High school seniors have been applying to increasingly more colleges each cycle.
Although the model applicant still applies to just one school, the number of “high-volume” applicants for the Common App increased significantly, with each applicant applying to an average of 6.8 schools, up from only 4.63 a decade ago.
Adding schools increases the odds of landing a reach, but it raises questions about the merit of chasing prestige versus finding a good fit.
“I feel like students are applying to a lot of schools that they may not necessarily love, and I feel like the idea that you can go where you want and be happy and really enjoy the school for what it is outside of their acceptance rate has kind of really shifted,” senior Brady Clifford said.
Although they recognize shortcomings of this trend, students still feel compelled to follow it, as it has become the new norm.
“I’m applying to about 20 schools right now, and I would say what mainly motivated that decision is my urge to stay in California,” Brady said. “I love the area, and a lot of the schools I’m applying to are UCs or Cal States, which have one application each, so I can apply to a variety of schools with less work.”
Has the landscape grown so competitive that becoming a “high-volume” applicant is the only way to succeed? Some students would disagree.
“I am applying to six schools. I have two older siblings who have gone through the college application process before. I already had a pretty good idea of what a lot of schools were like,” senior Elisabeth Robilio said.
Applying to only six schools, which was historically very reasonable, has become an outlier in modern applications.
“I think that [more applications] are kind of pushed on students, even in Scoir, which like recommends for you to apply to at least 20 schools,” Elisabeth said.
Another result of this uptick is a heavier workload in senior year. For example, 20 applications—depending on the mix—can mean dozens of supplemental essays.
“I think it’s unnecessary. Especially with the amount of applications we have to do,” said senior Alex McClintock, who’s applying to about 15 schools.
Some seniors feel caught up in this movement to remain competitive at their top choices.
“It kind of skews a lot of the admissions rate for schools. It skews the ability for students to go to schools that they might want, and it’s just overall a negative thing,” Brady said.
“It’s so competitive to a point that it’s a kind of toxic, unhealthy environment, and I think it indicates the utilitarian aspect that some schools are kind of embracing against what education is supposed to be,” Elisabeth said.
