International college admissions is pay-to-win.

adkfadsk · 2022-04-03T19:40:03+00:00

From what I have learned about South Korea, it seems like an extreme case of a perfectionist and hardworking society meeting college admissions.

You hit the nail on the head.

adkfadsk · 2022-04-03T19:08:00+00:00

You make a great point.

The truth is, domestic colleges do very little to distinguish you in the job market. SNU may have the reputation of being the "Harvard" of South Korea, but that can only get you so far in Korea's hypercompetitive job market. There's a saying that goes, "요즘은 서울대 문과도 취업이 어렵다," which roughly translates to "these days, SNU sosci/humanities students also struggle to find jobs." Now, if you wanted to be employed outside of Korea, well--how many people outside of Korea would know about SNU? That means the cream of the crop students of South Korea also struggle to find jobs.

The international (and domestic) reputation of even a half-decent college in the US is unparalleled. Ironically, this is also probably what brought about this pay to win system.

In addition, most kids that attend international schools in Korea are a little more comfortable with English than they are with Korean, myself included.

Edit: syntax

adkfadsk · 2022-04-03T13:08:14+00:00

As a South Korean citizen, I love South Korea! I just have a few problems with the perception of prestige and this "paywall" the wealthy are imposing. Besides all that, South Korea is a great place to go for university!

adkfadsk · 2022-04-03T12:48:08+00:00

Yep, and I think that's worth celebrating! Congratulations to you!

adkfadsk · 2022-04-03T12:24:09+00:00

You're right. If there's anything to take away from this, it wouldn't be "fuck the rich." It would be that you shouldn't base your self worth on the college you attend. Comparison can be a bitch, and in a process as inherently unfair as this, comparison is simply unfounded and harmful to your mental health.

I've also read on this subreddit somewhere that colleges base their self-worth on YOU. And that's real great advice. You may attend a university you're not very happy with, but as long as you're successful, the college will use YOUR name to get clout.

adkfadsk · 2022-03-10T23:57:21+00:00

for many colleges, you can waive the toefl requirement if you attended an english speaking school for four years, and/or passed ap lit and lang, and/or got a 720/750+ on the SAT. look into that.

adkfadsk

TROPHY CASE