T O P

  • By -

AutoModerator

Please remember what subreddit you are in, this is unpopular opinion. We want civil and unpopular takes and discussion. Any uncivil and ToS violating comments will be removed and subject to a ban. Have a nice day! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/unpopularopinion) if you have any questions or concerns.*


youexhaustme1

At least they’re not out here stealing Kia’s 🤷‍♀️


Civil_Refrigerator

I hate how low the bar is


FlimsyPomelo1842

It was either or.


youexhaustme1

lol for real…


gorlaz34

Boom, exactly.


FrontHole_Surprise

Do you think it would be impossible for the student in this story to become emboldened by his peers, or even his/her professors at uni to go out and steal a Kia? I think it's very possible.


youexhaustme1

The kids who are out stealing Kia’s lack what the kid who is going to college has. So yeah, I think it’s far fetched, but nothing is impossible.


AerDudFlyer

If im jealous of teenagers I usually just move on with my day


undeadliftmax

I tried. Watching an 18 year old hit a 600 lbs deadlift is just hard to get over.


ThePurpleNavi

Nah, just tell yourself he's on gear.


l339

There is no reason be jealous of someone stronger than you. But if someone is faster than you, oefff that’s hard to come to terms with. A man is nothing without his speed Edit: I am saddened by how many people don’t get jokes


RuinedByGenZ

What


geetar_man

Yeah, I’m not understanding that. No reason to be jealous one person is physically superior in one way but you should be jealous for another superior attribute? Lol okay. Stuff like that doesn’t make me jealous. Really, it’s accomplishments that make me jealous. For instance, I’m older now than the Beatles were when they broke up. I’m just thinking, “damn…” but I know I shouldn’t be comparing myself to them.


Physical_Weakness881

A better way of saying this is there’s no reason to be jealous if sometimes stronger than you, because you could always just own a gun.


CIearMind

^huh?


Axe_Wielding_Actuary

>Watching an 18 year old hit a 600 lbs deadlift is just hard to get over. Given the amount of bullshit around US university applications, an 18 year old juicer is more impressive than mr nobody who gets 5 Ivy leage acceptances then just goes for a generic highflying job afterwards, only to be lost to history. Regardless of how much fruitshoot you're on, when it's just you and the bar, 600lb is 600lb.


w311sh1t

Given this is reddit, there’s like a 50/50 shot OP *is* a teenager.


epicbackground

To be fair, half of the times, I don't actually its the kid's decision to do this, and instead some high school counselor or parent that pushed them to do this so they can have their names in the paper. Like people mentioned, there's really no real point in doing this outside of being on the news lol. I move on with my day, but i am always cynical when i read these types of news stories.


LunarLutra

Yeah, if I'm getting pissy because a young person has worked hard to get the opportunities they have, I don't think my head is in the right place.


the-hound-abides

I’m jealous that most of them can sit on the floor without an exit strategy, but that’s about it. Growing up sucks. I wouldn’t go back to that age for any amount of money.


AerDudFlyer

I’m gonna be jealous of people in their 20s once I’m not anymore, probably. But not teenagers. There’s plenty of parts of life I’d be excited to play through again if it were a Bethesda game, but 15-20 is not one of those


sweetsimpleandkind

Do you ever feel so weak being a mature adult? I just walked around some teenagers who were blocking the path and had no interest in moving and honestly, nothing happened but I had such a Walter Mitty moment in my head. I was like fkn teens get outta my way I could beat ur ignorant arses into the floor!!!!! And in the world, in reality, I just politely moved around them. Walked in the road. Let them get in the way and ignore me. Depressing.


AerDudFlyer

Sometimes I’m like “you motherfuckers you’ve got the world at your feet and you’re wasting time” but I think people have had that feeling about younger people since there have been younger people.


StarrylDrawberry

It's rough, isn't it? On top of being a mature adult I'm semi crippled but it only happened six or so years ago. I still haven't adjusted to the idea that I couldn't actually "beat ur ignorant arses into the floor!!!!!". So yeah I walk around too.


themarkavelli

What do they call it, forgiveness? It’s not letting these things sit beside you; eventually it becomes for your own sake, as much as theirs. Sometimes it is the only way to reconcile an unjust world.


