by: Kat Littfin
Editorial Editor

Although summer is approaching, college tension is ever-present in each high school community. Whether it is incoming sophomores deciding whether to take AP courses, soon-to-be seniors stressing about essays and applications, or upcoming graduates solidifying their plans for the coming years, stress about college reverberates across all grades. While this tension is inevitable, it is also largely destructive as it often fosters academic dishonesty, harmful comparisons, and prevents students from pursuing genuine passions that can eventually lead to future success. Therefore, LGHS’s administration and students should take further steps to reduce college stress and advocate for post-high school plans that do not follow the traditional college path.

When students are only motivated to improve their college resumes, they are often more inclined to cheat. Senior Megan Lu commented on this issue, stating that college pressure causes some other students to be deceitful so that, “even if you work harder and have more of a moral high ground, you may not have as good of results.” An emphasis on solely getting into a good college encourages this kind of dishonesty in the classroom. Ultimately, this single-minded strategy rarely benefits students, as they may struggle to keep up with their workload in college, even if they attend their dream school. Senior Anya Chauhan, who plans to attend Harvard next year, had a different mindset compared to many students regarding admissions: “College was never the end goal, more like a stepping stone for my future goals, so even if I didn’t get into a so-called ‘top’ university, I wouldn’t ever think that I wasted my time or effort.” Chauhan added that when she toured Harvard over the summer, the tour guide emphasized that “the less you try to get in [to Harvard], the more likely you are to get in” and encouraged students to instead “pursue your passions and make an impact on the people around you.” The top schools in the country see thousands of over-qualified applicants with straight As and impressive extracurriculars; what makes an individual stand out is their authenticity and tangible impact, not statistics on a transcript.

Although, understandably, the high school administration emphasises post-secondary education, there is an opportunity to advertise and normalize these other choices. According to Fortune, while white-collar tech employees have been laid off in larger numbers in recent years, skilled trades workers are in demand and can often make six figures as a starting salary. Senior Sophia Bambas is pursuing an alternative route, hoping to join a workers’ union while attending community college at De Anza. She then plans to attend a university while majoring in Construction Management. Bambas described first learning about this opportunity at a construction camp: “Usually I would think ‘I have to do this for college,’ but this camp showed me there were other options, which made me rethink my future.” Although LGHS has programs that offer students an introduction to the technical field, publicizing opportunities like these to students more could be beneficial in fostering genuine passion and setting up students for success.

By prioritizing students’ authentic pursuit of passions and alternative future paths, we can lessen the harmful nature of college pressure in the LGHS community.

(Sources: Fortune)