Pity new college enrollment key
Collegian Opinion

    The University of California has developed a new plan on how to accept certain people into the college.

   When picking a freshman class, the university will give students who have coped with personal struggles and difficult family situations a better chance at getting into the school.

   Under the plan of comprehensive review, an applicant’s chances can rise if he or she has overcome a physical handicap, had to work after school, was fired or downsized at work, lives in a single-parent or low-income home or comes from a family in which neither parent went to high school.

   Needed to work after school? We thought working was a part of growing up, not relying on mom and dad and starting to take responsibility for oneself.

   Basically, with the California plan, students are rewarded for their parents’ failures and for their own psychological problems as well. If a student’s parent beats up on the other, or a person has a few suicide attempts on his record, he has a good chance of getting accepted to the university.

   Perhaps we should bring back one of the original reality-based television shows: Queen for a Day. On that show, three women would appear before a live audience to compete for new washing machines, refrigerators, bedroom furniture—this was the ’50s after all.

   How was the winner determined? Each woman told her own sob story. She described all of the problems she, her husband, her children, her parents, her siblings, her pets, etc., etc., etc., were experiencing. Then the audience voted—by applause—on who had the saddest life.

   Who is to say one’s grief is worse than another’s? If a person is suicidal, why should that individual have more of a chance of college acceptance? Who is to say that person will not kill himself or herself, therefore, an acceptance wasted. What the person probably needs is counseling to better himself before he gets the privilege of being accepted at a college or university. This makes suicide look like a sure route to the university of choice.

   All people all over the world have griefs in their lives. The awarding of a scholarship should not come down to whose life is worse. These scholarship committees are not God. They should not be able to say that one person has more hardship than another.

   This action reeks of discrimination. A year ago the president of the University of California threatened to scrap the SAT as a requirement for admission. The aptitude test has been under assault by the diversity lobby as an unfair obstacle to minorities.

   Everyone goes to school to learn. Some care, and some do not. Just because certain people can pass tests, does not mean the test is automatically racial. Why is it so hard for people to be given the same chances? We have been taught that everyone is created equal, which, in turn, means we should all have the same chances in life.

   If people work hard enough for what they want, they can succeed.

   It should not matter what their color, age or past psychological or family problems may be.