Ana Baric

	In their own words, 16-year-olds discuss the pressures of getting into college, dating, blogging and more 16 by 16 • Ari Rubin • Carlyle Manns • Caroline Cox-Orrell • Chelsey Knight • Janelle Norman • Meredith-Leigh Pleasants • Tia Whipple • Kelvin Bates • Lisa Bunn • Shukan Patel • Lina Li • Stephen Serene • Jullia Park • Patty Yau • Ana Baric • CJ Martino Getting A Head Start • The New World of Internships Those unpaid summer jobs are no longer for rich kids, college juniors—or even just for summer Multimedia • Sixteen Candles Inside a Sweet 16 Party

What is it like to be 16? A better question may be, what isn’t it like to be 16? I feel as if today’s society has either a bubblegum image of frivolous teens and sweet 16 extravaganzas or a teens-gone-wild nightmarish impression of substance abuse and hormonal insanity. The truth is, being 16 is more complex than most give it credit for being. It’s not all about posting "scene" pictures on MySpace, partying on the weekends, or making parents' lives a miserable hell.

It is, however, an age of uncertainty and shaky ground. It’s a time of fading naivete, car keys, and dates; it's the age where one begins to dabble in the liberating waters of adulthood before plunging into a sea of responsibility and consequence.

To those that say it is a simple and carefree year, I say remove your rose-tinted glasses; they are very unbecoming this year. The main worry in my life is college admission. Looks are fleeting, boys are infantile, and drugs are a waste. One’s BA, however, is wonderfully permanent. In addition to gaining experience and knowledge at college, I plan on growing as a person there as well. That puts a lot of pressure on finding the right school. And I have yet to mention those horror stories of girls who possess 4.0 GPAs, brave 16 AP classes, win MVP awards, attain the position of class president, and then still don’t get into the school of their choice. I feel as if I have to cure cancer to have a shot of getting into my desired colleges, or at least end world poverty.

Did I forget to mention that being 16 is also terribly melodramatic? That’s one of the beauties of being a teenager in general.

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