Decisions

We are in the midst of Decision Time, when many colleges start releasing admissions decisions to the hundreds & thousands, if not millions, of high school seniors. It's a time of stress, disappointment, elation, relief for both students and parents and sleepless nights spent worrying about whether one will get in to one's dream college or not.

In the last few years, the number of applicants to colleges in the US (I am not aware of the situation for colleges in other countries although I think the situation is similar) has soared & competition has become increasingly stiffer for students wanting to enter the more "popular" & brand-name colleges. Previously "safety" colleges are no longer as "safe" as before. I suspect a large part of it is due to the increase in the number of applicants coming from international students (read: Chinese students).

W was recently accepted by a university in Florida. This year they received a whopping 28,000 students competing for 2,000 places in the freshman class. That means an admission rate of 7%. SEVEN PER CENT! This kind of number was only previously seen in the elite schools & Ivy Leagues.

This is getting crazier & crazier every year. Thank God we are done with this!