College at a Cost: Rising Applications, Declining Acceptance Rates and the Transactionality of Extracurriculars
College acceptance rates have plummeted in the past few years. Competition is so fierce that schools that were typically considered “safety schools” – colleges students apply to and are more likely to get into – now have lower acceptance rates on par with schools considered selective.
Public universities have acceptance numbers nearing single digits. Ivy League schools, Brown, Cornell, Columbia, Dartmouth, Harvard, UPenn, Princeton and Yale, are no longer just a long shot, but an entire Hail Mary with 2023’s acceptance rates ranging from Harvard’s whopping 3.4% to Cornell’s 8%, according to http://www.crimsoneducation.org.ed
The question is: Why are college admission rates falling so drastically?
Simply, more students are applying and they’re applying to more schools, resulting in decreased acceptance rates. From 2019-2020 to 2021-2022, the number of submitted college applications rose by 21.3%, per http://www.usnews.com. With an increased number of applications, a decrease in acceptance rates follows. For high school seniors, getting into college is more difficult than ever and most are looking for anything that can give them an edge.
There are many components to an application which colleges examine during the admission process – essays, activities lists, teacher recommendations, standardized test scores and more. For many students, applying to college can feel like a full-time job.
Students study months on end for the SAT/ACT and spend countless hours editing their personal statement and supplemental essays, all while balancing homework, classes, jobs, athletics and a social life.
As someone who recently lived through this process, I can say the college application season was the most hectic and stressful four months of my life.
During my college application work, there was a seemingly never-ending to-do list lingering in my mind. Amidst the hustle and bustle of senior year, there was an underwhelming amount of time for my overwhelming workload. Bus rides to volleyball games, in the library during free periods or at home after long days, every waking moment seemed dedicated to crafting my Common App.
Today, colleges are drowning in applications from seniors with stellar GPA’s and perfect SAT scores from valedictorians, ASB presidents, newspaper/yearbook editors and soccer captains. How do they differentiate all of their qualified candidates? Enter the activities list and personal essays.
Universities look for passionate students who take active roles in their communities. In addition to being academic standouts, students build their resumes with astrophysics clubs, part-time barista jobs, medical internships and an array of volunteer work.
Being brutally honest, some kids participate in activities solely for the purpose of padding their resumes.
A perfect example is founding a Badminton Club as a senior. News Flash: it’s too late by then. Students need to take the time during pivotal freshman and sophomore years to discover what they truly enjoy and what is meaningful to them.
By junior and senior years, hone-in on those activities and seek leadership positions. Colleges are adept at detecting contrived extracurriculars. Rather than being a member of 10 clubs, lean into your passions and look for ways to expand upon them, in and outside of school.
In the height of the college application Hunger Games season, I encourage parents to show the twelfth graders in your life a little more love. With everything going on in their lives, the SOS’s, stressed out seniors, need extra support every once in a while.
Nicole Lamison can be reached at nlamison34@gmail.com.
