The Norsemen fought for entry to Valhalla; the Greeks sought to earn the favor of the gods for Elysium; Buddhists tried to achieve Nirvana. There’s always been status to achieve – a way to make it big. Now, success isn’t dictated by a glorious sacrifice of life in war but by the quiet, often unseen, sacrifice of happiness and mental health in the pursuit of college.

Many people see college as the only way to succeed in life, and they’re not totally wrong. College is definitely a good path to follow – it opens up so many opportunities for success while doing something that you love. However, despite the prevailing sentiment, it isn’t the only path to a fulfilling life. There are plenty of opportunities outside of a college education that also lead to fulfillment, such as trade jobs, or the military.

On top of even going to college, there’s huge social pressure to make it into a good one. Ivy league schools and top level schools are seen as automatic tickets to success – and who doesn’t want that? Ivys and top level schools often expect SAT scores of 1480 or higher, or ACT scores of 33 or higher. Those are high scores – really high. A lot of students also try to do extracurriculars on top of a heavy course load of AP and honors classes. Pushing yourself is absolutely not a bad thing and is good for growth. The issue comes when you overexert yourself to meet these incredibly high standards

There are only four years of highschool that a person ever gets to live, and only so many years as a teenager. While grinding to get into a good college is important, so is living life. If your efforts to create a good application are taking away from your social life and happiness, then you may have crossed a line. 

But isn’t lifelong success way more important than just four years of your life? These four years are some of the most formative of our lives. Your habits and decisions at this point set a precedent for your future self. If you get into the habit of procrastination or bad sleep habits, those are going to be really difficult to get rid of in the future. 

But this philosophy about habits also extends to overworking. If you spend your whole high school career working yourself to the bone without time for self-care, reflection, and relaxation, you’ll be burned out. Your initial passion will fizzle out, and you’ll be left working tirelessly for something you feel apathetic towards. 

So take a breather, and chill out. Take a moment to do something you enjoy, or hang out with friends. When you’re in a better mental state, you’ll do a better job of the things you care about, and filling out your college applications will be a breeze. And don’t feel pressured to work yourself to death for an Ivy – there are plenty of paths to success and happiness outside of that too.