There are certain statistics about the college search that stop me in my tracks.
This is one of them:
A recent survey found that three-quarters of college applicants reported fearing that one small application error could lessen their admission chances.
It’s one of those facts that you can’t unlearn. Let’s set aside the reality that the presence of a single error on a college application would have a near-zero impact on an admissions outcome. The fact that so many students believe this reveals a lot about how we as a culture have framed the college application process, especially when we combine this with the fact that many students view the college choice as a “life-framing” event. As a culture, we are treating the college application process like an overarching, end-of-high school exam that will weigh the quality of your education and foretell your likelihood of success. And as a result, our students feel they must be perfect to measure up when that test comes.
The word perfection is derived from the Latin word perfèctus, which combines the words per, which means “to complete,” and facere, which means to “do or facilitate.” Taken together, the original meaning of the word perfection means to “complete something to the point where nothing is lacking.” The modern use of the word perfect seems to have forgotten the “completion” part altogether in a world in which we judge movies after only five minutes. Instead, we focus on the second part of the definition of perfect and expect nothing to be lacking.
The default setting for life seems to be perpetually switched to “perfect.” We present our lives on social media as such, and we constantly strive to eliminate or hide from others what we consider to be lacking about ourselves. This shows up when we are talking with students about what they are expecting when they visit that college they have heard so much about. They are hoping things feel right and they “will just know” that this college is the “perfect fit.” Students see the statistics from certain colleges of the percent of the incoming class with “perfect 4.0’s” and “perfect ACT’s” and believe that for themselves anything short of that is lacking.
The truth is that in life there are always trade-offs.
You love music and want to take extra concert band classes? This might mean you are not able to take that extra science class.
You want to attend that out of state university? You’re probably going to pay more for it and possibly need to take out loans.
You want to make the varsity squad this year so you plan to put in extra training sessions? You might find it more difficult to fit in enough time for studying.
And yes, you want to attend an “elite” school? Sure, you’ll be surrounded by exceptionally smart and ambitious people. But also consider that you’ll be among many students who spent their lives being the top student in nearly every classroom in which they have set foot. If that college isn’t intentional about setting a collaborative tone, you might find a hyper-competitive environment that stifles growth, rather than fosters it.
College admissions officers also know a lot about trade-offs. In my career as an admissions officer, my colleagues and I would routinely balance students with 4.0 GPAs and students with less stellar grades, but who also possessed exemplary character or resiliency in the face of personal challenges.
Applicants, as flawed human beings, are not omnicompetent, able to excel in absolutely everything. The same is true of colleges. Every college has something “lacking” because they exist to educate certain kinds of students in a certain kind of way. That’s not a bad thing.
The truth is there are no perfect applicants, even among the students with “perfect ACTs.” College admissions officers are not expecting flawlessness, but instead want to see students who are excited about their future, who lean in to their interests, and who are committed to helping others around them. Wonderfully imperfect people do these things every day, and so can you.
You, as a human, are a work in progress. You are not complete, and as such, by definition, you cannot be perfect. Colleges know, and expect this. You need to know this too. So let’s all agree to exhale and let go of perfection.
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