Many of these teachers were given two days notice to adjust their syllabi and other classroom plans to fit their new reality. It’s a challenge that teachers took on
How do I get into Harvard as an undergrad?
Moved from another question. It fits better here.
My daughter’s dream was to get into Harvard. She decided this when she was ten years old.
She started writing to the Admissions officer then and asked for information. She wrote every year, telling them her grades, what books she was reading, what awards she got, asked advice on what she should do.
She went to all the College nights they attended, even before she was in high school.
In high school, she worked hard on her grades, but she wasn’t a grade grubber. She chose a few clubs, not a lot, that she was interested in and worked hard for those clubs. (Debate, fencing). She never changed to suit the college and was always herself, but she worked to be the best *her* she could be.
She didn’t slack off her senior year (took ten APs and went to school from 6 am to 6 pm).
She got in to every college she applied to, but when Harvard came in, it was all over for the others.
She had a goal, she worked for it, she got it.
Was it worth it? Her freshman year, she called me weekly, crying…”I don’t belong here, everybody is smarter than me, the teachers hate me, I’m going to flunk.”
Despite ranking 8th in the world in debate, she didn’t make the Harvard debate team. Despite being a professional singer since childhood, she didn’t make Harvard Choir. Despite wanting to be lawyer her whole life, she never attended law school.
She made it through. It was different than she expected. She changed a lot, developed new interests and has a different career than she expected.
She’s happy. If she never made it into Harvard, she’d still be happy.
Have a goal. Work for it. Don’t let anything stop you. If you don’t make your goal, get a new one.
UPDATE: Based on reading the comments, I think some people misunderstood the story. My daughter did make it to Harvard as an undergrad. She was happy there, even though it was hard the first year. She was resilient. And everyone was intimidated to be there. If she hadn’t made it to Harvard, she would have adapted. As I said Boston College was great and she seriously considered them. She might have gone to Georgetown if they had offered a decent scholarship. Harvard just met all her current needs. But lots of great smart kids don’t make it to Harvard for reasons that have nothing to do with them. Too many from same state applied, chose an impacted major, lots of reasons.
My daughter’s true goal was to help people with human rights, and she thought Harvard was the best venue for that. Well, she made her goal, even if she didn’t go to Harvard Law. She is working in disability rights, just not through law. Harvard is four years of your life. Getting in or not doesn’t make you a better person. It’s what you do there and after that does.
