Getting accepted into college

Having watched a lot of movies and television during my youth, I had gotten the idea that getting accepted into college was a major accomplishment. Even if you had really good grades, it was no guarantee that the colleges you applied would want you there. I found out how wrong my perception was.

Every college I applied for accepted me. I even got accepted by a college I didn't even apply to, and that was in my junior year. The reason for this is that I had applied for state schools. I didn't realize they had such low standards for admission. (I'd heard later that the college I went to, Eastern New Mexico University, would accept anyone who just TOOK the ACT or SAT.) Looking back, I wish I had attempted to apply for Ivy League schools. I know I wouldn't have gotten in, but it would have been fun to see their rejection letters.

I got accepted into ENMU, New Mexico State University, West Texas State University and Ball State University in Muncie, IN. (The other college that accepted me without applying was University of Albuquerque.) I came very close to going to Ball State, mainly because I knew that there would be no one from Artesia going there. WTSU was so certain that I was attending there that they sent me a student ID card and had reserved a dorm room for me. (I hope no one got turned away at the dorms because I didn't show up.) I really didn't want to go there because too many other people from Artesia were accepted there.

In the end, I picked ENMU because I wanted a career in broadcasting and they had excellent facilities. At the very least, I thought I had made that choice on my own. (In Monday's post, I'll explain why that may not be true.) I had spent a lot of time on the campus and it was where my parents had gone to college. It was someplace I was very familiar. Also, only students I tolerated from Artesia would be attending.

Toward the beginning of this blog, I wondered about the outcomes of choices like this and what I would have done differently if I had the chance to do it over. I probably would. I likely would go to Ball State with this set of choices. However, if I could go further back, I would have applied at UCLA and USC, because they would have been more apt to have a more complete communications department and I would have been closer to the entertainment industry.

Unfortunately, the only thing that wouldn't be different is me. All the torment I endured is largely due to the type of person I am. That wouldn't have changed, no matter where I went to school. I would probably still struggling to find my path and would keep changing direction. However, I would still want to experience something different.

Monday, I'll review the paths that were closed to me.