<p>Can someone explain the phenomena that grips every anxiety-stricken member of CC? Where does the paranoia/obsession with getting into top colleges arise from? I mean, we all know that we could do just as well no matter where we go. For example, last year, a kid from my school with awesome grades, SATs, and ECs got rejected from MIT b/c he forgot to write some things on his app and his essays were a bit lacking. He got a half tuition scholarship to go to UMich (admittedly, not a bad college itself, but certainly not Ivy/MIT/Stanford) and is now very happy there, on his way to a well-respected degree in chemical engineering. And yet, even having heard this and a plethora of other success stories that did not involve top colleges, I find myself consumed with getting into one. Is there a psychological explanation for this? Am I (or we) abnormal? (lmao) I'm an Asian male in NJ, so it's quite possible that my situation is unique. But, I really want to know: what drives kids to stay up late at night? To compete for national awards? To play a sport after school and practice an instrument in some magically conjured space of time? To consume leadership roles in every activity from underwater basketweaving to student government? What drives these types of students (myself somewhat included) that is lacking in so many others? Can somebody explain this? Is there a logical explanation? I hear all the time that the kid who went for the Ivy League education may not always fall too far from the average guy who chose his state school (in terms of the three essentials: health, wealth, and happiness). So why should (or, rather, do) the select few of us put ourselves through the various hardships necessary to get to these top schools? Ah, I guess this is just my dissatisfied other half questioning some of my actions (and I don't even work nearly as hard as some of the other people on CC). Alright, I'm done ranting...</p>
<p>A need for approval? A drive to succeed? A determination to one-up others? A genuine desire to make a better future? All of the above?</p>
<p>There are probably research papers out there on this.</p>
<p>maybe...just maybe...people are actually passionate about their activities and learning and deeply enjoy it...And if you are and are fairly talented, why not apply to the most challenging, stimulating, and personally best schools?</p>
<p>However I'm not disagreeing with you that there are some ppl exactly like you described, who volunteer solely for college and would stop the day they receive their acceptances...I do not know the answer for these people, hopefully someone will enlighten us.</p>
<p>"A determination to one-up others"</p>
<p>That one scares me the most. What difference does it make if we can boast about being Ivy League? I personally detest elitists. Not to mention we may be losing important components of our humanity in the process of fulfilling our lofty goals: our compassion and our humility.</p>
<p>goblue10nis: I completely agree with you. However, judging from many of the profiles on this site, people are NOT entirely passionate about everything they do (as you suggested). I have seen countless laundry lists of ECs. This philosophy even seems to extend to AP courses. People clearly end up forcing themselves to take AP courses just for the title, merely to appear as strong applicants to colleges and not for any genuine interest in the subject.</p>
<p>i think a lot of it is just pride.</p>
<p>Wow, after having read Gulliver's Travels and analyzed it to the line, that word ("pride") seems like one of the greatest evils achievable (sorry if you don't know what I'm talking about...read Swift's work...you'll understand).</p>
<p>I think most of us wants to prove something to ourselves and others, that we can do well, that we can accomplish what we set out to do, and as far as high school, getting into a top college is probably the best way to prove that point.</p>
<p>Every college is different. Why should we be scorned as prestige-hunters if we feel that the college that's right for us is a top school? My top choice is a Top 40 school, and that's because of its location, its size, and its fun, quirky character. No other school in the area can mimic that, and especially none in the area. Is the local state school a good school? Yes. Would I get a good education? Probably. Do I want to go there? No.</p>
<p>Personally, even my own mother agrees that I "do not suffer fools well," and I honestly would not work in an environment where I did not feel that I could have an intellectual discussion with at least most of the kids of campus.</p>
<p>Interesting timing. My D just found out today that she was rejected (early at that) by one of her main safety schools, a large state school in an adjoining state.</p>
<p>I am utterly shocked. She blows their average admit stats away:</p>
<p>32 ACT
2100 SAT
3.65 GPA from a highly competitive magnet school (all classes are AP or college level)
NMS Finalist</p>
<p>You have good reason to be worried this year.</p>
<p>goblue10nis - I enjoy learning, and I'm looking foward immensely to college. Heck, I'm excited to get to take APs in the fall! I'm probably considered fairly talented, but that and enjoying learning is not going to get me into Ivy Leagues. I probably won't stop volunteering as soon as I get acceptance letters, but the only reason I am volunteering is because colleges expect me to. The way I see it, having to volunteer and have amazing ECs is the dues you have to pay to get into some of the most selective and best colleges in the country.
