How COVID-19 Has Impacted the Way High School Students Prepare for College

The COVID-19 epidemic has affected almost every aspect of our daily lives, from the way we communicate with our friends and family to the way we work, eat, and play. But for high school students in particular, the epidemic has had a profound effect on their ability to plan for the next step in their educational journey: college. High school seniors, to date, are most often affected by the effects of COVID-19. All of this madness happens at the time they have to measure when they finish high school with things like graduating high school, applying for college, visiting schools, and making plans for how they will do it. working to pay for their future college studies. All of these confusing pieces that adults are currently planning are very disturbing because of many things like: Inability to walk Yes, the epidemic has made travel everywhere (or going to the store or to the rest of the country) a major security risk. This means that many current high school seniors will have a very difficult time visiting the schools they are applying for / receiving, and ultimately deciding where to enroll which is very difficult. To combat this, many colleges and universities have begun to offer visual tourism, however, the consensus among many high school seniors is that they do not compare to being able to enter the campus in person. Loss of a member of staff The unemployment rate since the beginning of the epidemic has increased dramatically, and unfortunately, many high school families and college teens have not been left out. This means that many of these students will have difficulty figuring out how to pay for college tuition fees, room and board, textbooks and more. Closure of testing center Although some high school seniors may have completed the standardized examination process, many rely on writing exams at the beginning of their senior year. With locks and restrictions in place, doing so proves, again, a difficult task for high school seniors. If an adult does not have the current points they are happy to use to submit their applications, the question then becomes "should I submit points at all?" as many schools across the country are “voluntary”. However, there is still a dark cloud over non-examination, students are left wondering if this will jeopardize their chances of admission. Difficulty in balancing the application process with visual school. Another problem high school seniors face is the pressure to balance applying for a college and virtual / remote school. After talking to a number of high school students, I was told that being away from school was not easy. In fact, teachers often use this as an opportunity to provide students with extra work, which ultimately reduces the amount of time students can spend on their college affairs, submitting applications, and performing other important college programs. So you may wonder, ‘What can high school adults do during these times of madness to take action to reduce at least some of the stress they may be experiencing? When it comes to easing some of the financial burden created by COVID-19, the only solution is to apply for a bursary! Scholarship is money, unlike loans, that do not need to be repaid. This means that all high school seniors should start, if they have not already done so, by applying for scholarships to help alleviate some of the immediate financial burdens they will face when they finish high school and start college.