Opinion | Getting Into Yale Isnt Enough

When I pictured myself in college, I envisioned potluck picnics and late nights listening to Taylor Swift, overanalyzing class crushes.Maybe even joining a Quidditch team.I never daydreamed about hiding in the library bathroom, crying because I had just been rejected from an undergraduate law journal.The recently publicized tensions on college campuses, particularly those in the heavily scrutinized Ivy League, are among many forces at play for students today.

But there’s another that has not yet captivated the news cycle.It’s called pre-professional pressure: a prevailing culture that convinces many of us that only careers in fields such as computer programming, finance and consulting, preferably at blue-chip firms like Goldman Sachs, McKinsey or big tech companies, can secure us worthwhile futures.It is an inescapable part of the current college experience, like tailgating or surviving on stale dining hall food.

It not only steers our life choices, it also permeates daily life and negatively affects our mental health.This pressure is hardly exclusive to Ivy League students.In the 2022-23 academic year, 112,270 students majored in computer science, more than double the number nine years earlier.

In the 2021-22 academic year, undergraduate institutions handed out 375,400 business degrees.Unsurprisingly, the number of students pursuing humanities has declined dramatically.Last year, 315,126 undergraduates applied for the 2,700 available undergraduate intern positions at Goldman Sachs.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

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