Feeling Average

Colleges & Universities New York University
1

<p>I’m new here, so go easy on me. Maybe relate or let me know what you think – and if you’re going to be a d0uche, you suck.</p>

<p>So all throughout high school I felt extraordinary. I did well, thought for sure I’d get into an Ivy or whatever. Got cocky. My stats by the end of senior year:</p>

<ul>
<li>SAT: 2250 (720 CR, 750 M, 780 W)</li>
<li>Graduated Magna Cum Laude (I think I was like .2 off from Summa), National Merit Scholar, whatever</li>
<li>Eight APs, did well on them</li>
<li>Tri-M Music Honors Society president, founder and president of my own little songwriters’ club, the lead in maybe two or so plays, homecoming king (just saying I was very involved and very much liked)</li>
</ul>

<p>I didn’t get into any of my top choices. Got into NYU and Vanderbilt – chose the former. Now I’ll be a sophomore at NYU this fall:</p>

<ul>
<li>Presidential Honors Scholar, a few other “Scholar” things I won’t name</li>
<li>3.9 GPA (4.0 in the major so far, 4.0 last semester)</li>
<li>English professor chose MY essay twice to show the class what an “A” paper should be (all I’m saying is I’m doing well in school)</li>
<li>Held a great job throughout the year, resume booster</li>
</ul>

<p>And yet, I feel so average. It’s probably all in my head, but I can’t help but feel that a part of it is the school atmosphere. Once in a blue moon I’ll meet a literary genius or a math snob, or a music virtuoso – that’s what keeps me going, that there are extraordinary people in the crevices of this university. But more often than not, I’m surrounded by people who don’t care for school, people who slugged through high school and did poorly, kids who love to party and can’t even manage a 3.5 GPA. Really vapid average individuals. Even kids I myself outranked by a LOT in high school are at NYU, and that kind of bugs me. I probably sound like a tool, right? But the thing is, I spend much of my time inside reading poetry and articles, working on my essays that are due way in the future because I care about my writing, my work. I want to be amazing – extraordinary. I spend time with friends and have fun once in a while, play a show here and there, but I also love learning. School is my fun. I freakin’ love my classes. I know it’s reductive to claim that NYU only has average students, but I can’t help but wonder what other colleges – like Bowdoin, or Princeton, or the school I didn’t choose, Vanderbilt – are like. Is it possible that there are a greater number of extraordinary, brilliant, ambitious people there?</p>

<p>So there’s this inferiority thing I keep fighting. It always goes away eventually because I love NYU. I love my department, I love the professors. But it doesn’t always feel like Hogwarts. Sometimes it feels … average. I’m not always proud to say I attend NYU. I got a 4.0 last semester and I hardly tried. Is it supposed to be that easy? I hate the idea of transferring 'cause that means I settled.</p>

<p>Does anyone else feel this way? Do you feel average when you’re at NYU? I feel average, but a part of me keeps telling me I’m better than that. Again, I’m aware I sound like a tool, but doesn’t everyone want the best for themselves? If you won a race, would you want the second place trophy?</p>

<p>Elie</p>

2

<p>insult to those that chose NYU over some ivys</p>

3

<p>Nice, you’re totally right.</p>

<p>I think about my valedictorian and a bunch of other kids who chose state school over Ivys (Harvard, Dartmouth), and I feel like an a$$ for even thinking these things at all. Prestige of the school you attend shouldn’t define anything. If you’re brilliant, you’re brilliant. Do well. Whatever. But these thoughts still creep up on me every once in a while.</p>

4

<p>Look, snarkiness aside (ignore Noob), transferring out of NYU won’t change the way you feel. A lot of the things you discuss (feeling average, but having a superiority complex over everyone else, turning inward, etc) won’t be solved once you get to Vandy or any other school. Every school has geniuses, people who don’t study, people who work hard, and so on. </p>

<p>You can change campuses, you can change cities, but wherever you go, it’s still you. </p>

<p>I transferred to NYU. I know other transfer who CAME FROM schools such as Swarthmore, Vandy, and Bowdoin. They are happy here. They found their place.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>Perhaps, but have you even looked for them right here? Or tried looking in NYC? Or are you convinced that NYU is a sea of mediocrity?</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>It doesn’t seem like it. And there’s a whole big city out there. There are meetups, poetry societies, clubs, both on and off campus. You really think in a city of millions, there are no people that meet your standards? </p>

<p>I really want you to take a good look around and a good look inward. Transfer out of NYU if you want, but the things you are talking about, they won’t change with a change of location. </p>

<p>Wherever you go, there you are.</p>

5

<p>Lovely response. Thank you.</p>

6

<p>

Freshmen year I took only MAP, English and History classes. I had a 3.82 GPA. You know why? Because those classes are easy. Soph year my life changed a lot - I had some personal/health problems. I briefly left college. And I switched to a Science major, because although I’m a bookworm, English/History aren’t for me. My GPA dropped by a lot. In my science classes, only the top 10% of students got A’s - 50% of students get in the C/D/F range, because that is the Bell curve.