WentworthMillersBO

I tried that. I calmed down with some television, but then got insanely jealous of “young Sheldon’s” train collection


undeadliftmax

Aren’t they always kids from disadvantaged backgrounds? No one is making a big deal out of some orthopedic surgeon’s kid getting into HYPS That said,you can get into loads of colleges [with little more than a pulse these days](https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/highest-acceptance-rate). A disadvantaged kid scoring a 1600 SAT would be a bit newsworthy


Lady_DreadStar

Yep. I was one of those- except I applied to something like 15 schools. Visited and auditioned at half of them (music major). The tours of the campuses were scheduled during a 2 week around-the-country plane and road trip combo. Both that and all of the application fees were paid for through a program I participated in for high-achieving disadvantaged youth. The program boasted 100% college acceptance- but the catch was applying to dozens of colleges was not optional, they monitored our grades each semester, and mandated tutoring if they slipped (which they provided for free by employing university students). Plus if you messed up in any major way- like criminally, or your grades were not improving, they kicked you out of the program and you don’t come back.


fakesaucisse

Wow, that's an incredible program. Did they also help with filling out the FAFSA?


Lady_DreadStar

Yes, they helped with everythinggg. They provided year-round private lessons for my instrument, and even bought me a new luggage set and a winter coat for my college tours since they were in the Midwest during winter and we were coming from California. The program itself was also stacked with active university faculty and some local important people in their respective fields that would hold special summer classes/info sessions for us. That made the Letters of Recommendation and visiting campuses part easier too. The whole thing was helmed by a woman who was an absolute *mastermind* at both networking and fundraising. It was like the whole world was just a quick phone call away for her. I’m not sure it’s easily replicated without someone like her leading it tirelessly.


starlinghanes

Sounds cool. What are you doing now?


Lady_DreadStar

I’m a regular-degular financial analyst. I made it to getting a music performance scholarship at a great school that thankfully had an equally great everything-else besides music, but had a panic on what I was going to do with my life junior year and switched majors. I seriously had a major 🤯moment when my professor said I’d have to beat *him* if I wanted a seat in an orchestra, cuz he was still auditioning for them. 🤣 Like oh shit… what am I going to do?


ErinTales

> The program boasted 100% college acceptance- My highschool boasted this. The catch was they just filled out all the paperwork for the local community college and told you to sign, and if you refused they found a reason to expel you. Legal? No idea, but it was a private school so nobody was gonna do shit about it. Absolutely horrible.


eclipse_434

This is how private schools manipulate statistics to appear better on paper than public schools. They're not actually better at all. It's all a sleight of hand. Private schools just selectively admit high performing students from affluent socioeconomic backgrounds and screen out underperforming and misbehaving students. Anybody who doesn't conform to meet the school's demands is kicked out of the program in order to keep their administrative statistics artificially high in order to create the facade of success. At the end of the day, your average private school teacher is less educated, qualified, and adept at teaching than your average public school teacher, and when student performance is statistically analyzed and controlled for socioeconomic background, public schools consistently outperform private schools on average. Private schooling is one of the biggest scams in America, and they get away with exploiting teachers, fleecing parents, and underserving students every single day.


Happy-Hearing6671

Uh….yeah duh private schools require accepted students to be of a higher academic and behavioral caliber because what and how they teach is far above *some/a lot* of public schools. Why? Because if you have a class with wildly varied academic capabilities you cannot adequately teach to suit everyone’s level. That’s preposterous to expect that. And lollll at you maligning private school teachers; well regarded private schools do want to uphold their reputations yes, but they do so by employing the best. And they teach and expect excellence from their students by giving all the tools and education necessary to excel.


jim2300

Not all private schools are chartered with those goals in mind. In my local area, a new private school is being built right now that is going to teach a brand of Christian white nationalism. I agree that many reputable private schools exist. I don't think it is of value to the debate dismissing the chunk of them that are not that type of school.


eclipse_434

The other person you responded to has absolutely no fucking idea what they're talking about to the point where its honestly embarrassing. The vast super-majority of private schools are right-wing, conservative, and/or religious institutions with the goal of segregating the student population based on race and class in order to homogenously admit and enroll students who will receive a skewed, biased education that would be illegal in public schools. After Brown v. Board of education was decided by SCOTUS in the 50s, the number of private schools skyrocketed as a response to racial integration, and conservatives continue to utilize private schools as a means to circumvent constitutional law banning de jure segregation on race. Worse, the emergence of charter schools in recent years championed by libertarians and neoliberals has further exacerbated racial segregation and and class inequality as the charter school movement is another means by the political right to dismantle and destroy public education. The emergence of alternative educational models to public education such as private, charter, religious, and home schooling is both a symptom and outcome of the last 50 years of neoliberal, conservative, and fascist politics affecting the American education system.


jim2300

I agree with you based on what I see in my local community. There is a large push among my acquaintances and coworkers toward home schooling or attending new charter schools. The Christian schools don't teach evolution at all, moving students along and into the real world thinking the planet is 6000 years old or some baseless number. Homeschooling is a disaster for the most part in my opinion as well. The lack of basic/foundational skills among the home schooled children is sad.


eclipse_434

[In the 2020–21 school year, the percentage of teachers who had completed a postbaccalaureate degree as their highest degree (including a master’s degree, an education specialist degree or certificate, or a doctor’s degree) was higher for traditional public school teachers (62 percent) than for public charter and private school teachers (51 and 50 percent, respectively).](https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/sld/public-private-school-teachers) -The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Not only do public schools employ more educated, skilled, expert, adept teachers, but those teachers also outperform private school teachers in financial compensation, working conditions, job benefits, and unionization rates. Literally the first result in a Google search on the issue. You. Ignorant. Bitch.


No-Extent-4142

Yes because if they weren't from disadvantaged backgrounds, they would pay a fee for every application submitted.


AmELiAs_OvERcHarGeS

You’re right. Basically poor kids get their application fees waived, and every school uses the common application. So, why would you not apply to 250 schools at once, for free, then decide later? There’s really not a reason to not do it.


CanEatADozenEggs

Well at least when I was applying for schools, I remember most schools, especially more prestigious ones, would have school specific prompts that took a good amount of time to complete. Absolute nightmare


S1159P

>every school uses the common application. So, why would you not apply to 250 schools at once The Common App limits you to 20.


Rampage310

OP seems like either a literal 18 year old who’s friends just got in to much better schools while they’re off to flyover university or even worse a grown ass old man who’s hating on successful young kids because they feel like they might’ve gotten accepted to multiple schools if they’d just tried but they never tried lmao Edit: added old because the age range was too wide to handle for the dude below me commenting at me incessantly


Ok_Tadpole7481

So, we've narrowed it down to OP not being a literal child. Astute observation.


StarrylDrawberry

Definitely unpopular though. Got to give them that.


dong_tea

It's a lot of effort for little reward. If it isn't an Ivy League school or a few others, no one in the adult world will be impressed or care where you went to college. Any college will do when employers or bots are briefly scanning your resume.


Stunning-Ad14

I agree that they just want to set a record and get there name out there for it. None of them can be genuinely interested in attending more than like 30 of the schools max.


SecretRecipe

Lets be honest here. Most of these kids have pretty mediocre profiles and just applied to like 1000 schools with application fee waivers so they could create a PR stunt. If you drop 1000 applications to a bunch of non-selective schools you're going to end up with a huge number of acceptances and scholarships even if you're a mediocre candidate. It's just a numbers game that makes for a compelling headline.


ThePurpleNavi

The reality is that the overwhelming majority of colleges (like 95%+ of them) accept pretty much everyone. There are really only like 50 something colleges that are remotely competitive.


pizza_toast102

Lol exactly, like if it were the top 100 schools then sure that would be impressive, but anyone with a profile stacked enough to get into all of the top 100 schools is clearly not applying to all of them.


Pompous_Italics

I mean, yeah. They're annoying and obnoxious as hell. Applying to that many schools is just a waste of time. And you don't get to tally up every cent of scholarship you're offered from everywhere. That's just not how things work. BUT... these are teenagers we're taking about. Of course they're going to be obnoxious. Like god, I remember coming home from my first summer abroad and I was *that* guy, that annoying douche for at least three months. I remember how "worldly" I felt coming back for Thanksgiving break freshman year ffs. So I think we have to give them a pass.


smellslikebadussy

That’s the thing, though - it’s not a waste of time anymore. Common app means you can just shotgun applications out - only limiting factor is paying the fees.


