It’s the time of year for spooky costumes, frightful nights and something equally as scary- college applications. Just the idea of applying for colleges can scare most high school seniors. By now we are expected to have everything figured out, such as what we want to major in, where we want to go to college and how we are going to accomplish all these things. Who wouldn’t be terrified?
“It’s so stressful! There are so many different parts to the applications. You have to get a transcript, letters of recommendation, write an essay, and keep your grades up,” said senior Anna Knutson who is applying to Western, GVSU and Hope College.
It may seem scary but it can also be an exciting time full of many opportunities. However, these opportunities need to be taken advantage of as soon as possible. The best way to get started is by filling out the common application because it can be accepted by many different colleges and you only need to fill it out once.
“I applied to most places before school even started and it’s the best thing I could have done. I don’t understand how they [teachers, parents, college boards of admissions] expect us to do school work and get everything else done on top of that,” said senior Marjorie Wolfe.
School guidance counselors are also feeling the weight of these applications. Their offices are swarming with confused seniors on where to start. The counselors are providing an event on the day of parent teacher conferences; it is called College Apps Night. Counselors will be available that whole afternoon and the evening in the computer labs to help students get their applications done.
“Seniors need to make sure they are keeping in contact with their counselors and getting everything started as early as possible,” said Loy Norrix guidance counselor Sheryl Scott.
“I would say it is more of a busy time of year for me than a stressful time because it is something that I really enjoy and is an exciting, especially when we get to watch kids find out they’ve been accepted,” Scott continued.
If you are a student who is feeling worried or confused about college applications make sure to talk to your counselor, they are here to help you and they’ve been helping students through the application process for years.