Like you said, a higher GPA doesn’t mean you worked harder. Please don’t be condescending about GPA because different subjects have different grading systems. In a History Seminar on Women I took last Fall, 8 out of 17 students got A’s and A-'s! That is unheard of in my science classes. A 3.5 GPA should be above average unless Grade Inflation is present.

It’s good you’re so ambitious. NYC is a melting pot for artists and writers, especially here in the Village! Get an Internship at a Literary Magazine or newspaper and you’ll get so much insight and tips from people in the industry who write for a living.

I also turned down some schools that are better than NYU for financial reasons and wonder what it would’ve been like. It’s natural, you shouldn’t feel embarrassed. But don’t dwell on it because focusing on where you are now and taking advantage of NYC is what’s important. And Princeton will always be there for grad school. :)</p>

7

<p>Don’t feel bad about thinking that way. I’m kind of worried about that myself although I’m only an incoming freshman. During Orientation I felt so much more qualified than my peers, but I’m comforted by the fact that we have a large, diverse set of students so I’m bound to meet like-minded people. That being said, I also can’t help but feel like a complete ass for thinking like this.</p>

8

<p>^ Don’t feel like an ass. Just be open-minded because you’ll meet so many diverse students at NYU and not every smart person has the stereotypical “nerd” thing going on, you know? Just make sure you don’t judge by appearances because the geeky bookworm who lives in Bobst might not be as accomplished or ambitious as the kid who goes bar-hopping every other night. I made that mistake when I came here. For example, how could you feel more qualified than your peers when you knew so little about them? </p>

<p>And @ Elieheim: I’m not saying transferring out is a bad idea either. If you still feel like this next semester, you can still transfer to an Ivy or Vanderbilt if it feels right. </p>

<p>Or you can always switch to a Physics/Chinese double major. Then you won’t complain about your GPA behind too high anymore lol :p</p>

9

<p>Elie,
I too, felt the same way throughout much of freshman year. I took some MAP classes as well as lower level stern classes, and was sometimes embarrassed to be going to the same school as other students here. There was a real sense of people being disinterested, a lack of ambition, no one that was really LIVING their major, merely taking classes. I distinctly remember a girl legitimately spelling laptop “laBtop”, and arguing that it was the correct way to spell it. She turned out to be a wealthy legacy, who’s parents donate a LOT of money to the school. At Stern, when asked where they attend, most people will always say NYU Stern for the exact same reason stated above-a lot of the people here are dumb. I am sorry, it is true. Somehow, some way, they got in. You are going to meet more dumb, mediocre people here. They were mediocre in high school, and they somehow managed to get into NYU and jumped at the opportunity to come. There are geniuses here that make you really proud of coming, and people that land amazing jobs,internships,publications, etc. Try to not feel too disillusioned, you have only been here for one year. During my sophomore year I joined certain clubs and groups for people that are engaged in their craft- Econ Honor Society, Cryptography society (people who do upper level and graduate level math—for fun!), real estate groups, and discussion based seminars that really did challenge me and pushed me and my boundaries. Sad thing is, NYU is not very difficult to get into. We just are not that selective, and there are lots of people that completely floor you with their ignorance. Get into the honors program and take honors seminars, etc. Only then, when you opt to take more difficult classes when you have the option of taking easier ones, will you meet people who truly are passionate about their art, and learning.</p>

10

<p>Reading some of these posts kind of concerns me…I felt pretty average in high school (I went to a public high school, was in the top 25% of my class, did very well in my AP classes and okay on most of the exams, was very involved in after school programs and knew when to seek help for classes) and now I’m worried that I wont be able to keep up in NYU. Everyone I know who is going to NYU, or who got into NYU (LSP or otherwise), I consider to be VERY intelligent…Im worried I wont be at that level. I work really hard, but will that be enough for an average high school student in a competative college?</p>

11

<p>elieheim, I am also going to be a sophomore (in less than 2 weeks!) at NYU. Although I agree with a lot of the posts before me I can definitely relate to what you are feeling. </p>

<p>My classes last semester were a breeze (including dreaded Stern courses). As for those grade-inflated classes, I definitely felt “rounded-down” and average at times. A kid in my class who transferred to NYU even asked me if I wasn’t at least a bit uncomfortable with the intellectual diversity at school. It’s frustrating when even C students are getting A’s in my class while I was setting the curve with a perfect score.</p>

