As senior year begins, so does the season we’ve all been anticipating—and dreading. Application portals, essays, campus visits, deadlines, rankings, acceptance rates. With it comes a whirlwind of emotions that can crush us with their intensity. We are putting our all into aiming at a target shrouded in darkness.
In this indecisive time, as we exit our childhood chapter and enter our independent one, perhaps we can find solace in one realization: while we don’t know which doors will open our future, we can remember that closed doors need not end our journey.
So many of us are chasing a “dream school.” Maybe the real dream isn’t getting into the perfect school. Maybe it’s becoming the person we want to be.
The college search these days can place us in a state of panic. Our landscape transforms into the complete unknown. In a moment when I don’t know anything about my future, I hold dear the things that will never change. Whether I end up in New York or California, across the world or anywhere in between, at my first choice or somewhere I’d never considered, I’ll still wake up wanting to write. I’ll still care about protecting my peace and loved ones, fighting for justice, nurturing life, finding joy, expanding my horizons, and creating meaningful work.
The admissions process can’t reject your values, your drive, or your curiosity. You’ll carry your kindness, creativity, ambition, and passions with you. No college name could ever define you more than these solid truths. So hold them close to your heart.
This summer I traveled abroad to strengthen my Spanish speaking. What makes that experience unforgettable is not simply the destination; it’s the conversations I had, connections I forged, discomfort I embraced, and willingness to step into an unfamiliar place.
We visit a campus on a beautiful day. We picture ourselves walking the footpaths, screaming in the football stadium, laughing in the cafe with friends, nestled into the corner of the library with books, lighting up the night. We imagine lifelong friendships, a professor changing our life, falling in love, feeling confident. It becomes easy to think these beautiful futures can only exist in one place. Yet it’s not the gorgeous fountains or statues, the high-tech laboratories or world-renowned programs, the stone archways or nature walks, the ancient libraries or modern dormitories that create these moments. It’s the people who decided to participate in life. Choose to talk to strangers, apply for the grant, study the research question, join the newspaper or club, study abroad, stay up until 3 AM, travel, and volunteer. You create the experience. You develop the relationships. You grow yourself. The life you’re dreaming of belongs to the version of you who decides to build it wherever you land.
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