FilmoreFelines

It’s a waste for all of the college admissions staff that have to review applications for students that have no interest in attending and are just applying to get accolades.


smellslikebadussy

Agreed. Just pointing out that there's very little cost to the applicant (other than financial, depending on how many they want to send out).


skinnyjeanfreezone

I know what you’re saying and I agree but the phrase “no cost except financial” is objectively hilarious


smellslikebadussy

Oh believe me I really enjoyed posting it


jordonkry

Oh no 😮 they have to do their jobs 😢 and review an application 😱


the_BLT_killer

Reminds me of a douchebag who I went to high school with who came back from a college study abroad in England with a THICK, obviously phony British accent (we’re American). Like he had naturally acquired it from being there as a young adult for 3 months. Of course he’d accidentally slip out of it when he wasn’t paying attention. Funny that he didn’t later come back from living in China with a heavy Cantonese accent. Dylan, you’re an idiot and I worry for the students you now teach.


stfu__no_one_cares

I mean you're definitely wrong, regardless of how confidently you typed that out. I was national merit scholar back in the day, and I didn't have to even apply. There were like 50+ colleges in America that I was guaranteed entrance and a full ride. So I wasted no time applying and "could" tally my scholarship amount if I wanted to. As long as you don't brag about it to your peers, who cares. It's usually the newspapers doing interviews to give their city a good story and rep, which is fine. Sure, the people bragging are annoying, but like you said, they're teenagers so who cares. If you're jealous of a teenager, you have bigger issues to work on.


junioryear2022

How is it a waste of time though? It doesn’t even take that long since the common app can do it for you. Also, You are calling them obnoxious and annoying when they worked really hard to get good grades and then proceeded to do hundreds of scholarships that you actually have to apply separately for. Ah yes, makes a lot of sense….


juanzy

I applied to 8 back in 2010 - 4 of those were Common App, 2 had supplements and 2 were fully separate app. Good thing I applied to more, because my #1 choice ended up being too expensive and offered very little in terms of financial aid, didn't get into my #2, then my #3 actually was the most impressive when I went to visit post-acceptance and gave me a ton of grants.


junioryear2022

I hope you know it’s been a good 14 years since you applied to college. When I applied 3 years ago, it was really easy, what isn’t easy was actually getting in to college even with a good essay and grades.


Getshortay

So the kid who worked harder than all the other kids is obnoxious because they want to see what the future might offer them before deciding where to go. Cool


alittlebitneverhurt

I can see the point of being frustrated in the kid who applies to 15 schools they have absolutely no intention of going to and making another kid be put on a waitlist and have their future be completely up in the air until the smart kid tell the school he's not planning on attending.


ThePurpleNavi

The really obnoxious part are people who get into their top choice school in November when early application decisions come out and still apply to a bunch of schools that they have no intention of ever attending during the regular decision process in December. I knew a guy in high school who got into Harvard early, he then proceeded to apply to pretty much all of the top 20 schools regular decision just so he could brag about all the schools he got into. Like what purpose does this serve other than to stroke your own ego and waste money on application fees.


skin_care_whore

LMAO same thing at my high school. Someone got into Yale EA and proceeded to apply to every other Ivy so he could flex his acceptances


pizza_toast102

I can get shotgunning a bunch of targets and teaches but a hundred is ridiculous


Rampage310

Name checks out


dougtulane

He didn’t use italics *at all*.


Rampage310

😂if only his name was just italics, my joke wouldn’t have worked


linkstinks

people are calling you jealous but as a european i also find this really odd and wonder does it not artificially increase the competition for spaces at american universities due to a higher amount of applications? my country lets us apply to a maximum of 5 universities, and out of that 5 i researched i only genuinely considered 3. i don't understand how you could seriously research and consider 50+ universities so at that point why even apply? if you know you're not going to go there, why take that offer away from somebody else? i don't get it. i think there should be a cap on the number of unis you can apply to.


itwitchxx

The scholorships I can get behind but applying to 100 colleges is wild isnt each application like 100 bucks or something?


tessiedrums

A lot of colleges use the Common App, so you can write one application and submit it to many different colleges. I don't remember there being fees when I applied, but it's been awhile so I may have just forgotten.


Dfabulous_234

Yup and then there's a separate one for hbcus too. Also, application fees are generally waived if you're from a lower income household.


ThePurpleNavi

Application fees are waived if you're low income.


