College Application season is upon Northgate High School, and seniors have been tasked with balancing their coursework, extracurriculars, and social life, all while managing the unnecessarily-complicated and time-consuming process of applying to colleges. I–along with the rest of the 2024 senior class–am navigating through just that. From asking for letters of recommendation from teachers, to navigating the UC, CSU, and Common App Portals, seniors have a lot on their plates.
As a public high school in California, many Northgate students gravitate towards applying to the UC (University of California) college campuses. While the UC schools are meant to provide accessible higher education options that prioritize Californians, acceptance rates have plummeted year after year. In 1997, UCLA had 29,299 applicants, and accepted 36.3 percent of them, yet in 2023, they had 145,910 applicants and admitted just 9 percent of them. While the UCs have become much more competitive over the years, that has not steered many Northgate seniors away from applying.
“I am only applying to the UCs and the CSUs because I want to stay in California and be somewhat close to home,” stated senior Malley Craig. Nomun Chuluuntogtokh said the same. While many are prioritizing applying to in-state campuses, some students want to travel out of the state for their college experiences.
Senior Nate Greenberg explained, “I only applied to out-of-state schools—like Georgia Tech and NC State (North Carolina State University)—because I wanted to find somewhere else interesting to live and explore the U.S..”
To gain further clarity on the “Dos” and the “Don’ts” of the college application process, I sought out the advice of Janine Santos, Northgate’s college and career counselor. She explained that in order to stay ahead in the process, “you want to get started early, as for example, the UCs open in August.” While it may be tempting to “write your PIQs one time and think that they’re perfect, you should definitely write them and rewrite them, have people read them, and get feedback on them before you submit,” Santos added.” Simply put, “don’t rush through your applications, make sure you review them really well.”
Santos highlighted how one “should not wait until the last minute to ask for a letter of recommendation for Common App applications.” She concluded by describing that the single most important piece of advice that she could give to seniors applying to college is to “log in to your applicant portals once every day or two, almost as you would with social media, to see if they are asking for anything.If you miss a deadline, they will kind of just dismiss your application.”
One of the glaring issues with the college education system in the United States is the sheer cost of attending a four year college. The financial burden associated with tuition, fees, and living expenses makes many hesitate from even applying to college in the first place. That is why it is so important to learn about FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and how it can help mitigate the otherwise heavy cost of attending college.
It determines eligibility for various types of federal aid, including scholarships, grants, and loans, and can partially, or even completely cover the cost of college, which can make a big impact in the long run. Mrs. Santos reflects on the importance of filling out the FAFSA: “the government can possibly give you grants, and every university that you apply to will see your FAFSA, where they can then determine what type of need-based scholarships or grants you may need, which is essentially free money for you.”
Craig and Chuluuntogtokh said they have both completed the FAFSA application. “The website broke down and I had to wait two weeks to get past one step,” Chuluuntogtokh said, adding that the next time she reloaded the application it worked. Malley added that she has been accepted to Cal State Los Angeles, and that UCLA has contacted her for more supplementary information. Chuluuntogtokh said the same, adding that Cal asked for letters of reference after her initial application.
The next few months of waiting for college decisions will leave a plague of stress and anxiety over seniors at Northgate and everywhere, but it is important to note that getting rejected from a “dream” college does not represent who we are as people or our hard-work throughout high school.
So with that, celebrate both acceptances and tolerate rejections, as applying to college is an accomplishment in itself.
For more information or to fill out the FAFSA application, go to https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa
