Disclaimer: This article uses words that some readers might find offensive.

The subreddit r/ApplyingToCollege (known as A2C to its users) currently has over 650,000 members. Here, users seek advice, share humorous posts, and discuss various aspects of college admissions. A2C remains a highly influential aspect of the college application process for many, and yet, it is unknown to much of the greater public.

A point of contention among A2C’s users has been the use of the word “bloodbath.” Some employ this word to describe the plummeting acceptance rates of colleges and the lengths to which some will go in order to gain admission. In u/ilyMIT’s post titled “It was a bloodbath,” they describe how the college admissions process has left many with “the perfect mix of stress, exhaustion and a deep-seated bitterness.” Many A2C users in the midst of the college application process seem to echo this sentiment.

Other users have pointed out that “bloodbath” might not be the best term to describe college applications. After reading about another user applying to over 150 colleges, u/a2c_moroccangoat published a post titled “It’s not a bloodbath, it’s a shitshow” where they attribute a variety of factors to the plummeting admissions rates of many colleges.

Although members of A2C can’t seem to agree on what the best term is for the situation, one might wonder what may be attributed to A2C’s astronomical rise in popularity to begin with. Of course, the answer is a combination of factors. In order to understand the increasing popularity of A2C, one must first understand how the landscape of college admissions has evolved in recent years.

A 2019 study conducted by the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based National Bureau of Economic Research analyzes public data released by the Students for Fair Admissions Inc (SFFA) v. Harvard court case, which was a lawsuit initiated by the SFFA on the bounds that Harvard violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964 through its affirmative action policies. From this data, the elusive college admissions process starts to become less of a mystery: “Harvard epitomizes the competitive nature of elite college admissions—the admit rate for the Class of 2023 was 4.5%.” The data from the SFFA v. Harvard Case details the exact criteria that Harvard looks at in admissions: Academics, Extracurriculars, Athletics, Personality, and School Report. All of these categories are then scored on a scale of 1-5 with a 1 representing outstanding and a 5 meaning worrisome. However, outside of these criteria, there are additional considerations such as race, legacy status, and geographic residence.

The report elaborates that students who are legacy, athletes, or related to donors or staff had a significant advantage in the admissions process: “Our model of admissions shows that roughly three-quarters of white ALDC admits would have been rejected if they had been treated as white non-ALDCs.” These practices reduce the number of spots available for non-ALDC applicants, making the admissions process even more competitive.

Although some highly-selective colleges such as the California Institute of Technology and Massachusetts Institute of Technology do not consider legacy status during their admissions process, many colleges’ admissions processes continue to admit some students in large part due to factors unrelated to merit.

Northeastern University is one college that has rapidly ascended the ranks in recent years. Because Northeastern is test-optional and there is no supplemental essay as part of their application, many students have applied. However, the substantial increase in applications has been overwhelming. For the class of 2025, Northeastern saw a 17% increase in applicants from the previous year, receiving 75,223 applications. As for this year, Northeastern received nearly 90,000 applications from all of its application pools. While their Early Action admit rate was roughly 20% last year, the admit rate for this year’s Early Action plummeted to only 6%, which was lower than Harvard’s Restrictive Early Action acceptance rate of 8% this year.

Northeastern is not the only college that has experienced lower acceptance rates. Auburn University is another school whose acceptance rate has recently lowered tremendously. For the class of 2026, the Early Action pool only accepted 9,600 students, which was an all time low of 24% acceptance rate. Like Auburn University and Northeastern University, we can expect college admission to become more selective in future years. This may be attributed to a variety of factors, including test-optional policies more applicants having the support to apply to selective colleges, and the desire among some applicants to reduce risk by applying to more schools amidst plummeting acceptance rates.