<p>I have to admit it was sort of strange when I realized that I was only person in my suite who actually used Bobst and the computer labs. But I think at some point I realized that there are a lot of extraordinary people at our school who care deeply about literature or science who are just for whatever reason lying latent beneath a veneer of mediocrity. For example, one of my better (and unexpected) friends last year happened to be an international student who flunked nearly all her classes. She was a great writer, was constantly checking books out to read for fun, and watching movies at Avery on her own time but she could never adapt to having a structured curriculum.</p>

<p>I’ve also found that some of the more interesting people around campus are those who’ve transferred from better schools. It is a bit disheartening to me that NYU accepts such a large number of seemingly average individuals especially through programs like LS (not trying to generalize as there. are plenty of talented people here as well). It just makes me wonder if I come off as unstimulating and mediocre as some of the people I’ve met; Maybe I didn’t get into any of my “top choices” because of some innate averageness? I don’t know. In a strange way, I’m glad I found this post as it is rather reassuring to know others feel similarly. I always had this idea that NYU makes it particularly hard for like-minded people to get together UNLESS they happen to be incredibly outgoing and proactive.</p>

<p>I hope I don’t sound like a tool either. Good luck with your classes. I am actually going to try to transfer out this fall but not because NYU isn’t a great school with interesting students. I’m just ambivalent about the program I’m in.</p>

12

<p>@SnappleSpice
Don’t worry too much. If you have a good work ethic you should be fine. I know some of the classes can seem intimidating but if you pay attention and attend classes you will be perfectly fine. In some of my morning classes, the kids who didn’t keep up were the ones who hit the snooze button too many times. They were also the ones who suffered any curves that were in place…</p>

13

<p>Grades are just a number. NYU recruits on more than just a number. I think besides just comparing intellectual achievements, you should also take into consideration how much success you have just living your life, intellectually, financially and socially.</p>

<p>If someone has a lot of friends, don’t you think he is doing well socially? Not everyone has great social skills. Those skills will make him a great manager in the future. If someone is making a lot of money, don’t you think he is doing well financially? His business mindset will allow him to eventually create jobs and distribute social welfare.</p>

<p>Getting good grades and being “academically smart” is not the only path to success in college. A lot of students understand this concept and rather than grinding and studying to get terrific grades, they are enjoying college life and meeting new people or starting new ventures. Some of them understand they are only young for so many years before they have to work for the next 30-40 years of their life so they are trying hold off growing up.</p>

<p>There are also plenty of ambitious students from NYU and in Stern who have started their own businesses and have made millions and are still only entering their senior year in college. One example is the girl who invented portable flats and currently sells to Ricky’s and manages manufacturing abroad. Another example is a friend who had below a 2.0 GPA and rarely attended class because he was busy trading. He ended up leaving school after his sophomore year and hes been making 900k a year since he was 21. When people look at him, no one is going to care he dropped out of NYU or had a 2.0 GPA. People will only remember him for his achievements.</p>

<p>There will always be mediocre people regardless of where you go. It can also be because you might just be stellar and everything comes easy to you. There will always be dumb people no matter where you go so learning to adapt and compromise is something you can gain from this experience.</p>

14

<p>In spite of NYU being a very large school; they admit alot of very bright students. I’ll be a senior at NYU (Stern) this year. I will graduate with honors. I did really well in high school, Valedictorian, NM semifinalist, other honors. </p>

<p>NYU has been a great place. I work 20 hours or so a semester, keep my grades up, and manage to have fun with my friends. I am not worried about being “average” at NYU. After all this is a pretty good school and a great city to be in.</p>

<p>Just be grateful you are not at Harvard or some even more prestigious school. You might not even be “average” there.</p>

15

<p>I think you take GPA and Test scores a bit too seriously. GPA is just a number which is pretty meaningless outside of the classroom. It can get your foot in the door at certain jobs/internships, but overall it doesn’t mean much. </p>

<p>I think you’re being kind of judgmental of other people too - clearly you love school and learning, but lots of people hate school or feel apathetic. Not everyone feels inspired sitting in a classroom 20 hours a week listening to some professor drone on. You’ll find lots of students who are average or below average in terms but they are active in Music, Sports, Theatre, Community Service, etc, something. </p>

<p>I’ve made all kinds of friends at NYU. Some are extremely ambitious and plan to go into prestigious MD/PhD programs. Some are complete stoners who don’t give a rats ass about school. Honestly I don’t respect either type more, I judge people by their personality and if they’re a good friend, not by their grades or chosen career or a meaningless number like SAT score. </p>

<p>Also, I don’t think the problem is you feel average. I think you feel above average here and maybe you wish you were surrounded by people with a similar mindset as yours? There are lots of people here like you though, so you should have no trouble finding your niche.</p>