As college application deadlines approach, Newtown High School seniors are desperately trying to complete an abundance of essays, forms, and resumes in a timely manner. Given the current pandemic that is procrastination, seniors have been pushing their college work off until the last minute; myself included. This build-up of tedious, independent work along with the usual homework assignments and intense classwork can sometimes push students to use unethical methods of completing applications. On top of this, pressure to submit high standardized test scores makes the entire process seem insurmountable.
Something that has played an extreme role in my current stress surrounding college applications is the pressure to apply to schools Early Action. I am constantly being told that applying early will not only help my chances of getting into schools, but also make me feel more relieved later in November. This added pressure has not only induced added feelings of stress, but has also challenged my morals. Given how easy it is to plagiarize or bend the truth of information on applications, I have often felt tempted to go with the fastest way of getting things done. Although I have yet to fall victim to these temptations, many others have.
Since the software program Chat GPT was introduced in November of 2022, plagiarism has become much too easy and increasingly problematic amongst students. Chat GPT is able to give unique responses to almost any prompt or question one inputs. This makes it difficult for teachers to detect plagiarism, given that they are using computer-generated responses rather than copying published work.
Chat GPT has become an extremely relevant issue when it comes to the Common Application personal essay. Students have gone from using AI generated responses on homework answers to using it for the feature-point of their college applications. Using this Chat GPT for something as important as a college essay strips one’s writing of individuality and defeats the purpose of sending in a personal essay.
Another factor that has damaged the validity of the college admissions process is standardized test scores. Now that the majority of colleges are becoming test-optional, most students are only submitting scores if they are above-average. Despite the fact that these high scores can help applicants stand out, they are the only ones being submitted. This raises the average score that is required to be considered for a school, therefore making it more difficult for students to get in.
Schools being test optional have also increased the number of overall applicants. This decreases the overall percentage of students that a school can admit. Now, people do not have to worry about a low test score hurting their chances of getting into a competitive school, which pushes more people to apply.
I strongly believe that these standardized test scores are not an adequate measure of one’s intelligence or the qualities they would bring to the school, but I also do not think that going test-optional is the best way schools can prevent these scores from playing a large role in admissions. Erasing the average SAT and ACT scores submitted to schools, and not allowing the submission of standardized test scores is one of the only ways to reinstate equity in the college application process.
As admission percentages decrease and students feel pressured to go to extremes to confidently submit an application, the college admissions process is quickly becoming a game of luck. To make admissions more fair, prospective college students need to work honestly to complete applications and the colleges themselves need to realize that test scores do not determine whether or not a student deserves admission to a college.