In February, the writer moderated a conversation about the college process among 11 sixth-formers. Their comments served as a starting point for this article.
Choate students, with their many interests and aspirations, are bound to have different experiences here. And yet there seem to be certain unspoken rules governing the college application process, which reveal themselves in many aspects of school life, such as a student’s perspective on the value of extracurricular activities, his or her interaction with peers in regards to applying to college, and associated levels of stress. This article aims to uncover the intricacies of the college process at Choate, and present the community with various perspectives to consider, as it thinks about how that process operates and whether it needs to be improved. This is the first article in a series that will be published over the coming weeks.
Today’s article looks at the culture surrounding a student’s extracurricular activities, and the related pressure to secure leadership positions.
At the beginning of every school year, the green patch of land between Hill House and the library serves as the locale for Club Fair — an exhibition of over 100 organizations on campus that allows new and returning students to connect with student leaders and search for avenues to express their talents. Each organization tries to entice students to come to its booth and eventually join the club, while prefects and other upperclassmen advise underclassmen to join as many clubs as possible.
Choosing which organizations to dedicate time to is a daunting and exciting task for many Choate students. In the short run, extracurricular life will occupy a significant portion of their daily routine, from the end of classes to check-in at 8:00 p.m. Often, students will end up committing to between two and five organizations out of the dozens they initially joined.
In the long run, extracurricular activities will supplement their applications to colleges, showing their engagement with their communities beyond the classroom. Nils Lovegren ’18 reflected on the pressure stemming from this expectation, saying, “Most of the stress for me during the college application process has not come from the academics side of it, but rather from the extracurricular side of it. Trying to add on all of these extracurriculars for the colleges has been tough.” James Rose ’18 added, “As a prefect in a sophomore and junior dorm, people talk about the stresses that they have about college before they’ve even started looking at colleges, most of which has been about their extracurricular activities.”
This pressure seemed to infiltrate many students’ minds before they are even fully immersed in the Choate community. Michelle Zhuang ’18 described her interactions with some students, saying, “At Club Fair, both my sophomore and junior years, there were a lot of new students who approached me at my booths and asked me, ‘If I join your email list, will you give me a Blue Card? Is it easy to get a leadership position?’ I think this culture of joining clubs just for the sake of college applications is underground and not talked about much, but is very much prevalent across campus. I think the school is filled with passionate, motivated people, but I do think that the ‘college thing’ is something at the back of their minds.”
Moreover, every year, especially between the winter and spring terms, there is an influx of new club proposals to the Committee on Student Activities (COSA). On this phenomenon, Ms. Judie Bender, the school’s Associate Director of Counseling, said, “There seems to be a zillion clubs now, and I think a part of the motivation to create new clubs is to get a leadership position for that club. And I don’t blame kids for it. Every year, the process gets more competitive and harder. And the college process is almost the ultimate competition. Here, we’re very goal- and achievement-oriented, and it’s almost like the ultimate reward for working really hard — while giving up sleep and fun — is the college acceptance.”
The apparent need to “officialize” one’s interests and become the “founder,” the “president,” or the “editor-in-chief” is an aspect of Choate culture deeply rooted in the college application process. Ananya Karanam ’18 noted, “People here try to make things very official with this very niche interest, when they could follow this interest without having it officially be a club.” Many times, students are more concerned about how colleges perceived them — ideally, as an “involved individual” and a “leader” — than making a meaningful contribution to school life.
There have been pushbacks to this culture, albeit in a more understated manner, first from COSA, an organization frequently villainized for setting strict protocols on club formation. “What we’ve been trying hard to do in COSA is to push forward the process of starting clubs and push kids into a sufficient amount of thinking before they start the clubs,” said Mr. James Yanelli, Director of Student Activities.If a proper amount of time and thought is put into a club before forming it, it will hopefully be something meaningful to students, rather than just a nice addition to a resumé.
Ms. Bender reflected on how she advises students who come to her office, saying, “It’s hard to change the perception and it’s hard to change the culture. What I’ve tried to do is to ask, ‘Where are we right now?’ and allow the student to stay in the present. You can’t go back and change your last two years here. I remind students of the importance of moving forward in your own life and finding fulfillment in success rather than through college admissions.” Ms. Bender summarized, saying that she believes students should do what they are passionate about, not what they believe colleges want to see.
