Navigating the College Application Process with Mindfulness and Intention

This fall, thousands of high school seniors will face the daunting and often anxiety-inducing task of applying to college. With each passing application season, this process becomes more complex, nuanced, and competitive. Students often feel pulled “off center,” basing their self-worth on external factors and making choices they think might look good to colleges rather than paying attention to their own personal goals and following their innate sense of curiosity. A mindfulness practice can support teenagers to mitigate this superficial motivation and growing sense of self-loss, guiding them in the direction that is uniquely best for them.

Mindfulness comes with numerous benefits, including not only the reduction of anxiety and stress, but also increased focus, improvement in attention and decision making, and the strengthening of self-trust, acceptance, and empathy. With the number of known benefits relating to a mindfulness practice, it may come as a surprise that not more teachers and counselors integrate mindfulness into their work. Some educators have begun to bring breathwork and meditation into the classroom, but few have brought this practice into the work of applying for college.

In the college application process, the focus is often on achievement. College admissions officials review grades, rigor of coursework, extracurricular activities, personal statements, test scores, and letters of recommendation to determine if an applicant is the “right fit” for the campus and community. Students may indeed plan their entire high school experience based on what they “think” admissions officials might want to see. Not only is this a recipe for an anxious self, it is also a surefire path to burnout.

So, what might it look like to bring mindfulness into the college application process?

Some mindfulness actions might include:

• Weekly or daily journaling on the process

• Breathing and listening to a guided mindfulness session for a few minutes before beginning to write or work

• Creating a list of intentions for the process

• Writing and mailing an encouraging and loving note to your future self

• Pausing midway through working to breathe and ground yourself

• Creating or finding a list of positive and inspiring affirmations or quotes to have at your workplace.

To learn more about what a fully supported mindful college application process may look and feel like, visit nitajune.com/ahh2zen.