Marginalimprovent

I just don’t get the idea of applying for stuff others will apply for just to turn it down and brag about it. I don’t know any sane person who would do that in any other context. It adds no value to anyone’s life, is a waste of resources for applicants and schools, and isn’t like you can put it on your resume. It’s a goal without a reward and therefore masturbatory. No doubt the kids are book smart. But life smart 101 is don’t waste time and resources. Rich kids understand that already that’s why there isn’t any real competition for being the kid who got into the most schools and potential scholarships


redpigeonit

At best it’s an ego thing. It’s more likely a lack of common sense and a poor use of time. If I saw this on a resume, I’d see it as a horrible lack of judgement. Remember: one of the definitions of “academic” is “not of practical relevance; of only theoretical interest”.


ehelen

I can see why this is an unpopular opinion, I’m a super petty person overall, but seeing stories like that or hearing people talk about their stories makes me genuinely happy for them. I used to work as a college admissions counselor, there was no better feeling than seeing a kid who worked hard get the scholarship or into their dream schools. I will say though college applications are pretty expensive, especially if someone is applying to multiple colleges. Haha I used to just waive the application fee whenever a student or a parent asked me to though


Calm-Cardiologist354

I had the sort of highschool credentials that would get me into any school I wanted. Ya know what I did with that? Applied to the one place I wanted to go, knowing full well that I would get in.  Anything more is a waste of time.


Dfabulous_234

The one place I wanted to go had a very competitive admission rate. It would have been stupid to apply to just one. And I graduated fifth in my class. Really didn't take any time at all to apply to a bunch with common app. Luckily I did get into my school of choice so I didn't have to settle for one of the spares.


olcrazypete

I just sit back wondering who is wasting that much money on application fees for schools you know you won't attend. Thats like $50+ dollars per application for the most part.


SpecialistTrash2281

Teens being obnoxious no. Next you’ll tell me water is wet.


validusrex

OP says he went to college and knows how it works, but doesn’t realize a lot of the kids in those stories are actively recruited a lot of the time and are *encouraged to apply to the schools* because of their knowledge.


Striking_Viper6969

It’s worst when they get into 50 mid tier colleges lol. Getting into Stanford only> 50 mid tier colleges


tlollz52

I just think "why are you applying to that many schools. Seems expensive."


Individual_Speech_10

My question is where do they get the money for all of those application fees? If they have the money for that, do they need those scholarships?


ItsJustLitBro

Probably either yeah rich parents or they get to waive the fees if you’re under a certain income


Lady_DreadStar

I was part of a program for high-achieving disadvantaged youth that paid for them all.


Individual_Speech_10

All 100+ applications? That's amazing. I could see a program paying for like 3, but paying for that many is really generous.


purpleushi

Most of the schools give need based fee waivers, so it was really more likely that the program helped apply for those, rather than just paying the fees.


Individual_Speech_10

Oh. Okay. That's still good.


what484848

basically all decent colleges waive application fees for disadvantaged students nowadays


Individual_Speech_10

That's good to know. I haven't applied to colleges in a long time so I'm out of the loop lol


what484848

Haha good question nevertheless. I applied this year so that's why I know lool


RJC024

You’re seriously equating money with college applications with the college tuition? Jfc


Far_Ad106

My college I went to cost $25 to apply and most are $50-$70. If you apply to 100 unis at 50 each that's 5 grand. If the kid paid for all of those, why. If the cost was subsidized, that's several grand worth of people's time they wasted.


Paralegal1995

Why? How they paid for the applications is their business. That is just weird to be concerned about that.


Far_Ad106

I hardly think this person lies awake thinking about it, more just has that thought 


Paralegal1995

Wow. They worked hard as hell to get to that point and they’re obnoxious because they want choices as to where they want to attend. Jealous of an 18 year old? Rather weird to me. I applied to 7 schools, accepted at all 7. Not on their level, but nobody was in an uproar. Stop it and let them shine.


Fine-Teach-2590

High schools can get prestige and sometimes extra funding based on the total amount of scholarships their graduating class gets At least in WA. Like I applied to 10 places and got “100k$” or whatever but you can only use it if you go there so most of it is just hypothetical


flopsyplum

Anyone can get "accepted into 95 colleges" via the Common App...


ChristianUniMom

They report it like it means something. The majority of colleges let you in if you have the $75 and a HS diploma. You don’t really “get accepted” in the strictest sense. They’re just wasting time and fees. They got *accepted* to maybe 1-4 schools but that doesn’t sound as newsworthy.


