There is no reason to apply to 20 colleges!
One should apply to colleges they have researched and they have genuine interest in.
To you, there’s no point. But for a lot of kids who go into programs that have low acceptance rates (musical theater, CS, music, etc.) you have to apply to a lot of schools to be accepted to only a few. My friend going into Musical Theater applied to 30 schools with a 32 ACT (don’t know her GPA but she’s an excellent student with mostly APs) and almost a decade of leading musical roles. Only to get accepted to 7 schools. Just because you don’t need 20 schools doesn’t mean it’s the same for others.
I mean apply to as many as your heart desires, but it is always good to feel some real connection to that school, for any reason.
Students who are merit hunting often must apply to many schools as well, similar to the audition type majors.
Are you hoping that will increase your chances at MIT and whatever other top colleges you’re applying to as a transfer?
I agree that people shouldn’t simply apply to 20+ or 30+ schools (especially ones with low acceptance rates) just to see “where they will get in” but I don’t exactly think people should be restricted since there might be many schools they genuinely are interested in. I will emphasize- to all future applicants, please apply to schools you will realistically want to go to if you get accepted!