College admissions: the bogeyman lurking in the shadows of every American high schooler's life. For some students, the college admissions process begins the moment they start high school; for others, it's like a game of procrastination—suddenly, it's senior year, and oh no, it's real. One thing is sure, for all high schoolers: from the moment they start thinking about the process, the pressures and anxiety that come with it will live rent-free in their heads until that decision letter arrives in their inbox. Students spend their high school careers juggling advanced courses, extracurriculars, and other activities just to gain a slight chance of being admitted to elite institutions and quell the fears that come with college admissions. And for …show more content…
Although Smith doesn't publicly share his political views, the stories he chooses to tell through his documentaries give us clues about his opinions. Viewers of multiple of his films can see that he wants to educate the public on hidden issues of American society through compelling storytelling (Gleiberman, “Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal” Review). This fact about Smith shows us that he has a drive to convey a true-to-life commentary of the stories his work covers. That said, because of his drive to teach viewers about the issues he covers, he is the perfect director for telling the story of “Operation Varsity Blues” and its surrounding scandal (Gleiberman, Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal’ Review). Throughout Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal, director Chris Smith exposes viewers to his intense rhetorical storytelling strategies. At the beginning of this documentary, Smith uses these techniques to foster viewers’ basic understanding of Singer’s fraud network and how it developed within the college admissions landscape of the
Every year, there are thousands of students planning and tracking their goals. Seniors in high school are faced with the tough challenge, while the Juniors are left to worry about another year. Finally, the point comes in a student’s life where they must make one of the most important decisions in their educational lifetime. That choice is, which college to attend, and it is a very scrutinous process. Two of such colleges are the University of Iowa and St. Ambrose University, and although similarities like majors and minors are evident, there are many other differences including student life.
... and our sense of guilt with his documentary. Which, while is not the most admirable technique, it causes the audiences to start thinking about what they are doing to help or hurt the educational system, and what our kids are receiving from the educators around them.
The college application process is one of the hardest parts of a high school career.
The institution of public education has been one of the most controversial establishments in the United States since its inception. More specifically, equality in the conditions and the opportunities it provides has been sought as one of its major goals. There is little doubt that minority ethnic groups have struggled to achieve educational equality, just as they have struggled for equality in other aspects of life. One way that minorities have tried to achieve equality in education is through lobbying for help in college admissions for their respective groups. This social practice has been debated on many grounds, including necessity and ethical permissibility.
In Allan Moyle’s movie Pump Up the Volume (1990), the protagonist of the movie, Mark Hunter, hosts an anonymous radio talk show that addresses the various flaws within the educational system. Though, Mark had not understood how large of an impact his talk show had upon the student body at Hubert Humphrey High School, student’s respond to the suggestions of action that Mark imposes, leading to a social movement against the school.
"Freshman Admissions at Berkeley: A Policy for the 1990s and Beyond." Academic Senate |. N.p., n.d.
In view of this “illness,” junior year also takes a toll on individuals. There is the ACT and the pressure to obtain a certain score to receive a scholarship or to be admitted into a dream school. As a matter of fact, the college application process is exhausting in itself. The stress seniors build up before they click
Most first generation college students are significantly older than the average, approximately 24 year of age (Pascarella et. al 2004). The surrounding low-income environments that many of these students are raised around can explain this late age. This financial pressure can also explain another category of first generation students, preparation (Chen & Carroll, 2005). These students are often less prepared to enter the college life. They have not been exposed to the necessary preparation needed to succeed on college admissions tests and furthermore don’t meet the performance requirements that universities and institutions require. Analyzing the prefaces that surround the environment of first generation college students aids in understanding current problems faced in college as well as assist in proposing solutions for this subset of
In the 4000 communication course throughout the year the class and I are studying methods and theories of rhetorical criticism. The best part about the assignment is any piece of media can be consider rhetorical because there is always two sides of looking and reviewing any artifact. After watching the film, Dear White People, I chose to criticize the movie and use it as my artifact for this semester project. The film directed by Justin Simien who also wrote the screenplay .The black feminist and rhetoric of social movements theories will help support my side in the paper. The movie setting is on an Ivy League college campus that is not as diverse as it once was. The president of student affairs and a popular student housing is young man by the name of Troy Fairbanks, who also is the son of the Dean Fairbanks whom is the dean of student affairs. The plot begins to change when Troy loses an election against a young prideful Sam White. The character Sam White is a strong black woman who also is the leader in her group of friends, is an activist for black power, has her own radio station on campus, and believes in change, the ex-girlfriend of
As a first-generation college student, the process of applying to colleges was not only an overwhelming experience, but it was a lonely one. My parents did not understand why I would spend hours perfecting my essay or why I worried too much about paying for college. When college decisions started to come in the mail, I was ecstatic that I got into the
Graduating High school is a milestone for many, it’s a step into the world full of opportunities and the next step to pursuing higher education. Many students begin the process of figuring out what college they would like to attend prior to even graduating, this is something that is instilled in students all throughout their years of schooling. Most high school students know what college they want to in their junior year of high school, while others conduct extensive research. Students want to attend a school that they can call their second home, especially because some students move away from home to pursue further education. Although Mark Edmundson has noted that higher education caters to consumerist tendencies of students, he has overlooked
High schools must begin to do their part in preparing graduates for the rigors of college. In the last couple of decades, high stakes testing along with state and federal mandates have put tremendous pressure on public schools to increase graduation rates (Steele 616). Sadly, high schools spend so much time on preparing students for the graduation tests that no time is left for the needed psychological preparation for college. High school policymakers need to reevaluate their desired results for graduates to include college r...
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin) is a public research university located in Austin, Texas. UT Austin was founded in 1883, and is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With a combined undergraduate and graduate student population of over 52,000 as of Fall 2023, UT Austin is considered a Public Ivy and is known for its significant contributions to research, with research expenditures totaling over $1 billion for the fiscal year 2023 (Blake, 2023). The “Varsity Blues Scandal” presents an ethical and legal dilemma within Texas’ higher education system. The case involves a college admissions consultant who advised wealthy parents on how to fraudulently secure their children’s admission to the University of Texas at Austin.
The process of preparing for college is an arduous process. College is an instrument used to have a successful life. However, getting into college is difficult. The competition for college admittance is extremely high. Most students do not take the necessary actions to ensure their admittance. Consequently, many students do not get attend their ideal college. Therefore, I have taken steps to make certain that I attend the college of my choice, By taking care of my class ranking, actively participating in school functions, and researching my intended degree, I have set myself up to attend the college of my choice.
When students are still in high school, college looms in the distance like an ominous cloud. Frankly, all of the students are scared about going to college. When students go to college they feel like going to the great unknown – to go to a place where they don’t know anyone. But after all college is not that bad.