With the hyper-competitive nature of college admissions has also come an increased focus during high school on college acceptances. When he was asked about what he would change about the college admissions process, high school senior Rahul from Albuquerque, New Mexico explained how the high school experience has changed for some: “Everything about high school seems to be about getting into college. Anything you do is to get you in.” Perhaps due to the ever-decreasing acceptance rates, many high schoolers have prioritized focusing on their college prospects rather than enjoying high school in order to remain competitive with other applicants. 

Amidst the intense landscape of college applications, the A2C subreddit brings humor to its users through “scandals” and its Shitpost Wednesday tradition. Some posts, such as the now-famous “I tried to kiss my interviewer! Are my chances ruined?” post by user u/Ununpentium_115 or “Asked my Rice Interviewer his Rice Purity Test score…” post by user u/Thick-Restaurant-432 remain unclear whether they are serious inquiries or joke posts, but nonetheless provide comedic relief. On Shitpost Wednesdays, A2C users are encouraged to post memes and jokes to the subreddit about the college admissions process, providing a lightened mood during an otherwise stressful time.

In addition to the prominent humorous posts, one of the primary draws of A2C for its users is that it provides a platform for college applicants to receive valuable feedback and advice about the admissions process. During our interview with Alyssa, a high school senior from Wilsonville, Oregon, she explained A2C’s upsides for her: “[A2C] can be VERY helpful when you have a specific question in mind. But, if you’re browsing around, there is a lot of content that is not helpful or potentially toxic.” Despite some of the negativity that may be present, A2C also often has beneficial information for its users. Current students at a variety of colleges often host “AMA” (Ask Me Anything) discussions where they will answer prospective students’ questions. College admissions consultants also regularly answer student inquiries on the thread.

In addition to its space on Reddit, A2C has a Discord server and website. The Discord functions similarly to the subreddit, while the website includes a “decisions calendar” that maps out when colleges will release their admission decisions.

Despite the benefits, some users have called out A2C for promoting stress and fostering an environment where students blindly pursue certain selective colleges at the expense of their mental health.

Last month, A2C user u/ReindeerWooden3557 had the following to say about the A2C subreddit in their post titled “This sub is so toxic. A lot of you need to relax” : “Some people on here need to take a breath. There is much more to life than the next four years. And no, the college you go to will not dictate your outcome. You have absolutely no idea how the experience will be, so relax and take things as they come. So many people on here are setting themselves up for disappointment.” Additionally, Mrs. Vander Vorst, BT’s Director of College Counseling and Guidance, agreed during an interview with her that A2C may create a toxic environment: “[A2C] raises anxiety where there shouldn’t be anxiety. Reddit users will comment things like ‘In my portal, they took away this button, am I admitted?’ When people make these comments, it makes everyone nervous. Too much knowledge can create more anxiety.” As Mrs. Vander Vorst explains, misinformation and miscommunication can be a problem on A2C for its users.

One of the focal points of A2C’s toxicity has been comparison among users. Many of A2C’s frequent posters brag about high test scores, national and international awards, or an intense course load. Shace, a high school senior from Tahlequah, Oklahoma, has the following to say when we asked him about A2C: “It compared me to people that aren’t in my income range, ethnic background, or geographical location… Constantly comparing yourself to other people is never a great thing for anyone’s mental health.”

When we asked a current senior from Ortonville, Michigan, Herbie, about how he would like to change the landscape of college admissions, he cited the cutthroat nature of the process: “I do think that these systems set in place really do cause students to pit themselves against each other. They have preconceived notions about what are good and bad schools.” Mrs. Vander Vorst also had a comment regarding how college admissions could change by saying, “I would love to have more college admissions people see what your every day life is like. If they could understand how much you as students are already doing and the hoops you have to jump through, then they could understand that their school may be asking for a lot.”

Maya Savory, a senior at BT, echoed the same sentiments as Herbie, saying: “I think overall the whole college application process people are too judgmental and care about school name (especially on A2C or at BT) above what is best for cost and my career choice.” Ultimately, despite the societal pressure that exists to pursue admission to some colleges over others, applicants should prioritize personal fit when making their college choices.