Hello, I am currently a junior in high school. I was wondering if I could get into Stanford. My course schedule is fine and I’m working for a 1500+ SAT score (I’m scheduled to take it December).
But one thing I’m worried about is people are always saying ‘develop your spike.’ For the past two years I’ve been very involved in the visual arts, and last summer I was accepted with scholarship for a prestigious art program in Los Angeles.
The only issue is that I have more interests than art. I’m also very interested in learning languages and I applied to NSLI-Y (hope to God I get in) and I’m self-teaching myself Greek and French… And this year… I decided not to take AP Art, but take it Senior year, because I really just did not want to take it this year.
I’m really worried because I don’t have a main passion. I like languages, art, and writing,. I don’t know how to develop a ‘spike’ and stand out if my hobbies keep changing?? I’m really confused about this so if someone could please help me I’d appreciate it. Should I quit my hobbies and focus on one passion, even though I’d probably be miserable?? Ahh help me
Most students your age do not. It’s highly highly unlikely you can make a spike out of any one of your activities when it makes you miserable to go so. It’s the passion and excellence in something that determines a spike. The level to which it becomes a determinant in the college admissions situations at a school like Stanford is very high. Not something, some razzle dazzle you can just throw Into the eyes of AOs.
“Should I quit my hobbies and focus on one passion, even though I’d probably be miserable?? Ahh help me”
Lucky for you, well-roundedness is back in vogue (I’m not sure it ever really went out of style.).
The spike thing still works if you are approaching a level of mastery, but most high school students confuse being pointy with having a spike. They’re not the same.
Well-roundedness (the right kind of balanced well-rounded, not the "jack of all trades type) is not only easier to attain, but it more clearly shows the college that you are both likely to contribute to their college community and will take advantage of new opportunities there.
Your post made me feel so sad. (Not your fault. It’s what we adults have allowed the college process to become which makes me sad.)
You want to get into a specific Top 20 school.
You are wondering whether you should change yourself “even though I’d probably be miserable” in order to curry favor with that school.
Let me ask you this: If this were a romantic courtship instead of college admissions, would you change even though you would “probably be miserable” just to please a POTENTIAL significant other?
I hope you would not. You are fully deserving of college admissions (and of love) as the person you already are.
Be YOUR AUTHENTIC SELF. Give the colleges the best version of YOU. That doesn’t mean you should never do anything you don’t want to do for the sake of colleges (e.g., my humanities-loving daughter is definitely taking Calculus to get into college rather than because of any innate passion for the subject). There is a difference, however, between taking a course or two to make a college happy and dropping activities which are significant to you in order to do what you speculate would make colleges happy.
Figure out what appeals to you about Stanford (other than it being Stanford).
Definitely give it your best shot!
But also figure out some other schools offering the same ingredients you love about Stanford which are a variety of degrees of competitiveness.
Stanford admits fewer than 5% of applicants. It’s a long shot for almost anyone. If you don’t get in, do not waste one little minute castigating yourself for not being spikier. Instead, go off and have a great time at the colleges that love you back. Based on everything you have said about yourself, I’m pretty confident there will be plenty of them.
Hello, I am currently a junior in high school. I was wondering if I could get into Stanford. My course schedule is fine and I’m working for a 1500+ SAT score (I’m scheduled to take it December).
@learninggreek123, until you have an actual SAT score, all the wishing and dreaming is useless. Do yourself a favor and put a college list aside until you get your results back. You still will have plenty of time to make one based on actual stats. Good luck.