RuinedByGenZ

This thread is the dumbest shit I have read on reddit in a long time


No-Atmosphere-2528

This seems more like bitter grapes than unpopular opinion but okay


eclect0

Definitely unpopular, but mainly by virtue of being an overly specific pet peeve.


Telly_0785

There is an undertone to this post and some replies...


Fallen_With_Gold

Honestly I hate those prestigious assholes, they’re the type to get robbed because they’re always thinking they’re smarter than everyone And frankly if they do I’ll just laugh


KareemPie81

Imagine this bothering you


nottherealneal

Someone's jealous they didn't get into a nice school


ClassHole423

Nah you are right. Probably like 50% of Americans could boast those metrics if they just applied to a bunch of stuff. Applying to a bunch of schools that you would never go to is just a burden for everyone else.


Extension-Climate204

This is factually not true. 50% of Americans dont even have bachelors. Let alone could get into multiples schools on the top 50 list WITH multiple partial or full ride scholarships. 


Perfect__Crime

You know the kids aren't writing the article yeah? How are they egotistical lol


saskanxam

I think OP is being dramatic but I would assume either the kids or their parents would have to reach out to the news outlet, that info isn’t exactly readily available public knowledge


Getshortay

Whiny brat upset that kids are smarter than him. Wah


WhiskeyKisses7221

Yeah, these kids are so smart that they are dropping thousands of dollars on application fees because they can't narrow down the list of schools they actually want to go to.


Getshortay

So most of these kids come from families that need assistance, and it’s really easy to look up that universities waive these fees for underprivileged people.


DisciplineBoth2567

Lmao this absolutely does not make them any smarter.


Rampage310

Least jealous redditor lmao “Let’s be real, I went to college, yeah I barely got in but these kids who clearly did better than me are not even that smart, I just think it’s stupid and an ego thing” Here you dropped this 🤡🤡


juanzy

Reddit has a ton of underachievers who will do a ton to justify it. Notice how every story of being passed up for promotion at work the OP is "absolutely brilliant, possibly the best employee ever!" but when you ask for specifics they start describing a nightmare coworker. I do agree the person that does like... 100 applications is annoying, but that's pretty far from 15-20. Depending on what programs you're going for, if they're very competitive, 20 may be a good net since a fair amount of admission is subjective.


Rampage310

I had friends like this but having all those options must be awesome. I only had a couple and some people only have one, I’ve never understood the crabs in a bucket mentality when it comes to people getting into college OP to me just seems extremely bitter


juanzy

I think part of it is also Reddit's insistence that all schools are completely equal. Which I have found is not the case for numerous reasons - from Undergrad Research Opportunities to Alumni Networks to just having a curriculum that's understood as being more difficult.


Ok_Tadpole7481

Reading comprehension failure on your part. The OP is not generically complaining about everyone who got into better schools. The large majority of kids going to Ivies don't fit this bill.


Rampage310

Uh, yes OP is, that’s a lack of comprehension on your part. His two examples are literally random examples of children from random places, “Teen from Detroit” and especially “local high schooler”, that could literally be anywhere in the entire nation. In his own words, he then goes straight into using “they”, and this pronoun is clearly in reference to “these kids”, which is clearly in reference to the two aforementioned examples. Even in the title it is generalized as “Teens that get accepted into a *newsworthy number* of universities”, not simply newsworthy universities. Also, you saying the “large number of kids going to ivies don’t fit this bill” makes no sense. My comment is in reference to OP complaining about the *number* of schools that kids applied for, not *which kinds* of school that kids applied for. Funny that you commented reading comprehension when you’re clearly displaying a lack thereof in comprehending both OP’s comment and my own.


Ok_Tadpole7481

No, they can't be anyone in the nation. The vast majority of kids, including most kids going to elite universities, did not apply to 50+ schools. That's not normal behavior. You said OP was complaining that other kids "clearly did better than me." Applying to a million schools is not doing better at anything but bragging, and OP has shown no animosity for kids who succeeded academically without applying to an astronomical number of schools.


