As the college application season kicks into high gear, we find ourselves victim to the all-too-contagious “admissions mania.”
This article will address a specific facet of this obsession: namely, its unhealthy influence on the culture of student clubs.
The very nature of our school makes college admissions ubiquitous in daily life. And although it’s impossible to deny the appeal of starting or leading clubs as a means of resumé-padding, it is important for us to prioritize genuine engagement in our community and personal growth over the allure of the “perfect” application.
The administration has attempted to fight this problem. One of its many responses has been to increase the difficulty of starting clubs. This method is supposed to ensure that the clubs committee only receives applications from students who are genuinely passionate about their interests. However, it falls short for two main reasons.
First, it doesn’t do enough to disincentivize those who want to start a club just for the sake of college apps. This approach also won’t dissuade the many students (who I would argue make up a significant portion of applications) for whom college is a strong enough motivation to performatively found a club, regardless of the challenge. While this may seem innocuous at first, over time, the lack of substantive results yielded by clubs run by such people (e.g., when virtually no meetings are held, or when the only meetings held average less than five minutes in length) ultimately hurts others who are genuinely interested in the subject matter.
Moreover, although the high entry barrier for club creation was originally intended to deter these types of applications, in practice, it actually hurts dedicated students (who struggle to begin clubs focused on more niche or unpopular interests).
This problem is a product of a broader school culture that places an overly heavy emphasis on college placement. Which then invites the question: how can we change it?
Although this is not a question that can be answered simply, I believe that faculty, students, and our school as a whole should do more to fight the mania over college.
As a student, this could be through shutting down conversations when they turn to the topic of admissions, reducing comparison between one another, or by reducing the stigma against *gasp!* non-Ivy League universities.
The school should continue to emphasize mental health, especially as it relates to academics and admissions. Discussion spaces for honest conversations could be a great way to shift our unhealthy fixation on this topic.
As a community, we have an obligation to fight against the things that divide us and hold us back from happier lives. This issue requires the motivation of every member at our school—and while I recognize that it’s a lot to ask, I firmly believe that challenging our own mentalities is our only way back to a club culture built on interest and passion.
