Deadline Trauma
Kelly’s last day at high school was full of nostalgic sentimentalities. “All my friends were posting, ‘I’m going to miss you! Have fun at Queen’s or Western or wherever!” Though her school had reminded her of the university application deadline in January, Kelly hesitated between arts and medicine as she was enthusiastic about both. The deadline came and went, but she applied for neither. Kelly is not alone; many high school graduates delay their applications.
Every year around this time, prospective university students slave over applications to their preferred programs and schools. In Ontario, almost 90,000 bombard the Ontario University Applications Centre with a total of 480,000 applications by the end of January. A few keeners submit early, the majority apply in the few days before the deadline, and the rest wait until the last minute.
It can be tempting to fall into stereotypes about teens as irresponsible, unfocused and immature, but it’s not so simple. Procrastination （拖延） is never just laziness, even if it sometimes looks that way,” says a guidance counselor who has spent 18 years at high schools. “Most kids are somewhere in the middle, but about 15 percent of kids have a plan and are ready. They don’t even need talking to. About a quarter need to be reminded and pestered and re-pestered.”
Hardcore procrastinators usually fall into two camps, the counselor says. Some students just aren’t ready. Those students often take a year or two to explore the work world and decide what they’re really looking for? Others have so many choices that they have a hard time choosing a program. Used to being excellent, they deeply fear missteps. They’re often operating under the myth that if they choose and change their mind, that’s a failure.
Kelly was a bit of both. For a well-rounded student with good grades, the options were daunting. She thought the choice would determine her future job prospect and even her life. Scared and overwhelmed, she simply gave up the choice.
To help reduce the stress, parents should resist the urge to monitor the application process. As education costs climb higher, parents have a larger stake in their kids’ success, but too much parental involvement gets problematic, warns a senior registrar. We want students to do the soul searching and make decisions themselves.
Still, students shouldn’t panic if they miss a deadline. They might just pick up the telephone, like Kelly did in August when she decided she was ready for university and wanted to study at Ryerson. The admissions officers worked some magic and found her a spot. “Despite all the procrastination, says a Ryerson registrar, “it’s never too late to check if ifs really too late.”
Most students may find university application stressful or traumatic; therefore, it is normal for students to procrastinate. Behind their procrastination could be laziness or indecision out of a scare for future uncertainty. Since missteps cannot be avoided, it is well-advised for university applicants to break the myth of failure.