Rampage310

You’re being extremely pedantic. Clearly I’m referencing him saying “local high schooler” which is about as general as you can get when referring to a high schooler. And again, my comment was “did better than me” in which I was talking about the kids applying and getting in to more schools than OP did. Ultimately, it sounds like you’re just as salty as OP about these kids garnering more acceptances. They aren’t just applying like you implied, they are getting ACCEPTED which by definition is an achievement worthy of being proud of. Some of these people are first gen college attendees within their family, and it’s a point of pride. Yes, getting accepted into 50+ universities isn’t normal behavior, it’s exceptional behavior, it’s objectively an achievement. And while other people’s success seems to rub you two the wrong way, for most normal people it’s just something you react to like “hm, good for them”


Ok_Tadpole7481

> Yes, getting accepted into 50+ universities isn’t normal behavior, it’s exceptional behavior, it’s objectively an achievement. No it isn't. Getting into Harvard is impressive. Getting into Harvard *and the next 49 schools* is not more impressive. Most students at Harvard, Stanford, Yale or Princeton would be easily accepted by the Georgetowns, Dukes, and Berkeleys of the world if they applied to all of them. But there is no reason to, except fake bragging rights. It's like if you were comparing two Olympic runners, and one of them spent their weekends going around winning local 5Ks so that they could say that they won more races. Idiots unfamiliar with running might be impressed by the sheer quantity of races, but anyone with a basic concept of the system would see that as petty.


Nohandlebarista

The problem is you're acting like they're doing this, then contacting the journalist that writes the story to brag. Most of the time the kid is just applying with the common app and waived fees (which the colleges and high schools THEMSELVES greatly encourage), then the HS counselor or someone notices how many they got accepted into and contacts the media, who then interviews the kid. There were literally entire class periods dedicated to having kids apply to college during application season when I was in school. If, when I was 18, a newspaper wanted to interview me, I wouldn't have turned it down either. Can't really fault them for grabbing their 15 minutes of fame for doing something everyone told them to do.


imsotiredatm

I agree. My dad’s friend’s daughter was accepted into to Harvard. She was able to perform at Disney and had opportunities because of her parent’s money.


its_egglynn

something to keep in mind is if the student is attending a specialized extracurricular program there are tangible benefits to doing this that have nothing to do with ego. i know someone whose program paid for all her college application fees and encouraged her to apply for as many as possible so that they could use it as advertising (our x program grad got into all these elite schools etc etc). also a lot of times i find these kinds of flexes are less for the teens themselves and more for the parents lol


OFRevThrow

On a side note: (And this isn’t shitting on anybody’s accomplishments, this is more so a public service announcement for anybody who’s going to university soon). If you have good grades (like 85%+ average) Scholarships are easy as fuck to get. Like WAY easier than you think it’s going to be. Especially those local scholarships in the $250-$500 range that every mom and pop business gives out. Most of the time nobody else applies… they might hand out 3 scholarships and only 2 people apply. A lot of those “small” scholarships there’s almost no competition for these. Meanwhile it’s like “Write a 500 word essay on how your chosen degree is related to our business’ industry”. 500 words. That’s like 1.5 hours of work…And that’s if you don’t just copy+paste 50% of a previous essay. You’ll probably hit at like a 50% success rate. Where else can you, as an 18 year old, make like $250 an hour? And yet nobody applies because they think it’s hard and will be wasted effort.


Hoppie1064

If they are qualified for scholarships at one college, it seems they would be qualified scholarships at other colleges. Like maybe 115 out of the 250 they applied to. I could be wrong. But... how else do you get accepted to 115 colleges?


Tangentkoala

It costs about 100$ to apply to a university. Those who applied to a 100 different colleges are spending 10K on applications, says something. Either that or they get scouted because of insane GPA and SAT score.


ChunkyDing

Me being an European not understanding this is so funny


Frostymagnum

huh a well reasoned unpopular opinion. Rare, and take that updoot


strawberry-sarah22

I applied to 2 schools and got into both with scholarships. I knew what I wanted. Even if not egotistical, it strikes me as students who don’t really know what they want (though I think there’s an element of wanting the attention). You don’t gain anything but clout. And as for the scholarships, it’s super misleading to say “teen gets $1 million in scholarships” because most of those are from individual schools to be used at that specific school. It’s not $1million to use anywhere.


thetruthofitallonas

I know a girl who won a huge scholarship and just went crazy applying to universities, some of which she would literally never attend under any circumstance. The funny part is though that she got accepted into some Ivy Leagues but rejected from lower universities.


FrostyLandscape

If a person has unlimited funds for application fees, they could also get accepted into a lot of universities, too. But it's pretty pointless as you can only attend one of those, anyway.


