In “Want To Get Into College? Learn to fail” (2012), Angel B. Pérez ,Vice President and Dean of Admission and Financial Aid at Pitzer College, argues that students are not okay with failing and are pressured to only show their success, Perez believes that this problem exist because teachers and parents taught them to only show their success and not to show their flaws. Perez supports his argument with his own personal experience .Perez supports his argument with “I wish I could tell you this is an uncommon story, but kids all over the world admit they are under tremendous pressure to be perfect,” (pg. 1 )
The awareness that Scott Stump shares in his article, “New Harvard Report Proposes Major Changes to College Admissions,” is aimed at reducing the pressure that comes with applying for colleges. In his article, Scott explains a report from the Harvard Graduate School of Education that suggests changes to the college admission process. These changes are meant to reduce high school students’ stress, as well as level the playing field for underprivileged students. Some of the propositions to lessen the burden on high school students include; making the ACT and SAT tests optional, taking a better look at the responsibilities of low income students, and having the students include community service that shows consistent benefits to the community;
Ethan Hallett Ms Anderton Argument on Argument Essay 23 February 2024, Why College is Still Worth it Ellen Ruppel Shell wrote an article named “College May not be Worth it Anymore” In this article she discusses why we shouldn't go to college, “Last year, New York became the first state to offer all but its wealthiest residents tuition-free access to its public community colleges and four-year institutions. Though this Excelsior Scholarship didn’t make college completely free, it highlights the power of the pro-college movement in the United States”(Shell 1). She highlights that there is no longer a point in going to college because you can make the same amount of money without a college degree. She emphasizes in showing that not going to college means that you will get
Author Jeffrey Selingo states in his article “What’s the Purpose of College: A job or an Education?” college prices are increasing traumatically and yet college graduates are left without a career or job. Before the 1970’s college was a place where post high school graduates could go to explore various majors and courses. However, that has changed, after the 1970’s students would enter college already knowing the outcome of a career they had already chosen. Most students are now majoring in business, unlike in the past, when most were graduating with a major in traditional arts and science fields.
While the ever increasing pressures and cost of a college education seem to be a recent event, they problems have persisted for many decades. In 1979, William Zinsser wrote “College Pressures” in order to portray the daily struggles of college students and argue how students see college differently in the modern era. Zinsser stresses how college has changed from being an institute purely focused on higher learning to one of almost strictly vocational purposes. He argues that modern students equate college degrees more with higher paying jobs than as a symbol of knowledge in a specific field, and that these pressures to succeed greatly impact the student’s health. Through my own college experiences, I can certainly verify that college is more
The Pursuit of Grades Over Happiness There are many accomplishments that we have achieved, yet many to achieve, and the race towards them never seems to stop. Well, this is the case for many students because the race towards achieving high grades never comes to an end. Grades are meaningless in the grand scheme of things, as they do not control the rest of your life, but yet are still overly looked upon and can affect a student’s life drastically. However, a poet once said, “Life is not a race, but a journey, to be savored each step of the way” (Nancye Sims).
Research indicates that students whose parents did not attend college are more likely than their non-first-generation counterparts to be less academically prepared for college, to have less knowledge of how to apply for college and for financial assistance, and to have more difficulty in adapting themselves to college once they enroll. They are also more at risk for not completing a degree because they are more likely to delay enrollment after high school, to enroll in postsecondary education part-time, and to work full-time while enrolled. (Hurtado & Carter, 1997; Pasacrella & Terenzini, 1991; Tinto, 19931), First-generation students, may lack the cultural and social capital, which may account for the difficulties they face in academia (Perna, 2000). Targeted intervention efforts that reach out to first-generation students both before and during college can help alleviate the barriers and challenges first-generation students face and help colleges reach their goal of recruiting and retaining all students. Academic Barriers Research has shown that low-income and first generation students are less likely to be engaged in the academic and social experiences that foster success in college, such as studying in groups, interacting with faculty and other students, participating in extracurricular activities, and using support
College is one of the most significant times in a person’s life. Every year high school kids will visit many different colleges so that they can be confident in their college decision. Some kids will follow in their parent’s foot steps and base their decision on where their mom or dad went, though, not all kids are fortunate to have help from their parents. Many kids nowadays may be the first in their family to take on higher education. The article, “First Generation College Students: Unprepared and Behind” by Liz Riggs explains that kids who are the first in their family to take on college are at a disadvantage compared to kids with parents who attended college.
College. It’s part of the American Dream. Do well in school, attend a good college, get a job to support 2.5 children and to pay off a home in the suburbs. However, college to high schoolers today seems more daunting and unattainable than ever. With an increasingly competitive environment, rising university costs, decline of financial aid, and a job market that is less than promising, the process has become more stressful than hopeful.
A rising issue in today’s society is deciding whether or not college is worth the cost. There is an extreme amount of pressure that is forced upon high school students by parents, teachers, and peers to further their education and attend college. However, there is research that challenges the thought that college is the best possible path for a person to take. College may be a great investment for some people, but it is not meant for everyone. This is supported by the arguments that colleges are expensive, jobs do not always require a college degree, and students are forced to choose a lifestyle before being exposed to the real world.
While the major population of American students choose to go to college, the process may be daunting at first. Basically, college admission officers want to identify the best fits for their college, and they do so through checking interviews, standardized testing, and a transcript of one’s grades and extracurriculars. However, this new experience is regarded as a nasty and stressful endeavor by both students and adults alike. As Stu Schmill, the dean of admissions at MIT, told Matt Lauer on TODAY, “I do believe that most students stress out over their SAT scores much more than they need to.” However, Schmill did not state that this challenge of stress and anxious is really how college admission officers differentiate the regulars from the over-achievers.
College is a time in a student’s life where they pay a lot of money to take classes that help shape their career. Colleges look for students whose grade point average and standardized test scores are high. “Colleges look for students who took the most challenging courses available to them” (CollegeData). Some students who maintain above a 4.0GPA struggle to make above a 21 on the ACT, the benchmark score to get into most colleges. Some students who prove themselves intelligent may not do well taking a standardized test, yet they still know how to interpret and solve everyday problems.
A recent study led by William Hiss, the former Dean of Admissions of Bates College, wanted to see the difference in academic performance during and after college with students that submitted their SAT and ACT scores versus students that did not. His study showed that there was not much difference between the two different types of students with data of “only .05 percent of a GPA point set “submitters” and “non-submitters” apart, and the difference in their graduation rates was just .6 percent” (Sheffer). This clearly shows that student’s grade point averages are the best way to determine that type of student. Also with this study, it concluded that, “If high school grades are not high, good testing does not promise college success. Students with good grades and modest testing did better in college than students with higher testing and lower high school grades” (Sheffer).
Although standardized testing has been widely accepted as the means for gauging students’ preparedness for college, there exists a likelihood of giving a wrong score which will, in turn, portray a student as not being ready or capable of handling a particular college program (Freeman et al. 8437). Consequently, scholars may be forced to enrol in a course that is way too low for his/her educational capabilities, in turn, impacting on the
The SAT has long fallen far short of these goals.” Students and families pay thousands of dollars for these exams, tutors, and helping aids only to come out with a score below the college readiness level. A senior from Newton High School spoke about her experience and stated that, “The ACT made me feel inferior and give up trying because I tried so hard in school, but none of my hard worked paid off because of how low my score was. To graduate and not have a score that’s to a college’s a specific standard makes me feel that I tried all these years and it’s going to mean nothing to the school ’s
