In high school, you tend to believe everything you hear from your teachers and counselors simply because you're supposed to. The truth, however. is that half the time these people have no idea what they are talking about.
Sure, they helped you pass the material and answer the basic questions about applying to college, but when it comes to practical advice about life in the real world, you'll often find that they are so wrong. This is usually because things are very different today than they were 30 years ago when your teachers were in college.
Here are the top 25 lies my high school teachers and counselors told me.
1. "Colleges only like students who have taken a lot of AP courses in high school"
2. "You'll do fine in any college class as long as you study and do your assignments"
3. "High school prepares you for college"
4. "Your SAT scores are the most important part of your college application"
5. "Don't bother applying to private schools when you can save so much money at a state school". (This is where scholarships come in handy)
6. "You won't get the full college experience unless you dorm"
7. "Taking out loans for college is a mistake"
8. "Your college essay is really important in the application process"
9. "College will be the best four years of your life"
10. "You'll use algebra after high school"
11. "You need to know MLA format for college"(Unfortunately, we need to know APA too, which we never learned in high school)
12. "Most people meet their spouses in college"
13. "Your college friends will be your future bridesmaids" (Maybe one or two, but my high school friends are pretty cool too)
14. "People stop judging you in college" (People never stop judging you, unfortunately)
15. "Cliques don't exist in college"
16. "It's going to be really hard not having your parents to depend on"
17. "You're going to miss high school." (My all-time favorite lie)
18. "Prom will be the best night of your life"
19. "No matter what field you go into you'll have trouble finding a job with today's economy"
20. "State schools are usually less selective" (They've actually become much more competitive because of how cheap they are compared to private schools)
21. "All sororities and fraternities haze"
22. "We're really going to miss your graduating class"
