David Hogg's College Applications Aren't Going the Way He Hoped
Even with a 4.2 GPA and a 1270 SAT score, school shooting survivor David Hogg said he believes his activism in recent weeks has hindered his chances to attend his preferred colleges.
According to TMZ, the senior who helped organize a massive gun-control movement in the wake of last month’s massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, has since received rejection letters from several of the universities he had hoped to attend.
The 17-year-old said the college application process has “not been too great” for several Marjory Stoneman Douglas students prominently involved in the activism that resulted in the recent March for Our Lives, which became one of the nation’s largest youth-led protests.
According to Hogg, both he and Ryan Deitsch were rejected by the University of California Los Angeles.
As the Daily Wire reported, Hogg was also turned down by University of California campuses in San Diego, Santa Barbara and Irvine.
While he conceded it was a disappointment to receive the rejection letters two weeks ago, he told TMZ that it will not distract him from a larger mission.
“It’s been kind of annoying having to deal with that and everything else that’s been going on,” he said. “But at this point, you know, we’re changing the world. We’re too busy.”
Asked whether he was surprised that schools did not approach him given the extensive reach of his advocacy, Hogg indicated that he expected the response he received.
“I am not surprised at all, in all honesty,” he said. “I think there are a lot of amazing people that don’t get into college.”
Whether because of activism like his or economic challenges, Hogg said many young people “just aren’t heard in the tsunami of people” vying for spots in the nation’s universities.
He went on to lament the state of higher education in America “where people have to go into massive amounts of debt” to pay for college.
“I think it’s really sad but it’s the truth,” he said.
At this point in his effort to influence changes in the nation’s gun laws, Hogg said it is “too hard to focus on” which college he will attend, though he has several options.
“Honestly, I have no clue,” he said. “I haven’t even thought about that.”
He said colleges including Florida Atlantic University and Cal Poly have accepted his application.
As for the rejections from preferred schools, Hogg said he and his fellow student activists see it as a setback but not a deterrent to their ultimate goals.
“It is absolutely disappointing,” he said. “But at this point, we’re already changing the world.”
He concluded that it would be “great” if colleges choose to support his mission.
“If they don’t, it doesn’t matter, we’re still going to change the world,” he said.
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