep at night. They don't need to go on expensive boondoggles over the summer...most are busy either working a job, doing research at our state U, or volunteering in their community. Or all three. I DON'T think the behaviors your describe are typical of elite college applicants or even usual. And, as arbitrary as the process seems, from the remarkable successes of the seniors whose parents post in this forum, I think the process works.</p>
<p>"These kids are so busy they're not getting enough sleep at night."</p>
<ul>
<li>This is exactly my point.</li>
</ul>
<p>lodilady, they're busy doing things they love, not racking up "points" for their college applications. My D has never been happier than she has been this year juggling her 6 AP classes and rehearsing hours each day for the school musical. Her friends are the same way.</p>
<p>completely agree with everything you've said quiltguru--and my son even sleeps :)</p>
<p>get a grip lodilady.</p>
<p>Happy to hear positive stories. Wonderful!</p>
<p>I think the baseball steroid scandal is a poor analogy. It just doesn't fit. If you want an analogy, I much prefer the basketball analogy (Disclosure statement: This is my adaptation of an analogy presented by a student in a different thread)</p>
<p>Applying to an elite college is like trying to make a basket over Shaquille ONeal. You know this is going to take your very best effort and it's a one in a million shot, but you go for it anyway. You drive hard to the basket you elevate, you release the ball into the air, it floats gently towards the hoop, you think it looks good... then, REJECTED!!!! ohhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! You should have worked harder perfecting that HOOK shot! (get it? "HOOK" shot?) That's the only way you're gonna make a basket over Shaq - you need a good hook!</p>
<p>That's very good. I like that a lot.</p>
<p>I didn't think the Op was dissing the kids that reach high and enjoy their EC's at all. <em>I</em> thought she had the perception that the "cream and clear" was much more the norm than it actually is. I assumed she felt this way due to bad experiences with the process, but after reading her previous posts I see that wasn't the case. I see now that the point she was trying to make was that the bar has been raised to the point that kids feel the need to embellish their credentials just to be in the game. That the high emphasis on impressive EC's and leadership roles needed to be even considered by the upper tier schools caused some students to take unethical measures to keep up. In that light, I can see the how the steroid analogy can be made. The higher level of play in baseball compared to 20 years ago is very similar to the college admission process then and now. Back, (way back! ;)) when I was applying, being a val and scoring high on the SAT's pretty much made you a shoo in to most great schools. Now, that's not at all the case. So yes, I do believe the bar has been raised for HYPS et al, but the truth is that if you don't WANT to play their "games", you don't have to. There are plenty of GREAT schools that don't require that you've cured cancer. Luckily for our kids, there are a lot of teams they can play on.</p>
<p>The OP is not personally attacking anyone on the CC, and certainly not any person's S/D or their efforts. As I read this thread, The OP is realistically portraying the manner and methods some can and do use to create a false image.</p>
<p>Admissions Officers are not all-knowing, they can be fooled and in the massive amount of applications and the skills that are available to anyone determined enough to use any method or means it should be easy to fool the Admissions personnel.</p>
<p>So don't take it personally, unless the Op has acccurately reflected one or more of the tactics you or your child employed.</p>
<p>lodilady, I think the extreme emphasis on applications and presentation is primarily due to three fundamental underlying causes - (1) the number of baby boomer children is close to their projected peak population. (I believe that this number will start to decline after the 2008 senior class, or thereabouts), (2) we boomers stopped the war, fed our heads, got civil rights, and championed women's rights - we have an overlay of confidence in our ability to change things (no matter how jaded we may have become) and outsmart the 'system,' and (3) the current economic and employment climate - outsourcing, erosion of spending power, inflation of educational requirements for most skilled jobs, etc. </p>
<p>Put (1) together with (2), and you get more kids competing for the same number of places, and kids/parents stepping up to the level of competition by trying to maximize qualifications. If you add (3) a high motivation factor, I believe it accounts for the macro-trend you have noted.</p>
<p>great points, yulsie.</p>
<p>I realize this is pointing out the obvious, but I think the bigger picture gets overlooked here where people make generalization about college admissions.</p>
<p>Let us not forget that vast numbers of students get into college with little trouble at all, through a process that isn't very competitive. The tactics described in the OP aren't necessary, or even terribly effective. They just need to apply with a fairly solid prep program and a decent showing on a standardized test. Many of these students have great experiences--yes, even at places where you don't need 14 ECs and a lying counselor to get in-- and go on to lead fulfilling adult lives.</p>
<p>The admissions "game" that is portrayed with such breathlessness and desperation in some threads is really only a small slice of the higher ed pie.</p>
<p>I cannot begin to fathom the amount of work and planning it would take to cheat in this fashion. If the student has not applied him or herself to studies, how will that student be able to strategize and perpetrate this vast fraud upon the system? I do not buy it, and I have not seen it. It is far easier to just study and get A's then to go to the trouble this OP suggests. </p>
<p>As to the blitz of awards from some high schools, they do not qualify as cheating because they fool no one (and really are not intended to): The colleges take them for what they are and everyone knows it. An award considered substantial by elite schools should be on a national, state or at the least a city-wide level. A high school cannot orchestrate that.</p>
<p>I just don't see a problem here.</p>