Who got in where?

That is now the question. Jan. 15 has passed and with it the college application process for most Drake High seniors. All the late nights essay writing sessions and hours spent in SAT tutoring will now hopefully pay off as so many of us put our fates in the hands of college admissions boards a thousand miles away.

There is, in such a process, an innate sense of competition; the whole point of applying to college is based on using your academic superiority to get you somewhere.

Well, I'd say that high school students are arguably the most insecure demographic out there. And the college application process plays off just that fact. Seniors are being forced to convince admissions officers that they are smart, unique, and mature enough to live and work on their own -- and that they’re more smart, unique, and mature than their peers.

I don't know how much you've talked to any of us high school kids, but it's safe to say that things I listed above can be cause for terrible insecurities. Add on top of that that most of us will be compared to our classmates based on what college(s) we get in to, and you've got a recipe for a lot of unhappy kids on your hands.

And yet, here we are.

All of us seniors have done our best to throw our hats into the ring of higher education and now we play the waiting game. For the extra studious, those who turned in early-decision applications in November, the good or not-so-good news has begun to trickle in. But the work is hardly over.

The downside of working hard and getting into a top-tier private school is a sizable (though obviously not insurmountable) cost. Most private universities cost upwards of $40,000 a year -- a price that gets even Marin teenagers out of their seats and scrambling for scholarships. Because of budget cuts, even the UCs (Universities of California) and the CSUs (Cal State Universities) have had to raise their prices, lessening the potential bang for your college buck.

Whether it's writing scholarships, getting an after school job, or simply entering their info into the federal student aid database (FAFSA), students are doing all they can to get a leg up on paying for an often very expensive college experience.

On top of the all this stress, Drake students sustained a heavy loss this fall with the passing of long-time college adviser Barbara McCune. Without McCune's helping hand many students (myself included) have felt a bit lost in this year-long college admissions struggle. The burden has felt heavier for students looking for ways to help pay their way in college, students who would have turned to McCune for her unmatched care and assistance.

The bulk of the work is done now, though, as the second semester of senior year gets underway. Well, some of the work is done, at least the college apps are in, and that means that we can get a bit of rest.

Thomas Comings is a Drake senior who plans to study Economics at San Francisco State University.