With the future senior class of 2026-2027 knee-deep into the college process, and the future junior class of 2027-2028 soon beginning their college journey, I thought it was only right to provide some words of wisdom. Hopefully, some senior or junior out there looking for advice from a fellow peer will appreciate these words that I wish a senior would have told me. Of course, I am no college counselor and I’m not going to advertise myself as such. However, I am someone who has traversed through the mountains of challenges that come with this stressful yet rewarding time: picking between schools, staying up late to finish your college essay, and even breaking into hives from the stress it can cause. I have been through it all.
Step One: Use your resources!
First things first, please rely on your college counselors! Whether you’re trying to get recruited or get admitted into an institution you love, none of them is joking when they say they want to see you succeed. Attend the meetings, do the exercises, listen to their advice; not only is it their job to help you, but they put a lot of care into what they do and try their best to give you the tools needed to thrive.
It’s also important to remember discipline. Rely on your college counselors but also remember that they can give you all these tools to use, but none of them matters without cooperation from you. When your college counselor gives you deadlines, don’t ignore them. Trust me.
Step Two: Keep track of time.
Timing is another key part of the college process you must keep in mind. While the rush towards May 1st seems far away, the time truly goes by fast when you’re on a busy schedule. I suggest using the fall and winter as times to get most of your prep work done: your essay, creating the college list, etc. For anything you need to put thought and effort into, it’s better to use the long breaks and the times when classes are not as intense to create your plan and discover what you need. Once you’ve gone through that process, use the spring trimester and even parts of your summer to help refine. I remember being so grateful for having a full essay to submit to colleges by the time I came back to school when I saw others scrambling with revising and solidifying ideas.
Use the fall and part of winter to search, tour, and understand what you want from a college campus and how you want to engage in the college experience. By spring, you’ll have a good idea of the colleges you’d like to apply to and the kind of campuses you’d want to be a part of. This list can fluctuate of course, but it’s always better to have an idea than to have nothing at all. You also avoid the mass rush to tour in your senior spring by knowing where you want to visit early and using your summer to look at different locations.
Step Three: Take time to process the good and the bad.
I understand how easy it may be to fall in love (or deep in like) with a school when most of the process is honestly just research, research, and research. However, while you should always aim for the stars, keep in mind that it takes a lot for you to truly reach them. Regardless of my decisions, I never fell into a terrible funk because I didn’t get the results I wanted; honestly, I took every result as if I knew it was coming anyways (and was probably way more pessimistic than I should’ve been). My golden rule is to keep any expectations to a minimum. The worst thing about the college process is that it is truly unpredictable, and you can never fully understand an unpredictable situation.
Remember, rejection will always come. Of course, you are more than welcome to feel disappointed; there’s nothing wrong with that. The process is hard and tiring, and after all the hard work and feeling like there’s been no true reward, it’s understandable to feel frustrated and a little discouraged. However, remember that these decisions do not define who you are. Admissions counselors are going through tens of thousands of applications and are honestly picking using a very slim amount of information about you as a person and as a student. No one can tell you what they are thinking exactly and the reason they made the decision they made. So, roll with the punches and embrace the good that came from those decisions. A lot of hard work goes into the college application process, and a rejection or two should not negate the effort you have put into this.
Furthermore, lead with grace. Obviously, be excited about where you got into and celebrate, but be mindful of others’ feelings. Don’t be arrogant, and don’t project any jealousy you may have on others. Take pride in the work you have done to get to where you are, and you can be upset by any losses, but comparing yourself to others will always be the thief of joy.
Fourth and Final Step: Self-care.
Finally, take time for yourself. Whether you’re a rising senior, now more prepared to go onto the next stages of your life, or you’re a rising junior just trying to cling to sanity, remember to have fun. Join your friends on the turf, take late night walks to Dunkin, spend some time in your room listening to music, and find the time to do nothing. Like life, the college process is about balance.
