Essay 3
November 5, 2022
College pressure William Zinsser’s in his essay “College Pressure” published 1979, describes the pressures Yale students have economic, parental, and peer/self- induced. He says that these pressures make students afraid to take a risk and to try to take different paths. He wants them to believe in themselves and to try to enjoy their time in college. I have been a student at Reedley Community College for two years and the pressure I experience as a student and a mother are different from that the Yale student experienced. The first pressure that Yale students and I experience is economic pressure. Zinsser explains that in the 1970’s “tuition, room, and board at most private colleges comes …show more content…
Students apply unnecessary pressure on them by comparing themselves to their peers. Zinsser mentions that a student he calls Linda “who came in and said she was under terrible pressure because her roommate, Barbra was much brighter and studied all the time.” This student is a perfect example of making an unnecessary comparison which stresses her out. This pressure leads to students over work them-selves. “A professor will assign five-page papers”. “Several students will start writing ten-page papers to impress him.”(par.27). Instead of just following the guidelines of an assignment they are trying to shoot above and beyond the requirements. I can really relate to this pressure because I do add a lot of stress on myself. I immediately assume everyone is doing better than me which makes me work harder, but at the same time it causes me to over work myself. I have to make sure all my kids need are done, and then I stay up late to make sure all my school work is done. This pressure affects me negatively because I add a lot of stress on myself that does not need to be added. Instead of focusing on my growth academically. I am always worried about who is doing better than me in