Our discussion the other day about whether we seriously considered going to college or if it was simple matter of what was expected of us got me thinking not only about the choice of college itself but the pressures and the way we are manipulated on campus.
Whether or not we chose to go to college or if we were persuaded to by our parents or just expected to is a personal matter. But obviously we all did well in school up until the end of high school otherwise we would not be at Hamilton. Whether we had outside pressures or pressures from ourselves, we still pushed ourselves one way or another to get to where we are now. School, teachers, parents, family, friends, or even our own mind can be just as manipulating as advertisements when it comes to our decision-making.
None of us are seniors, but coming from a private high school that thought highly of their alums I know that as soon as it hits senior year we will be asked to give money all the time: for the senior gift and then general donations. There is the phonathon which is where the college hires students to call alums and talk about how wonderful life on the hill is ask for donations. These are all ways in which the college manipulates us to give back, and after we spend a large fortune on tuition, one would think they would be donating to us.
Another way in which we are manipulated on this campus is the idea of the open curriculum. Yes, this campus has a lot more freedom when it comes to choosing classes than most liberal arts colleges, but there is a bit of allusion. We do have core requirements with our QSR class, three mandatory physical education classes and of course the three writing intensives. If someone is not athletic or is more of a science major, these are hard to complete, not to mention they can get in the way of picking the classes we want because we have to be mindful. It is a manipulation, but things could be far worse.
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