College admissions season is in full swing and the stress of application season is as apparent as ever. Students stress about the uncertainty of where and what they will study and which schools are considered “good” and which ones are not. For many it can feel like the next few months will determine the outcome of their whole lives—even if that is not true. 

 With deadlines for regular decisions quickly approaching, seniors at Mounds View and around the country are considering what to put on their applications. For many it may feel as if the decision to put a standardized test score or a certain extracurricular could determine whether they get into their dream school or not.

Nearly 80% of Mounds View graduates have attended college in recent years compared with the 61.4% national average according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In such a college-bound environment, the pressure of submitting applications is often increased. Mounds View’s college-focused student body has some benefits such as increased participation in school activities, motivation for students to perform academically and access to counselors that give information about financial aid. However, the stress can also lead students to be peer pressured into joining clubs, anxious about standardized testing, and uncertain about whether they can afford the many costs of sending applications. 

In this spread, we explore the adverse effects that extracurriculars, standardized tests and financial barriers can have on the college application process.

Across the United States, there are more than 1,900 colleges that do not require the ACT and SAT. Many of these schools temporarily moved to test optional during the COVID pandemic. Most of these decisions will expire in the next couple of years, leaving colleges to analyze whether or not testing is a good representation of students’ academic abilities. 

Standardized testing has faced much criticism for bias in scores. Lower income and minority communities have historically had less access to resources like study materials and tutors, leading to lower scores. According to The 74 Million, an educational nonprofit, Black students scored below the average in every subject of the ACT, with an overall composite score three points lower than the average composite in the 2023 data set. 

Even before the COVID pandemic shifted testing requirements across the country, tests faced pushback from minority groups. In 2019, the University of California was sued by the Compton Unified School District, stating that UC violated the rights of underprivileged students by requiring the ACT and SAT, citing discrepancies in test scores in the data sets from previous years. According to information about the lawsuit from Forbes, White and Asian students on average scored over 1100 on the SAT, where all other groups scored below, on average. 

Despite this, some studies show that these scores accurately represent students’ academic abilities. These tests are meant to compare students from different high schools on an even playing field. Colleges can only allot so much effort to admissions, so they can not spend time researching every school and how their grading, advanced course offerings and overall student body compare to other schools. 

Opportunity Insights, an institute researching obstacles to economic opportunity in the U.S., found that high school GPAs have a very low correlation with a student’s GPA in college. In comparison, students from the same demographic groups with higher ACT or SAT scores tend to have higher college GPAs. Dartmouth College cited this evidence in its decision to return to test mandatory, stating that it allows them to better compare students from different backgrounds. 

Despite its temporary position, students have been embracing the option to not submit scores. “About half of our admitted students submit test scores, and that would be similar numbers to the applicant pool,” said Mitchell Walstad, an admissions counselor for the University of Minnesota. The U of M is currently test optional until fall of 2027, when they, like many schools, will review their admissions data and choose whether to maintain their test-optional status.  

The reasons not to submit scores vary from person to person as well. “I’m not submitting my test scores personally … I think I could have done a lot better,” said senior Abigail Xiong. The ability to go test optional allows students to present their best qualities in their applications, without having to worry about how their test scores can impact their likelihood of being accepted. 

However, with the uncertainty of testing policy in the future, students may wonder how much they should focus on scores. Schools like Brown, Dartmouth and MIT have moved back to test mandatory, with the possibility for other schools to follow. “With many big Ivy League schools … and top schools still requiring standardized tests, if that’s a dream of yours, I think you do have to put more emphasis on it,” said Madison Hendrickson, Mounds View’s Career and College Coordinator.

As far as deciding whether or not to submit a test score, it depends. “I think you have to really strongly consider all the different aspects of your application. If you feel strongly about an ACT or SAT score, I think that it can only help,” said Hendrickson. Most colleges have a common data set available online, showing the middle 50% of ACT and SAT scores of their students, which can be helpful in deciding if a student’s test score best represents them.

 Though the argument around testing can be quite heated, it is still only one piece of a multi-faceted application. Most schools use a holistic review process, where schools take everything submitted into account. “There’s no one factor that’s ever going to be the single decision maker in a student’s application,” said Walstad. Test scores will be looked at alongside extracurriculars, GPAs, family circumstances and a variety of other aspects. While it is likely that testing requirements will fluctuate in the next couple of years, they will still not be the sole focus of an application.

Illustration by Lillian Landberg (Lillian Landberg)

Some high school students spend thousands of dollars before they even get to college, whether by applying to over 10 to 20 colleges, paying for specialized application counseling or even just buying a whole lot of things for their dorm rooms. However, the problems in the system lie not in frivolous decorations, but in the inequalities that these rising costs exacerbate. 

Application fees have grown in the past few years. According to US News, the average application fee in 2022 was $45, with some — usually more selective colleges — as high as $100. These application fees can be important to schools as it helps them pay their application readers after seeing a historic rise in applications according to CNBC. However, in general, application fees can discourage students from applying, especially low-income students according to Research.com.

One way to bypass rising application fees is to use a fee waiver. Some students get application fees straight from colleges, either by participating in admission events or just because colleges want them to apply. These application fees can help students who otherwise would not be able to apply. 

At Mounds View, some students can get application fees by talking to their deans. “There are accessible fee waivers for students who maybe can’t afford the application fee, which they can get from Mounds View, which is helpful,” Career and College Services Coordinator Madison Hendrickson said. October is also College Knowledge Month in Minnesota, allowing students to apply to Minnesota State colleges and universities for free. However, many students miss such opportunities because they are not publicized enough, or students do not pay attention. 

