There are mixed opinions on whether or not UC schools are overrated or not, but surely the majority of the students applying there and getting either rejected or waitlisted are surely fed up. People with a mixed variety of 4.1 – 5.1 gpa’s being rejected from such school’s, which indeed to a student eye and even parent eye is absurd. Students who have shown to be successful academically are surprised to see that they are getting rejected from these schools.

So what makes the UC schools special? According to Justin Berkman, “The University of California schools are widely regarded as some of the best public universities in the nation”. These schools are known to be well regarded, and from a student’s perspective, they’ve been seen for not only the education but also its location and the type of environment it offers. Each UC school is different yet they share the absurd similarities of student achievement and expectation.

Though each of the nine UC schools are different in their own way, many of them offer the same benefits and disadvantages. One disadvantage being that they are large public universities. Class sizes are known to be very large. Because of this, students face troubles when trying to register, getting into needed classes, and dealing with financial aid. Many out of state students complain about the lack of financial aid available, and the rising tuition costs. Although, these schools are known to be well-regarded, and they are strong in STEM, humanities, and social sciences.

So why do people consider UC schools on the same level as those elite schools? Probably for the reasons of sports, and how the most well known UC schools, such as UCLA, UCSD, UC Berkeley, UCSB, and UCI are the most competitive D1 schools in the nation. So for every high school athlete, it’s their dream come true type of school, but yet the rejection and waitlist rates are rising.

So why do UC schools reject so many students applying there? For what good reasons would they reject students with successful gpa and grades? Well this includes the fact of where you live. Meaning they reject those students living nearby since they can’t collect the money for their dorm room living. Mikhail Zinshteyn stated that UC schools “collectively enroll 900 fewer nonresident students, who pay three times more tuition, and replace them with in-state students”. He also stated that, “for 2022-23, the UC estimates it’ll enroll the equivalent of about 300 fewer California residents than it did in 2021-22”. Absurd, right? Well there’s more, the teachers at these schools have also been absent from teaching due to them not getting enough pay, so even though you get accepted to this school, there is no guarantee that you will actually learn anything.

But ultimately how do students feel about working so hard all the time to achieve such ultimate success in school, to then learn that it has all been for nothing. It gives the upcoming classes of graduation all but false hope of actually getting into these schools, also harming their mental health. Frustrating? Yes, but what if they reject you for the reasons that they don’t find you fitting for their institution.

According to the University of California, this year, the UC’s received 245,768 applications from current seniors for fall admission. This was reported as a 2.2% decrease from last year, which was 251,179 applications. The high demand from these schools is causing many students to not even apply, demotivating them from actually even attempting. The UC schools are becoming more of a competitive challenge than they actually should be, meaning if it’s so hard to get into these schools what can we say about the rest?

The number of students becoming unmotivated, frustrated, and angry keeps growing, and the absurdity of these schools surprises not only the students, but also the teachers and parents. It seems to students that not only do we have to have good grades and extracurricular or sports but we have to go above and beyond, having not 10 activities outside of school but 20 or more!

Though extracurricular activities are good to have when applying to college, because they demonstrate your leadership and what you have done in the community, having to overload your schedule with every activity can become overwhelming. Which in the end result will only harm what you have already accomplished. Especially when you put a lot of effort into making sure you go above and beyond for college applications, but all you get in return is a rejection letter.

So the ultimate question is, are UC schools overrated and absurd? Or not? Maybe, maybe not, but that’s for our young readers and upcoming seniors to decide. But the most important lesson to learn is to be able to choose your mental health and well being over the stress school puts on your shoulders.