In response to the OP, I'd say drive and ambition. There probably are people who do it simply to be better than someone, but the ones who are at the top of their field (sports, careers, musical instruments, whatever) do it because they love it. Hopefully that is why we want to get the best education possible. Because we love learning.</p>
<p>Zamzam, I completely agree.</p>
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That one scares me the most. What difference does it make if we can boast about being Ivy League? I personally detest elitists. Not to mention we may be losing important components of our humanity in the process of fulfilling our lofty goals: our compassion and our humility.
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<p>Agreed. If only CC students would take such to heart, rejections would be received much more smoothly.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, such isn't the case, and considering how competitive this year's admissions cycle is, I daresay it's gonna be brutal come April (or late March). Last year was bad enough, practically a blood bath. I'll probably stop reading CC till it's passed. =p</p>
<p>I agree with kyledavid80- it's a mix of things...including the fact that you've all worked very hard and believe you deserve it (which you do!) Unfortunately, right now there are just too damn many of you....</p>
<p>@razzlegrl: If we are trying to prove something to ourselves, then how do you define success? As much as is within our capability? Where do we stop? If we are trying to prove something to others, then to whom? The more than 90% of the world's population that doesn't have a college degree and never will? </p>
<p>I think it's too easy to say that we want to prove something to others (or ourselves). I think that's an external facade that we impose upon ourselves to justify the action. And, I'm not insulting anybody (especially since I'm guilty of the same thinking). I just think people should be more honest with themselves and with others. I think, when it comes right down to it, the need to (as the other poster put it) "one up" others is just human nature. The need to get into top colleges for so many CC members is an instance of their channeling their time and resources towards that universal human ambition. It's a sad and disheartening reality. Admissions to top colleges seems so hopelessly superfluous. I suppose people define success in their own way and that this affects our perceptions and decisions. Success for some may be monetary, for others, intellectual, and for others still, simply helping others. Success for someone in Africa or Asia is somehow providing food for his family for one more day. Success for a nerdy/talented student in the United States, apparently, is attending a top university. <em>Disclaimer: I can't emphasize enough how I am guilty of the same thing; so, in a sense, I'm disgusted with myself</em></p>
<p>Yes, but it is human nature, and you can't fault yourself for that.</p>
<p>Proving something to yourself can vary depending on who you are, but speaking in terms of CC students, it pretty much means getting into a top college. </p>
<p>I don't see how proving yourself is a facade. It is equivalent to trying to show that you are above others (if that's what you misunderstood about me saying "proving")</p>
<p>Plus, you really can't compare yourself to 90% of the world. After all, most of us do live in the US, which sets us apart from the rest of world already. It's unrealistic to compare ourselves to people in third world countries living on a dollar a day.</p>
<p>@cgarrett101: That's incredibly cynical...</p>
<p>@razzlegrl: The idea that we are proving ourselves is a facade...a figment of our subconscious. To say we are proving ourselves is completely arbitrary and meaningless. It raises a plethora of other questions: To Whom? For what purpose? Why in this manner?</p>
<p>I think it's human nature. We humans LOVE competition. Without it, nothing would be worth working for!</p>
<p>[Edit] Haha. Without reading cigarrette's post, I came up with the same possible cause.</p>
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Unfortunately, right now there are just too damn many of you....
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<p>lol, so true!</p>
<p>It's our background, our competitiveness, our dream future, and our childhood that made us this way. :)</p>