BY ELIAS BENDA, OPINIONS EDITOR
For many seniors who applied Early Action and Decision to college this fall, acceptance (and denial) letters have been and will be coming in the mail. There is no doubting the importance of these letters; they decide where you will be next year, and most likely for the next four years of your life. Plus, for many, making a decision is not easy. Rejection can be difficult to deal with, and even the thought of it can be anxiety-inducing.
Herein lies the reason that posting all of one’s college responses on social media is inappropriate. Posting college acceptances on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc., especially for schools you got into and are not planning on going to, can be an unintentional slap in the face for those who did not get accepted. Additionally, instances where people include scholarship information can be hyper-sensitive, as those who cannot afford a higher-education can feel singled-out for their lack of financial resources.
For many, rejection can be a very sensitive subject, and remaining conscious that others might not have received their desired response is what a ‘friend’ would do. A final decision for what college someone is attending the next year is different. It makes sense for social media, as it is informing your ‘friends’ of a major life event, and of where you will be living.
It is not about modesty or privacy, it’s about being considerate.
I know I have personally considered un-friending people online when they post something I am, or think others would or could be, personally insulted by. I consider these college posts to fall under that category.
It is not about modesty or privacy, it’s about being considerate. ‘Friends’, in whatever remote definition of the word is applied to social media, are supposed to be conscious of how each other will react to the information they share. Even if there is no malintent on the part of the person posting, it is important for everyone to think before they act in the interest of friendships, on or offline.
