Every Schreiber student is aware of the Schreiber Research Program, a prestigious and competitive program in which students partake in one of three specialized classes designed for individualized, inquiry-based research.

However, the program suffers due to an application process that is long and complicated.  Ultimately, only 30 freshmen will be chosen to partake in the classes, and while the program undoubtedly demands a level of rigor and dedication from the students selected, the process by which students are chosen is unnecessarily mysterious, vague, and confusing. 

Students interested in research first complete a multiple-choice or short-answer assessment to evaluate their logic and reasoning.  Although the process may seem straightforward, if a student does not advance to the next round, they only discover that they’ve been cut through being suddenly removed from a Google Classroom; there is no official communication from faculty.  For those who do advance, the next step is to sit for an essay or another exam.

Finally, for the few that do make it past to the next round, they will again discover acceptance solely through the frantic refresh of their browser window.  These students will move to an in-person interview with research teachers.  While almost all freshmen have taken multiple-choice exams and written essays under pressure, most have never sat for an interview.

It’s common for students to be upset and shocked when excluded from the program, and that’s perfectly understandable.  Given how much importance and prestige this program has in the Schreiber community, being cut feels like a massive loss to most students.   Applicants don’t know if they flubbed the essay, if their teachers didn’t recommend them, if they interviewed poorly, or if they simply didn’t meet the criteria the research faculty was looking for.  

Additionally, freshmen often feel their intelligence and potential are defined simply on acceptance to this one class.  This pressure creates a toxic and competitive environment for students, which is amplified due to the fact that those applying only just started high school.  For most freshmen, research applications are the first time they will experience such ambitious and cutthroat competition, an extremely distressing experience that can prove to be a crippling blow to their confidence for the rest of the year. 

Overall, while Schreiber’s research programs foster academic excellence and encourage true scholarship, the total lack of transparency and creativity with regard to the admissions process does a disservice to the entire student population.