Other issues students can face include paying for standardized testing and then paying to send those test scores. “A lot of schools will end up saying that you basically have to send in an official score from ACT, and then you have to send in these official score reports — it’s not a huge amount or anything, […] but it does add up,” senior Zidan Elias said. To send an official ACT score, it costs $19, while an official SAT score from CollegeBoard costs $14, with a $31 extra charge for rush shipping, which would take one to four days. These costs are a reason why many colleges have started to allow students to self report test scores, at least when applying. 

The cost around applying to colleges only grows with families that have more money. From paying for private standardized testing tutoring to hiring a college counselor, some people are willing to spend thousands of extra dollars to get their students into prestigious universities. According to the Chicago Tribune, the use of private college consultants has grown rapidly in the past few years due to decreasing admission rates with increasing applicants and a more complicated application process. While there is not much that can be done to even the playing field with such counselors, some companies have started offering free college admissions counseling to all their employees according to NPR.

Furthermore, when applying for financial aid, the FAFSA is free to fill out, but the CSS profile costs $17 per college to send, which can also add up quickly. The FAFSA is an application for federal student aid including grants and loans from the government, while the CSS profile is used by colleges for non-federal financial aid. “It’s not just that, like, application initial cost. A big concern that I’ve had was with this CSS profile, which is like the financial aid thing. There’s a cost associated with that,” Elias said. 

However, even the FAFSA has limitations. “I think the most barriers [exist] when filling out [the] FAFSA, because some students are ineligible to fill out the FAFSA form, and that can be due to their citizenship status and their immigration status, which creates a lot of financial barriers for those families who recently came to the US […] so they’re having to pay for college in almost full, which can be very difficult,” Hendrickson said. 

Since paying for college is expensive, many students apply for scholarships. The most achievable scholarships are local, smaller and more specific ones. “It’s really important to think local — to think specific. So if you’re involved in any organizations, any groups inside or outside of school, the people you’re connected with, those are the people to ask [for] scholarship opportunities,” Hendrickson said. While many high school students earn scholarships, students can continue applying to scholarships during their years in college. 

With so many financial barriers present in getting a college education, many students wonder if such an education is even worth it. Other students are just tired of the commercialization of the whole process. “The issue there really lies with these testing companies that are profiting off of something that students will need to do,” said Elias. So while the process gets more expensive, students and colleges are still finding new ways to try to save money wherever possible.

Illustrations by Via Yang and Lillian Landberg, design by Isabella Kunc

For many students, getting good grades and excelling in classes is only a small part of their academic success. Over time, extracurricular activities have become an increasingly important part of enhancing academic learning. Although extracurriculars allow students to explore their passions, they have started to become a stress factor, often becoming simply a checkbox to stand out for  college applications. 

Students participate in extracurricular activities for a variety of reasons. Some may do them just as a hobby while others do them as a desire to try new things, develop new skills or make a difference. “The reason that I do all these activities is because I like to make an impact … for example, in Youth in Government, I’m able to engage youth, and I’m able to help them get into pre-registration or learn about the judicial system of America,” said senior Emily Ren. 

When choosing extracurricular activities, students often gravitate towards joining clubs or participating in activities that directly relate to the field of study they want to pursue in the future — commonly referred to as “spikes.” This allows them to gain deeper knowledge, practical experience and to demonstrate their passion for that area to potential colleges or employers. 

Extracurricular activities can also enhance college applications when competing for acceptance from very selective schools. “When there are two kids trying to get into a hard college, and they have the same grades and GPA, if one of them does extracurricular activities, that student will have a better chance of making it in,” said Mounds View Activities Director James Galvin. 

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, students who actively participate in extracurricular activities have a 15-20% higher chance of getting into college compared to those who do not. This is likely because extracurricular activities can provide college admission offices with insight into a student’s personality, interests, commitment to community involvement, ability to balance academics with other pursuits and willingness to learn. 

However, where students feel most pressured with these activities is the fact that colleges often look for extracurriculars where students have taken on leadership roles, made significant contributions or demonstrated sustained commitment. “The more that extracurriculars show what spikes you are interested in and specifically what importance [they have] on a national level or international level, and if you’re a leader and things like that, [the more they] can drastically change whether or not you have a good college application,” said junior Ivy Lee. 

This pressure often increases as students progress from freshman to senior. “I didn’t really think about college too much when I was a freshman, but as I got closer to college admissions, I started thinking about that a lot more,” said senior Isaac Tsai. Often, as students start preparing for college, extracurricular activities and leadership roles are often a means to better their application. “For example, National Honor Society, they put themselves in that club where they accept just being in that program for the hours so that they can put it on their college application,” said senior Jayda McAdams.

In some cases, students create clubs that they are passionate about to show creativity and commitment. However, in other cases, students will even go as far as to create clubs in order to make their college application “more impressive.” This habit results in clubs with no other purpose than to add to a college application, and the clubs end up dying once the student leaves high school. “I would strongly discourage against it because in the end, a real club should be created with the purpose of trying to create some kind of change,” said Ren. “I think it also shows in your college applications too because if you just create it, but you don’t actually do anything or you’re not really passionate about it, it’s so easy to read an essay about a club and be like ‘Yeah, this kid really doesn’t care.’”

Overall, for many students, college applications have created a high-pressure environment where they feel the need to participate in extracurricular activities to enhance their applications. This has led to an increase in students strategically volunteering, resume-building and overscheduling. While extracurriculars can strengthen personal growth and skill development, the emphasis on college admissions can cause students to sacrifice genuine interest and passions for the sake of appearances.