High school seniors await college acceptances with more competition than ever
Greendale, Wisconsin — Near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Greendale High School seniors Nicholai Galusha, Carly Antczak and Brady McCravens put in a lot of work to earn high GPAs.
But despite stellar stats and robust resumes, they're facing major competition. The class of 2025 is the biggest and most diverse in history, with 3.9 million high schoolers graduating this year, according to the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education.
That's why 18-year-old Galusha didn't take any chances when it came to college applications, applying to 33 schools in total.
"I just really wanted to broaden the options that were out there, because it's really a lottery with these competitive schools," Galusha said.
Galusha paid nothing for the 33 submissions. Fees typically range from $30 to $100, but many schools waive them to attract more applicants.
Through March 1, students turned in more than eight million applications through the Common Application, which is accepted at more than 1,000 schools.
"Seeing people be part of like 10 different clubs, be working since they were 12 years old, be in multiple different organizations, and it's kind of hard not to compare yourself to that," Antczak said.
Another factor driving the 6% increase in applications: Many universities no longer require ACT or SAT scores, including those used to reduce the number of applications to more selective universities.
Jon Burdick spent 40 years screening college applications at Cornell, the University of Southern California and the University of Rochester.
"As the universities try to be more selective — because that communicates value — students at the same time say, 'Well, I want to get into the most selective place, because that creates value for me.' So there's an incentive on both sides to apply to more places and to take more applications all the time," Burdick said.
Some universities have been overwhelmed by the flood of submissions, handing out more deferments and pushing back acceptance dates to deal with the volume. That is keeping anxious students waiting even longer.
"No matter how many applications they get, I'm just hoping they take the time to read my essay and take good note of who I am," McCravens said.
Despite a peak in the number of high school graduates this year, some relief is ahead as class sizes are expected to shrink over the next 15 years.
When asked what advice they'd give to next year's applicants, the three seniors said not to put too much stock into what colleges they get accepted to.
"These colleges don't know who you are as a person. It's just you on paper," Antczak said.
It's advice that's easier to accept — once the acceptances are in.
