Bragging rights are not reason enough to have unrealistic expectations
While there are some young adults or teenagers who might feel they do not measure up when they do not secure the grades they need to make the cut in their first choice of institution, it is not always the case.
It depends on their aspirations and in some students, this is tied in with those of the parents or extended family. Some of them are totally ‘chilled out’. Their realities are different. They are not aspiring for an IIT, an Oxford or a Harvard. They are quite happy going to a local institution where the “cut offs’ (as the entry requirements are called in India) are not too high.
If your first choice of institution is your first choice only because of the coveted position it holds in terms of reputation and ranking among your peers and the family’s social circle, I would advise you to think again.
Bragging rights are not reason enough to aspire for a particular institution. Nor is the herd mentality.
Setting unrealistic targets and impossibly high goals can have a negative impact on the individual. High anxiety levels, stress, and in some cases depression, can be an outcome. Some amount of competition is good as it makes the individual push himself or herself and makes the individual set a greater target or goal but too much pressure can get to an individual and cause burn out.
As per The Harvard Crimson, the daily student newspaper of Harvard University, 42,742 students applied to Harvard College for the class of 2022. There has been an 8 per cent increase in applications, such is the competition to secure a place in Ivy league institutions! In my opinion, we cannot generalise, as each student is unique and so are his or her aspirations, social settings, financial situations and academic profiles. As I see it, the career quest like one’s higher education journey is an ongoing process, a continuum; one in which there are bound to be highs and lows.
The important thing is to hone one’s skills, aim to realise one’s potential and make a tangible difference in the world. From Ms Rema Menon Career counsellor based in Dubai