Hello guys. Sorry about my recent absence from this thread, but I’ve been ridiculously busy this week (and will be tomorrow and Thursday as well). In addition, I’m still under the category “Warning Level 2,” so my CC posts will probably be monitored until December 20. I know that this is an irrational fear, but I want to keep my post count down until then because if another of my comments gets removed, I’ll get sent to CC jail (and I really don’t want that to happen). I know that the probability of this happening is low, but there is always still that chance that I may unintentionally break one of CC’s bizarre terms of service of something (i.e. referencing a deleted post). Hopefully this doesn’t happen, but I don’t think I would’ve spent more time on this thread tonight anyways given my rather busy schedule.
In other words, this is my final post on this thread before decisions come out tomorrow afternoon. The anxiety is still there, but I’m a bit more calm than I would’ve expected; I think that this community has greatly reduced the tension of the last few days. I am truly grateful for all the encouragement and optimism (well, cautious optimism, if you know what I mean) that you guys have given on this thread; regardless of my decision tomorrow, this community is something that I’ll never regret being a part of.
It’s hard to believe, isn’t it? We have less than 24 hours before we’ll know our fate for the next four years. Less than 24 hours before this thread disbands and the community dissolves; less than 24 hours before we’ll all separate and pursue our own journeys into the unknown. Less than 24 hours before all this ends. It feels like a dream; yet, the experience, the feeling, the tension… everything is undoubtedly real. Decision day has finally arrived before our very own eyes.
It seems like it was only yesterday that we were still deciding which school, if any, we would apply early to. It seems like yesterday we were writing our essays, letting others edit our essays, freaking out over our essays, freaking about sending our apps, sending our apps, reading over our submitted applicants many times over to identify grammar errors and freaking out more…
It seems like yesterday we were worrying about our lack of interviews or financial aid emails. It seems like yesterday we were fearfully anticipating a decision release date confirmation as we watched all the other schools release their own dates. Today, we are no longer worrying about those things. We are, for the first and last time, worrying about our actual decisions, the decisions that are currently hidden under the text on our portal, under the tiger statue that, regardless of our apprehensions, is watching us for every move. He knows, doesn’t he? The decision is already out — we just can’t see it for another 24 hours.
Look at all the people on this thread. These people, much like the 4,163 other applicants who applied, will be waiting anxiously tomorrow for their decisions. After tomorrow, some of these people may be your best friends for not only the next four years, but your entire life. And some of these people you may never see again.
4,164 smart, talented, wonderful people enter. Only 700 leave. How do they choose? How do they, in a period of a few weeks, eliminate over 3,500 applicants? Are they not good enough? Is there something else that the deferred applicants lack? Is there a reason why some are deferred while others are admitted?
The answer, according to an admissions officer, is simple.
”We don’t know. If we did this all over again, we would accept a different group of people every time. Sometimes I don’t know why I raise my hand for one applicant and not for another, and I do feel bad about some of our decisions. At least the tradeoff is that we know that the students we defer and reject will be successful anywhere.”
So, your decision tomorrow does not determine your worth. It does not determine who you are as a person. You are who you are, and no mistake by any admissions officer will ever change that.
This year has been especially competitive. Not only was there a 10% increase in applications, the decision had to be pushed two days in order to reflect the extra time the officers needed to cut people out. Unfortunately, as a result, more people will be deferred. Yet, before you check your decisions tomorrow, it’s important to remember your true intentions.
Think about it. Why did you apply in the first place? Why are you here?
You want to change the world. You want to chase your dreams, give back to your community, and expand your intellectual horizons. If you are first generation, maybe you want to accomplish what your parents were unable to achieve. If you are an international, maybe you want to experience the true gifts of a Princeton education and perhaps plant your seeds of knowledge in the soil of your home country. If you are the first to apply from your school, maybe you want to explore an environment of opportunity beyond what your school could ever provide for you. Regardless of your reasoning, regardless of your purpose… never forget it. Once in that mindset, Princeton may be one door of opportunity, one path to success — but it will not be the only one you’ll ever encounter.
If you are deferred tomorrow, simply brush it off and look for other opportunities. Once you begin paying attention to the potential surrounding you, you’ll be surprised at what you will be able to find. As Helen Keller once said, “When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us.” Tomorrow will not be a success or a failure, it will only be the closing or opening of one door in life’s long journey.
Tomorrow is not the beginning of the end, but rather the end of the beginning. We sent our rockets into space in October; tomorrow we will find out if we landed on the moon or among the stars.
So tomorrow, at 2:55, when you’re anxiously refreshing the portal in anticipation of your decision, look back at this message. And at 3:05, when you know your decision, look back again. Perhaps you’ll find meaning when these words truly apply. Life is, to each one of us, our own individual story. Who is the author? You. Not Princeton, not Harvard, not any other school. The author is you, so be proud of it. Turn the page and begin writing the next chapter; write, set your mind free, and chase after your inner ambitions.
Success finds its way to people who are willing to put their hearts into the things they love, people who care about the wellbeing of others, people who genuinely want to make a difference. It is not at all determined by the college that you go to. It’s not that Princeton doesn’t need you. You don’t need Princeton. As I’ve said before, it’s not the school you go to, but what you do during your college career that defines who you are. Princeton may help to make this journey easier, but isn’t needed to complete it. Be confident in your application; you’ve spent much time and care crafting your essence, your personality, your talents, your empathy into a 12-page packet, and if Princeton does not appreciate these efforts, they do not deserve you.
With that, I’ll wrap up this ridiculously long comment. If I get deferred tomorrow, I’ll PM all of you guys accepted with personalized congratulations messages. If I get accepted, I’ll look forward to getting to know you guys a bit more over the next four years.
What does happen tomorrow, I cannot control. How I react to my decision, however, I can.
Tonight is the last night we’ll be Princeton SCEA hopefuls. So let’s make the most of it; find comfort in the fact that, when we open our decisions tomorrow, we’ll all be in this together. Who knows what combination of applicants Princeton will choose from this amazing community?
See you all on the other side.
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