What They're Saying
The college application process was full of stress. In my opinion, the worst part was the time that it consumed. The fact that I did not take my SAT's until December 4th truly hurt my ability to apply. I felt that the essay was the easiest part. At the end of the process, I’ am hoping to hear good news. I would like to play baseball in college as well. The whole college- application experience was one of the most stressful points in my life.
-Tyler B, high school senior
I was lucky enough to take complete my college application process through my coach because of sports. As I am only applying to one school, many people think I have it easy. Just because before school started I knew where I was going to play lacrosse, teachers and students gave me trouble, like, “"Ooh sorry… I'm not like you and already know where I'm going".” Little do did they know that I had to do the same thing that they are doing now, but I started earlier and had it harder. Instead of just applying to colleges, I had to apply, meet coaches, meet teammates, stress over scholarship money and, playing time when I get to college, and see what which team would accept me the best. Now that my application is complete and my papers are signed,. I am excited to attend.
-Kyle C, high school senior
For me, the college application process was very stressful. Being that Because I have absolutely NO idea on where I want to go, it makes choosing schools harder. I don't know geographically where I want to be. Sometimes I'll think I want to go to Florida or far away, but then another day I'll feel like I want to stay home.
-Victoria C, high school senior
I'm worried that I'm running out of time to get things done. Aside from school work, I have a part-time job, and I'm on two cheerleading teams. It is tough to balance my time, which I think hurts me because I’ve found myself rushing for deadlines and doing things last minute. I’m still very stressed because I still have things to do and I want to apply to more schools. I feel like I’m running out of time, and Ii feel like I’m annoying my guidance counselor by going to her office all of the time, which is kind of what holds me back from finishing my application process. I am very organized, and I have kept myself organized throughout this whole process, and I know everything that I still need to do,; yet the only thing that still worries me is not finishing soon enough and colleges rejecting me because they didn’t receive all of my materials.
-Victoria C, high school senior
At the end of last year, my parents and I were called down to guidance to start talking about my college- application process. During this meeting I learned a lot about what needs to happen during this process and to start some things over the summer. I started to get a lot of community service done to make me look better for September when I start doing applications in the fall. When school started in September, I knew it was time to really start the process of applying to schools. My teacher, Ms. Portnoy, really made us get down to business and start looking at colleges and even filling out applications. I felt as though I needed more time, so I started my applications, but I wasn't sure of all the colleges I was applying to until the beginning of November. During the end of November, I finished my all of my applications so that they would be in by December 1. I used the Common Application, and I felt it kept me focused because it let me fill out one application for all of my schools.
-Mark D, high school senior
I can honestly say I would have would’ve been unable to complete the stressful, tedious college- application process. Ms. Portnoy was always available and ready to answer even the most ridiculous questions. The materials available in the classroom - including college essay prompts, books, and other reading materials - and the activities we completed helped me to better understand myself and what I want to do in the future. Each step was outlined for us, and we were required to complete them, which really kept us on top of things. Furthermore, the information on hazing, Greek life, college financing, financial aid, and so much more really helped me realize that getting accepted was just the first step in this process. This was by far the most beneficial class I've ever taken in my four years of high school.
-Kelly D, high school senior
Ms. Portnoy has been very helpful to me in my application process. Doing the application process outside of school without any help can get extremely hard. It is a great tool to complete them in a timely fashion and correctly. This class allowed me to finish all of my applications on time for early action, and I do not I don’t have to stress about them anymore.
The hardest part of the whole process, in my opinion, is the essay. The essay itself is easy;, the only hard part is finding something interesting to write about.
-Brian G., high school senior
For the most part, the college- application process went pretty well. It was very helpful learning about the Common Application and SUNY application. The hardest part was completing all the supplements, only because there was so much to fill out and it took a long time to do. Setting up accounts on the Common App and other websites got me started and gave me incentive to start doing my applications. Also, having unofficial deadlines pushing me forward was nice. If it weren't for that, I most likely would not be done with my applications right now, and I would be very stressed. Ms. Portnoy helped clear up confusion, create time management, and prevent a lot of stress.
-Alexandra L, high school senior
I thought the college application process was stressful, but it was relatively easy. I was able to be more open to away colleges, and I realized that there are a lot of colleges out there. The process was overwhelming at first because Ii had to back track literally every aspect of my life the past 17 years. I do feel that Ms. Portnoy helped me get motivated to get things done and to really understand that I could do the applications on my own, and it was me who did it.
-Katrina L, high school senior
-Ashley M, high school senior
I had no idea what I was doing. If it wasn't for what Ms. Portnoy gladly teaches, I most likely would have not gone to college. Her teaching abilities were sometimes intense but well worth it because she once went through this and knew exactly how the process should be done. I saw my counselor a couple times, and I really didn't need her help with anything. The one thing I would do differently is take my SAT and ACT starting earlier and take it over and over until my senior year. I think that more people should be able to learn from Ms. Portnoy because she shows you the dangers of college and how serious college should be taken. She describes the differences between college and high school.
-Lansdale R, high school senior
