Just Say NO!

sally305
Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:02:46 +0000

The idea of passing up colleges just because they’ve followed you for one reason or another and constantly badgered you? I think that’s low beyond low. It’s arrogant as well because it’s not something you’d do UNLESS you were already assured elsewhere.



Palier, I am sorry about your friend and the anguish that resulted from his/her suicide.

But I think you are being a little extreme in your reaction to why people might not want to apply to a college. The typical 17 year old is overwhelmed with college mail and has to start SOMEWHERE to narrow down the options. Back when my sister was applying to colleges, she was so paralyzed by indecision that our parents made her go through the massive pile on the dining room table and Just. Pick. One. Perhaps out of frustration, she proceeded to examine each brochure to see which one had the best-looking guys in the photos. That is actually how she made her decision. (She transferred after two years.)

My son got so annoyed by the constant stream of communication from University of Chicago that he refused to apply, even though it would have been a good choice for him in many ways. People do the same thing to businesses that bombard them with direct mail or email marketing materials. I wouldn’t call that “the lowest of the low.” I will say that I think it is “low” of colleges to solicit applications from students who, based on what they know about them, have a VERY low chance of getting in. Yet that is what many do in a misguided attempt to increase their selectivity.