With the surge of applications coming up within the next two months, many seniors are coming to a close with their Common App. The new addition of optional test scores has added many more options for kids nationwide, and trying to stand out in a pool of thousands can be daunting.

“It is nearly impossible to stand out and make yourself known in the way colleges expect nowadays,” senior Tally Feingold said. “It’s draining when all your effort goes into something and it still falls short.” 

Some students in Lake Forest have been tutored extensively to write essays to put them ahead. This can be very discouraging to those who do not have these tutors. 

“The hardest part of the college process for me is where to start. It seems like there’s so much I need to do,” senior Connell Sassen said. 

Being compared to peers has been a struggle for some students. 

“I think the hardest part of the college process for me is comparing myself to my peers and where they are in the process,” senior Mia DiValerio said. “Seeing people who already submitted all their applications or people applying to ‘better’ schools than me really stresses me out.” 

While some students are applying to in-state colleges, and colleges with higher acceptance rates, seeing their friends applying to Ivy League and high rigor schools can put an idea of doubt in students’ minds. 

Some students have planned out a schedule for completing their Common App essays. 

“The best way I can balance out the stress of college apps is by using the system where every week you complete an essay, or a certain part of the common app,” senior Angela Karr said. 

Senior Alexa Schweitzer uses a similar system to balance the workload.

“Managing all of the essays and keeping things organized seems to be the hardest part. I balance it all out by working on small chunks of the application every week so I can do well in school and still be productive with my applications,” she said.

As the college process has changed over the years, current teachers have had varying experiences in their application processes. 

“We didn’t have access to the internet and we couldn’t see visually what the schools were like,” English teacher Mrs. Julie Crouch said. 

U.S History and AP Seminar teacher Mrs. Laura Flangel says the college search used to be a lot closer to home.

“Very few kids looked at a national search for colleges like they do today. The assumption was, you go regionally near home. Exceptional students would maybe consider Ivy League,” Flangel said. “There wasn’t this search where you hire private counselors and worry, and design your high school education to service a college choice.”

The college process was simpler then, she only applied to three schools and had no ACT preparation. 

“College is not a place to show off to your friends and family, or to be a bumper sticker on the back of your car or a meme on your Instagram,” Flangel said. “It should be for you to be happy about the growth you want for yourself and what the college can give you for that growth opportunity.”

Mrs. Flangel has seen many of her students and kids go through the college process and the stress it can cause. 

“Here is the Momma Flangel mentality, don’t worry about who is applying where, don’t worry about how many people are applying, don’t worry about whether or not you are going to get in,” she said. 

College is a new adventure in students’ lives that can bring excitement.

“The college process should be about what you want and what you need and about what sort of experiences you think are going to provide you the growth you want,” Flangel said.