Madison Woodall | Staff Writer
July 26, 2023
As GSP comes to a close, several college applications begin to open. Applying to college can be a daunting task. While some scholars may have a plan for where they want to go and what they want to pursue, many still aren’t sure. Regardless, the college panel held in Johnson Theater allowed scholars to ask RAs and staff all of their questions.
In high school, we may have several external motivators, such as parents, who will keep us in check about what times clubs may be or when we should get our homework done. When you reach college, it is on us as individuals to be able to balance class and extracurriculars most effectively. Several freshmen may find this to be a challenge. When presented with the question as to how to not fall behind when involved in so much, staff member Tana Field suggested not overloading yourself with classes and organizations. She suggested that your first year is going to be pretty full and that the home to college transition may be stressful. When you spread yourself too thin, you may struggle to keep up and open yourself up to falling behind.
When asked about how many colleges you should apply to, RA Kegan McDaniel suggested, “Apply to a variety of safety, middle, and reach schools.” This gives scholars the chance to have several options to fall back on if an option falls through. In addition, he told scholars to be open as they may find a school that they may not have considered before. While you should apply to several schools, RA Calder Beasly suggested that “the 19 schools I applied to may be too much.” He suggested that narrowing your options may be a good choice to avoid applying to schools that may not be the right fit. He recommended touring campuses and talking to students to see if those campuses offer what you’re looking for.
One of the pieces of advice several wondering scholars took away was given by RA Grant Gott. Choosing a major can be hard especially if you have a variety of interests. Some scholars may go in knowing exactly what they want but others may struggle to find what works for them. Grant, who also struggled with this decision, suggested you need to find a major that you, “enjoy the practice and outcome of.” Several people may be looking ahead and not enjoying the process of working toward it. To narrow that inevitable decision, staff member Dalton York suggested we take a semester or two of general education classes to decide what major we want.
While this daunting task is coming up very quickly, the college panel offered wonderful advice that scholars can take home to make these decisions easier.
