Student Outlook -- Lea Alfi

Ah, the season of college applications has come to its close and the

slew of financial aid filings is now upon us. But before the feats and

foibles of thousands of teens is forgotten in one fowl swoop, let us

reminisce the high points of the once in a lifetime, unpleasant for some,

tour de force of college applications:

Large envelopes arrived at our homes midsummer, envelopes we had heard

of before. They remained unopened, to preserve for all of posterity,

until our parents opened them for their posterity. Once opened, we were

welcomed with genius questions, which needless to say, demanded genius

answers.

Question one: Name. This sounded simple enough for hundreds of teens

until, of course, first name was first rather than last name first and,

suffice to say, pen not pencil, was used first. A tip from an older

applicant was to first go over the application in pencil, then in pen. Of

course, doing the UC application online was one of the best decisions

because the online program corrected and saved the application as you

went on.

Once the fill in the blanks were done, it was on to the meat of the

application, the essay! The first essay: What is the most meaningful

object in your life? What did this question entail? Do they want to be

shocked or are they begging sincerity? Do you write about your Chinese

noodle bowl that says “suck it” or your grandmother’s diary that says

“sweet iterations?”

One of the most common essays was on the symbolic nature of a teen’s

car -- freedom and whatnot. A car is a great object to write on so long

as the essay is unique enough to leave an impression.

On to essay No. 2: Imagine you have just completed a 300-page

autobiography. Submit page 217. Does it matter if this is a left or right

page? Can it be an illustration? Who completes an autobiography before

they are 18 anyway?o7 Is this optional?!f7

Essay three: Explain something you just wish you understood better.

Hmm, the mass of college applicants must have thought in unison: This is

my time to be clever! I’ll write that I wish I understood the college

admissions process better! But alas, the prompt continues to say “As

tempted as you may be, do not choose the college admissions process.” And

thoughts of cleverness left like birds from a nest as they were replaced

by thoughts of a discourse on a simile of cliches.

Next came the time to postmark the five-page package they prefer you

to fit into a business size envelope and mail by the recommended

deadline. A job 34 cents should cover, after copies are obtained and a

certificate of mailing still pending is finally complete. The postmark

deadline is Dec. 30. You proudly pull up to the U.S. Post Office, never

so happy to see government property as now and, as glee sets in, you

realize the post office is not open on Sundays. But it’s a good thing you

got that other application in at exactly 2:58 p.m. when the post office

closed at 3 on Saturday, Dec. 15 (the final, not recommended deadline).

Otherwise, you would have had to venture to the always-open LAX post

office.

Wow, after this reflection, I know I am ready for the world of

financial aid. FAFSA, CSS, CalGrant, yeah I’m ready for you. Bring it!

Acronyms won’t stop me, give me that EFC (Expected Family Contribution)

you estimate so well. I’m ready for my SAR (Student Aid Report). I have

until FEB to navigate the myriad of questions (March 2 for the CalGrant).

Yeah, I said FEB (Financial Education Burden).

* LEA ALFI is a senior at Costa Mesa High School where she is

editor-in-chief of the Hitching Post. Her columns will appear on an

occasional basis in the Community Forum section.