When I was younger, I could not wait to grow up! But here I am, a senior in high school, and I am applying to colleges. As a senior, students have more responsibilities and become aware that the world outside of their childhood is not as easy as it seems. Most times, seniors are balancing time for a job, school, family, and friends. For me, that has not really been a problem yet. College applications were easier than one might think if in a timely manner. As soon as school began, I made sure to begin the process right away because I did not want to stress about it for too long.
Every senior who plans to attend college must complete their applications before anything else happens. At first, I dreaded applying to college since the process is so tedious. Once I began the process, it was easy. But it got me thinking, if anyone has had problems or challenges so far. So, I asked a fellow senior, Bianca Panmei, how her application process was going so far. She said, “When applying for colleges, I had some technical problems with adding teachers, counselors, and coaches for letters of recommendation and finding my major in the drop-down boxes. Other than that, Common App has been easy to use and a helpful tool.”
I was the first senior to get everything done and apply to the schools that interested me; It was a feeling of relief because I knew I would not have to worry about it for the rest of the year. I applied to thirteen colleges, and so I have been accepted to four of them. In talking to fellow senior, Brennan Deeter, he said, “I’ve applied to about six or seven colleges throughout the year so far.” Since Bianca Panmei had a couple of issues, I wanted to know if Brennan did as well. When asked if he found the Common App easy to use, he said, “There were a couple of things I needed help with, but other than that it was easy to maneuver.”
Most times, seniors apply to multiple colleges in order to make sure they have options in case a college does not accept them, and it can take quite a bit of time. Panmei is a good example of this; when asked how long it had taken her to apply to college(s), her comment was, “The amount of time I took to apply varied for each college. Applications for Ball State University, Indiana State University, and Western Michigan University were easy and took me about five minutes to apply. Although other colleges, such as Arizona State University, Lewis University, Purdue University, and Ohio State University, required me to write short answers to questions about me and my future, which took me around 1-2 weeks to complete. Including the time I spent setting up my account for Common App, I spent around 4-5 weeks applying to seven colleges.” This amount of time might seem over the top, but really, it is not. It just depends on what colleges you apply to and what information they require. The time it takes when applying has to do with a student’s personal choice and where they want to attend.
The Common App requires students to enter information about themselves and their families. Senior, Kennedy McLaughlin had this to say about the information she had to collect, “I had to learn my social security number and ask my parents about their college degrees.” McLaughlin said she had to ask her parents for the information. Since she got her college applications done pretty early as well, I asked her why she thought getting them done sooner rather than later was better. She said, “I think it is important to get the applications done early because then you are one step closer to deciding which college you want to go to. For me I’ve already applied to seven colleges and have been accepted to all of them. It just makes it easier deciding where I want to go knowing I have options.” Classmate, Trey Johnson, just finished all his applications. When asked about his first college choice, Trey said, “Blackburn College is my first choice because that’s where my brother went.” Johnson continued his thoughts about the Common App, “I would describe it as repetitive, but simple.”
Applying to college can look different to everyone; it is all about where you want to go. For most seniors they already have an idea of which college they like the most, and which one will best prepare them for life beyond high school. It is not uncommon for seniors to apply but still be undecided about their major; I was like that too, but finally made up my mind.I may not be certain which college I will attend, but I know I am going to study Criminology/Criminal Justice. Pamei plans on majoring in Aviation while attending her college of choice, and Johnson intends to major in business.
