It’s that time of year again folks! It’s the time where students across the nation are asked to summarize about 2 decades of living in 650 words! If you’re someone like me, who highlights every reading assignment because “everything is important,” the Common App essay isn’t just daunting, it’s downright painful. I’ve written at least 17 different versions of my essay, including what it’s like to be homesick when you’re already at home. Despite the fact that they’ve all focused on life-changing aspects of my life, none felt true to my character. Between that and the fact that they were all terrible, I’m rapidly losing belief in my ability to think good thoughts. 

And that’s just the essay portion. The question portion is a whole other beast. Now, I wouldn’t consider myself super accomplished, what with school taking up about 75% of my life and procrastination taking up the other 25, but I’d always thought that I had done things that were worth doing. After taking one look through the question section, I had a midlife crisis (I’ve always been precocious.) I even parked myself in front of my therapist, still a little dazed, and asked if I had wasted the past 17 years of my life. The questions are so simple and yet give off this air of “Of course you don’t have to have a Nobel Peace Prize, but we’re just a little shocked that you don’t, that’s all.” 

At this point, I’m starting to wonder if the so-called senioritis isn’t just burn out from all the stress that Common App puts us through.