You can’t always get what you want

But any Rolling Stones fan knows that if you try real hard you might find that you get what you need. I have had one goal throughout high school: to get into Stanford.

I held on this dream until senior year. Stanford has an 8% admissions rate, and the thought that straight A report cards ended for me sophomore year and that I barely managed a 1360 on the SATs after taking them three times pretty much convinced me that I was kidding myself if I thought I stood a chance against kids who were used to perfection in every facet of life.

But I applied anyway. I paid the $75 application fee and stressed out for two months over trying to put together an application worth being competitive in an applicant pool of 20,000 students.

I put everything I had into those essays, everything I ever learned in English about writing effectively and everything I ever learned in journalism about knowing your audience….I conjured every experience and emotion and rejected every idea a million times before, still unsatisfied with the result, I finally pressed the “send” button.

Then I waited. Two weeks ago I got an answer: yes.

It was an incredible feeling, and for the next 15 minutes the only thing I could think of was, “I got in.” Then reality set in. I had known for months that even acceptance was not enough. Stanford would cost me $45,000 a year…$45,000 that I do not have, nor could possibly hope to have even with loans and scholarships.

The next week was spent in a whirlwind of thought: I got in…I can’t afford it….$180,000 in debt at the end of four years is worth it…I can’t….It was a situation I honestly did not expect to be in: having to say no to my first choice school.

You can’t always get what you want, but if you try real hard you might find, you get what you need. What I want is to go to Stanford, what I need is an education, and an education is what you make of it. I know that any reputable school would give me a solid education and that my attitude and self-motivation is going to be what will make the difference between a successful life and a wasted life.

Was it worth applying? Yes. Stanford is still in my plans for graduate school, and knowing that I was competitive coming out of little ol’ Lincoln High School was all the encouragement I needed to truly believe that you get out of your education what you put into it.

Here is my advice to you: ask questions. Find out what tests you need to take, take advantage of the free SAT prep classes, go online research your college and find what classes they recommend students to take to be competitive. What’s more, go to the office and talk to your counselors about financial aid, and state and national scholarships, ask if any alumni have been accepted to your first and second choice schools and ask if you can have their contact information, open a savings account specifically for college….start planning now.

Life comes at you fast, don’t let it catch you unguarded. You can’t always get what you want….but maybe with a little luck you’ll find what you need.