As seniors are hustling to get in scholarship applications, perfecting their college essays, and retaking ACTs, it makes us wonder, do schools even prepare kids for what’s to come? College is an essential part of many individuals’ lives, yet many students are questioning what steps they should take in order to prepare for higher education. We can clearly see the effects that college stress has on the students of Lincoln East High School as they are in a frenzy this fall pondering about their future.
College is a topic for almost any high school student, yet the seniors are the ones who are really put on the spot. Especially when it comes to prepping their college applications.
“I feel like schools could do a better job on having more plans for students,” Lincoln East senior, Nusrat Amin, said. “There is some guidance available on doing college applications, however it’s very minimal and surface level. It’s not like a personal college assistant. It’s even more of a struggle if you are planning on going to a college out of state.”
That’s not to say though that East does an entirely terrible job at preparing kids for the foundational skills required for college.
“For skills we have to learn for college I think a lot of it comes from our core classes, which I think East does a good job with,” Amin said.
In fact, even college students who have graduated from Lincoln East seem to agree with Amin’s stance.
“The initial change was fairly drastic,” UNL student Korben Ockander said. “I do wish that high school would better prepare you for other things required in college. However, taking higher level courses helped prepare me greatly and I think East does a wonderful job in that particular area.”
While seniors and current college students know what to expect, underclassmen are left in the dark.
“I don’t know anything about the college admissions process,” Lincoln East sophomore Grace Cai said. “Currently, any information I know, I got from other upperclassmen.”
It’s evident that East lacks some necessary tools for preparing students for college, especially for underclassmen. However, we generally do a good job with preparing foundational skills and providing many AP and college level courses. In the meantime, let’s wish our seniors well for submitting those college applications!
