Every year I guide all of you students through completing your college apps in the Fall. And every year I encourage you to be honest because your character is important. Every year I am proud of you for slaving over how to honestly average out the hours you spend on soccer or drama.
And then every year one of you writes to me and says some kid at your school was bragging about how he/she lied on their app to some college and got in when you did not. Each time this happens, I pause, and then I sigh, saddened.
I applaud you for being honest! Keep being honest! At the end of the day, you will be a person of character and integrity and you will be promoted, you will be happy and have good friends, you will be recognized as a leader on your campus and in your job. Know this with full faith, kid, what goes around comes around. That kid may have gotten into Cornell by checking the box that she was Hispanic, or that other kid may have gotten into Cal Poly by falsifying a few grades here and there, but the truth will always come to light.
Someday, those lying kids, the dishonest kids, will have to take exams for which they are not prepared or qualified. They will have to demonstrate skills in class or on the job, skills that they claimed they had, and they will be unable to do these things. Lying and cheating always catch up with you and as methods of operation, they are never worth it.
So don’t be jealous of those kids who lie on college apps. You keep doing the right thing by being honest. You get ahead on your hard work and build a reputation known for integrity. Liars are always ferreted out, I promise you, and karma never fails.
Yay, honestly and yay, college!
