college admissions culture is too competitive

Art by Sara Polster

Last year, many Samo students were accepted to prestigious colleges like Stanford and the Ivies. That kind of success sets a high standard for future graduating seniors, which can inadvertently cause considerable stress. Students will stretch themselves thin, and too often seniors tie their self-worth to which college they are accepted to.

Samo teachers and staff don’t ease the stress either. Most of the time, in fact, they support that sentiment through conversations surrounding college. This all pushes seniors to want to matriculate to prestigious colleges almost to an unhealthy level, sometimes valuing their college admissions more than themselves. There can be social pressures as well if your friend group is very academically driven. This is echoed by Ella Ever-Hadani (’26).

“If your friends are all getting 4.0-4.5s, perfect AP scores, and high SAT scores, there is definitely a lot more competition, especially if you're trying to go to a prestigious school," Ever-Hadani said. 

But is this competitive culture particular to Samo or does it affect other schools as well? Mark Schneeman (’26) attended Palisades High School from his freshman year to junior year, transferring to Samo last winter following the Palisades fire. 

“It’s pretty similar between Samo and Pali in terms of competitiveness,” Schneeman said. “Neither of them do rankings, and so there isn’t that battle for valedictorian, but still everyone is trying to get into good schools. I’d imagine everywhere is kind of competitive just based on how much acceptance rates have been inflated.”

College acceptance rates for the top 50 universities have dropped dramatically in recent years. University of Southern California (USC), for example, had an acceptance rate of 42 percent in 2000, a drastic change from last year’s acceptance rate of 10 percent. This drop is both an organic product of increased competition and also a vicious feedback loop created by schools like Northeastern and Boston University, which, through marketing and prioritizing ED applications, have generated a lower acceptance rate, making their schools appear more prestigious and competitive than they actually are. 

It is important to remember that the college you attend is not an accurate measurement of your value or ability, despite what parents, friends, and online profiteers have led you to believe. Success, achievement and happiness are not dependent on the institution someone attends, but rather the merit of their character and the extent of their aspirations. With that being said, good luck to all seniors!