Head Prefect Zara Harding ’18 is one of the many seniors who give helpful advice to underclassmen, encouraging them to approach the subject in a more even-keeled manner. She explained, “When I talk to underclassmen, I try to tell them that they don’t need to be taking six classes, trying to be on a varsity sport every term, participating in a million clubs. Yes, the colleges do see your four years, but they’re really looking for improvement and commitment, and that doesn’t necessarily have to start out as doing a million things right off the bat.”
______________________
At the beginning of every school year, the green patch of land between Hill House and the library serves as the locale for Club Fair — an exhibition of over 100 organizations on campus that allows new and returning students to connect with student leaders and search for avenues to express their talents. Each organization tries to entice students to come to its booth and eventually join the club, while prefects and other upperclassmen advise underclassmen to join as many clubs as possible.
Choosing which organizations to dedicate time to is a daunting and exciting task for many Choate students. In the short run, extracurricular life will occupy a significant portion of their daily routine, from the end of classes to check-in at 8:00 p.m.. Often, students will end up committing to between two and five organizations out of the dozens they initially joined.
In the long run, extracurricular activities will supplement their applications to colleges, showing their engagement with their communities beyond the classroom. Nils Lovegren ’18 reflected on the pressure stemming from this expectation, saying, “Most of the stress for me during the college application process has not come from the academics side of it, but rather from the extracurricular side of it. Trying to add on all of these extracurriculars for the colleges has been tough.” James Rose ’18 added, “As a prefect in a sophomore and junior dorm, people talk about the stresses that they have about college before they’ve even started looking at colleges, most of which has been about their extracurricular activities.”
This pressure seemed to infiltrate many students’ minds before they are even fully immersed in the Choate community. Michelle Zhuang ’18 described her interactions with some students, saying, “At Club Fair, both my sophomore and junior years, there were a lot of new students who approached me at my booths and asked me, ‘If I join your email list, will you give me a Blue Card? Is it easy to get a leadership position?’ I think this culture of joining clubs just for the sake of college applications is underground and not talked about much, but is very much prevalent across campus. I think the school is filled with passionate, motivated people, but I do think that the ‘college thing’ is something at the back of their minds.”
Moreover, every year, especially between the winter and spring terms, there is an influx of new club proposals to the Committee on Student Activities (COSA). On this phenomenon, Ms. Judie Bender, the school’s Associate Director of Counseling, said, “There seems to be a zillion clubs now, and I think a part of the motivation to create new clubs is to get a leadership position for that club. And I don’t blame kids for it. Every year, the process gets more competitive and harder. And the college process is almost the ultimate competition. Here, we’re very goal- and achievement-oriented, and it’s almost like the ultimate reward for working really hard — while giving up sleep and fun — is the college acceptance.”
The apparent need to “officialize” one’s interests and become the “founder,” the “president,” or the “editor-in-chief” is an aspect of Choate culture deeply rooted in the college application process. Ananya Karanam ’18 noted, “People here try to make things very official with this very niche interest, when they could follow this interest without having it officially be a club.” Many times, students are more concerned about how colleges perceived them — ideally, as an “involved individual” and a “leader” — than making a meaningful contribution to school life.
There have been pushbacks to this culture, albeit in a more understated manner, first from COSA, an organization frequently villainized for setting strict protocols on club formation. “What we’ve been trying hard to do in COSA is to push forward the process of starting clubs and push kids into a sufficient amount of thinking before they start the clubs,” said Mr. James Yanelli, Director of Student Activities.If a proper amount of time and thought is put into a club before forming it, it will hopefully be something meaningful to students, rather than just a nice addition to a resumé.
Ms. Bender reflected on how she advises students who come to her office, saying, “It’s hard to change the perception and it’s hard to change the culture. What I’ve tried to do is to ask, ‘Where are we right now?’ and allow the student to stay in the present. You can’t go back and change your last two years here. I remind students of the importance of moving forward in your own life and finding fulfillment in success rather than through college admissions.” Ms. Bender summarized, saying that she believes students should do what they are passionate about, not what they believe colleges want to see.
Head Prefect Zara Harding ’18 is one of the many seniors who give helpful advice to underclassmen, encouraging them to approach the subject in a more even-keeled manner. She explained, “When I talk to underclassmen, I try to tell them that they don’t need to be taking six classes, trying to be on a varsity sport every term, participating in a million clubs. Yes, the colleges do see your four years, but they’re really looking for improvement and commitment, and that doesn’t necessarily have to start out as doing a million things right off the bat.”
