Stop Asking Where I’m Going to College by Anabel McGuan

We have 5 days left of high school. Of course, now, more than ever, college is on everyone’s mind. Most people have made their decisions, while a few are still wrapping up loose ends. Regardless of how it manifests, college is guaranteed to be a hot topic of conversation.

My least favorite form of college small talk comes in the endless barrage of questions — Where are you going to college? What’s your major? Have you found a roommate?

Is that really all there is to me, or any senior, for that matter? Have we really been reduced to our plans for next year? What difference in your life does it make, knowing what and where I’ll be studying?

What about the uncomfortable position these questions force those who will not be attending college into?

“Where are you going to college? . . . Oh . . . You’re not? Seriously? What will you do?!”

Is it really anyone else’s business but your own, and maybe your family’s? If you’re truly that desperate to know where your peers, or your children’s friends, or your students, will be going next year — and they haven’t willingly offered the information to you, unprovoked — it may be time to evaluate some aspects of your thinking.

Why does it matter to you? What do you gain from knowing? Could this nosiness stem from a place of deep insecurity within you? Is your self-worth built entirely upon the prestige of the college you attended/will attend?

It’s time to butt out of everyone else’s business and ditch the college interrogations. Be present — focus on the now — and enjoy these last 5 days of high school.

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