College Applications and A Room of One's Own

A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.  This is the thesis of Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own.  Her essay attempts to make points that prove why a woman needs money and why she needs privacy in order to write fiction.  So far in class, we have read about why a woman needs a room of her own.  Each time Woolf’s narrator, Mary  wants to find a quiet place to think or begins to think, she is interrupted.  Woolf writes in a stream of consciousness, which helps demonstrate the narrator being interrupted in the middle of her thought process.

While I personally have never attempted to write fiction, I have and am currently writing many college essays.  While the entire point of Woolf’s thesis is to discuss the inequities and challenges women attempting to write fiction face, I want to discuss the challenges that high school seniors face when applying to college.  I would argue that her thesis slightly altered applies to the college application process.  My thesis would be that “A (man or woman) must have money and a room of one’s own if he/she is to successfully apply to college”.

A high school student primarily needs money.  In order to apply to college one needs to have SAT or ACT scores.  Most students take these standardized tests two or three times in order to achieve desirable scores.  If one cannot afford to take these tests, the colleges one will be able to apply to will be very limited.  Most students as I said will retake the exams and will take the two different exams to see which one they can score better on.  Again, it costs money to take multiple exams.  It costs $29 to take the ACT.  It costs an additional $14 to take the writing test portion which many schools require.  If you sign up late it costs an additional $19.  The SAT costs $54.50.  If someone cannot access the internet and wants to register by phone, that will cost an additional $15.  If one needs to change the date or location or register late, that will cost an additional $28.  If one wants to apply to an elite university, it is necessary to take at least two or three SAT subject tests.  It costs $26 for the first test and $18 for each other test taken on a single day.  While each individual fee may not seem like a lot, it can add up quickly.  Fee waivers are offered for students who absolutely cannot afford the tests, however; many students who succeed on standardized tests take expensive preparatory classes and buy study materials.  Even if a student is able to have the fee for the actual exam waived, the student may not be able to afford preparatory materials, and their score may be lower than someone of approximately the same academic ability who was able to buy preparatory materials.

In addition to the cost of standardized testing, students must also pay an application fee when applying to a college which often ranges from $50-$80.  As college becomes more and more competitive, many students are applying to more and more colleges to ensure entrance into a university that is a match for them.  If a student wants to apply to even 8 schools, this can cost upwards of $400-$640.  It is necessary to have money in order to be accepted to college.

One also needs a room of one’s own.  As applying to multiple colleges becomes easier and easier with the Common Application, many schools are adding supplemental essays to see if students are truly interested in their universities and to see how well they “fit” the school.  There are also additional essays if one wants to apply to an Honors program or Honors college and additional essays if one wants to apply for scholarship money.  The number of essays one has to complete can become overwhelming quickly.  In order to write so many thoughtful essays, one truly needs a room of one’s own.  Not only is it important to find a quiet place so one’s thoughts are not interrupted as one tries to brainstorm and craft the perfect essay, but it is also important to be alone.  It is vital that these essays are a true reflection of the applicant and are not influenced by friends or family.  One must be truthful and honest and write what one actually thinks, instead of what someone else thinks they should think, or what someone else thinks the college is looking for.  If one is not alone during the writing process, the essays may become tainted by others’ ideas.  Colleges often say that they can tell when someone else has helped the applicant write an essay, and that it is a reason for them to reject an applicant.

Virginia Woolf faced two major struggles as a woman writing fiction, and we as college-bound high school seniors currently face the same two struggles as we apply to college; a need for money and a need to be alone.