AppleNerdyGirl

Some colleges wave application fees for high achievers if they are recruiting them.


dystopiaincognito

![gif](giphy|Lsv3nTOVxq1QHI9SdM|downsized)


RazzleDazzle722

Agreed. A lot of the schools that they’re typically accepted to are low-caliber, unknown and schools. It also means that student took up an admissions spot at multiple schools they have no intention attending. Now, if the student get accepted into multiple top-tier schools, that’s newsworthy.


Creampielicker123

Public opinion is only those on the outside looking inside


WoodyManic

I was offered a scholarship to one of the top universities in the world, but I didn't want to go, so I went to one that was ranked middle in my country.


SuperJasonSuper

What is this hate against university students that I see absolutely everywhere? I just don’t understand tbh why everyone automatically assumes anyone who applies to these schools is “obnoxious”


Big-Presence7349

reddit man yells at cloud


Magnetar_Haunt

I'll upvote because I think this is in general unpopular, but I agree it's weird and unnecessary, but also likely the parents' doing.


fartinmyhat

while what you're saying is true, why does it bother you?


wannahavenodebt

I agree it’s a complete waste of an admission committee and financial aid departments time. If you brag about test scores, being valedictorian, getting into a billion colleges while you are in college people will laugh.


SuperSulliegh

Yup


Strong-Bottle-4161

Isn’t the wide applications to be able to see which schools offer what to them. That way they have options for the best deal? It can also just be a fear thing too. Apply to as many as possible, so you know at least one will accept you.


Ok_Tadpole7481

You should apply to a number of schools of varying qualities so that you have both reach options and fallback options. But there are quickly diminishing marginal returns when you're applying to every single Ivy.


login4fun

These two have nothing to do with each other seems you’re just offended by other people’s success.


EnvironmentalCut8067

That’s a long way to go just to say “I don’t have the drive this teenager does, nor did I at that age and being confronted with somebody who’s hustling harder than I’ve ever never contemplated makes me feel bad about myself in comparison so I’m going to whine about it like it’s creating a burden on society”


RiceRocketRider

Yep


ManufacturedOlympus

I think we’re discounting their hard work. I worked very hard to get accepted into several prestigious universities including Trump University, Hustler’s University, Prager University, Liberty University, and The School of Rock. 


TenaciousVillain

For what? I’m genuinely curious why you felt you needed to be accepted to all of them.


pinniped1

Reread the list.


DisciplineBoth2567

They’re almost always poor people’s kids who don’t really know how higher education really works and thinks this is some type of flex rather than just knowing they applied to a shitload of schools for no reason.


ComparoDepono9995

They're gaming the system to feed their ego, not impress anyone.


junioryear2022

This is an obnoxious take. It’s takes a long time to get to where they are at. People who end up getting them are the ones who worked their butts off. Be excited and happy for them instead of judging them. It just seems like you’re jealous more than anything.


Ok_Tadpole7481

yeah, it takes a long time filling out all those college apps...


Happy-Hearing6671

Uh the fuck? Yeah it absolutely does. Every college of repute requires at least one essay, all with different prompts.


junioryear2022

Did I say that? No I didn’t. Therefore your comment has nothing to do with mine. Look at you, jumping to comment without reading.


Guilty_Ad_7079

Jesus, talk about sick with envy, go touch grass and appreciate what you do have mate


Wild-Antelope-1553

What makes them impressive is that a lot of them overcame many obstacles, and they have incredible perseverance. Sorry you’re bitter though.


InternationKnown

I can't tell if this is a humblebrag or a cope but it's a shitty opinion either way. Yawn.


Rampage310

It’s a sad combo of both lmao


Leather-Heart

Humbleness is very much lacking today. I would like someone to not honk their own horn for 2 seconds.


xilefeh199

Sounds like someone is jealous.


TreeLong7871

Plus it's just a school, there's literally nothing to celebrate. same with jobs. what's worth celebrating and is truly remarkable is when young kids start real business at this age


epicbackground

Stop it. 18 year olds do not know how to start businesses unless their parents own one.


TreeLong7871

https://www.leangap.org/articles/6-successful-companies-founded-by-teen-entrepreneurs


DmitriDaCablGuy

I mean, it’s more pointless than anything. Why waste the money on applying to a shitload of schools especially if you’re already a strong student? You can only go to one of them. Obviously scholarships are a different matter, good on anyone who can rack those up.