Social media is a very rewarding place for those who don’t have the motivation to study. TikTok videos with inspirational quotes like “Obsession ALWAYS beats talent” and “Study until you can’t get it wrong” are convincing tactics when I need that little boost of motivation.

I won’t lie, life as an academic weapon looks glamorous and ideal. That old-money aesthetic mixed with music from the “Oppenheimer” movie truly makes me feel better about doing my math homework.

But what about the other videos promoting all-nighters and unhealthy meal choices?

Starting college, I was told to prepare to live off ramen and energy drinks when balancing school, work, social lives and personal health. Now, I’m in a friend group made up of different majors, but there’s one common variable — doing the most in order to be a successful student.

The University of Minnesota exempts students with a grade point average below 3.5 from graduating with honors. Mandatory introductory courses for first-years, such as CLA First-Year Experience I and CSE First-Year Experience, immediately prepare new students for the workload and expectations needed for future career-finding. In these classes, we are taught to write a resume, prepare for interviews and accumulate the perfect transcript.

On paper, college students are high-achieving and well-rounded. Behind the scenes, we are up every night until 3 a.m. or later, running on Celsius energy drinks and leftover pizza from a club event we attended earlier.

Ashleigh Brown, a first-year student at the University, found the academic-weapon lifestyle to consist of constant studying and having little to no life outside of that.

“I definitely felt the pressure just to do better, not for myself, but to also get into a good college,” Brown said. “Seeing your peers around you doing well in school and get good grades pushes you as well.”

There’s pressure to be the best — a mindset many parents implement in their children at a young age.

Jennifer Breheny Wallace, an award-winning journalist, wrote about how this anxiety in parents can stem from growing income inequalities and job market competitiveness. We all want the best for our children, but in this growing economy, it’s almost impossible to be the best.

This is where students suffer.

Lack of sleep and routine meals can throw off one’s circadian rhythm, or the changes in our physical and mental health that are heavily regulated by night and day, according to Her Campus. Drowsiness, poor coordination and difficulty focusing can occur when these rhythms fall out of balance.

The idea of academic success is skewed, and this is the result.

Liza Meredith, associate teaching professor in the department of psychology at the University, said having high performance and outcomes in a course is more important than high GPAs and class completions.

“Academic success seems like a straightforward concept, but I think it’s actually quite complicated,” Meredith said. “You can potentially have a high grade in a class without necessarily learning a lot in the class.”

Meredith added that she believes it’s unfair for professors and faculty to demand perfection and be inflexible with their workload. This also heavily depends on the class. Because of this, demanding change from the University would be hard. However, there are ways in which Meredith believes instructors and students can work better together.

For example, many classes at the University don’t have a late-work policy, meaning all assignments are due at the end of the semester. There are still schedules put in place to help students not cram everything at the end, but along with all of the other responsibilities we have, it’s a big help to have that leeway. Meredith said she doesn’t make assignments worth so much in case one is missed.

This is not to say that this grading structure works for everyone. Still, she would like to see other professors prioritizing students’ schedules over workload.

As a second-year student in pursuit of being an academic weapon, I’ve learned that no one is truly an academic weapon when all of our lives are unique and different from each other. I’ve befriended many students of all years and majors while at the University, and they each take on their academic journey differently.

It’s not recommended to skip or miss classes, cram last-minute studying, multitask beyond your ability or condone distractions. If you want to be your version of an academic weapon, skew it to your needs, schedule and limits.

Do your best. I promise it’s enough. You can only reap what you sow, not what someone else on social media tells you to. 

“Your performance isn’t everything. You as a person matter more than any performance that you engage in,” Meredith said. “You don’t have to be perfect to have a good trajectory in life.”

Social media is a very rewarding place for those who don’t have the motivation to study. TikTok videos with inspirational quotes like “Obsession ALWAYS beats talent” and “Study until you can’t get it wrong” are convincing tactics when I need that little boost of motivation.

I won’t lie, life as an academic weapon looks glamorous and ideal. That old-money aesthetic mixed with music from the “Oppenheimer” movie truly makes me feel better about doing my math homework.

But what about the other videos promoting all-nighters and unhealthy meal choices?

Starting college, I was told to prepare to live off ramen and energy drinks when balancing school, work, social lives and personal health. Now, I’m in a friend group made up of different majors, but there’s one common variable — doing the most in order to be a successful student.

The University of Minnesota exempts students with a grade point average below 3.5 from graduating with honors. Mandatory introductory courses for first-years, such as CLA First-Year Experience I and CSE First-Year Experience, immediately prepare new students for the workload and expectations needed for future career-finding. In these classes, we are taught to write a resume, prepare for interviews and accumulate the perfect transcript.

On paper, college students are high-achieving and well-rounded. Behind the scenes, we are up every night until 3 a.m. or later, running on Celsius energy drinks and leftover pizza from a club event we attended earlier.

Ashleigh Brown, a first-year student at the University, found the academic-weapon lifestyle to consist of constant studying and having little to no life outside of that.

“I definitely felt the pressure just to do better, not for myself, but to also get into a good college,” Brown said. “Seeing your peers around you doing well in school and get good grades pushes you as well.”

There’s pressure to be the best — a mindset many parents implement in their children at a young age.

Jennifer Breheny Wallace, an award-winning journalist, wrote about how this anxiety in parents can stem from growing income inequalities and job market competitiveness. We all want the best for our children, but in this growing economy, it’s almost impossible to be the best.

This is where students suffer.

Lack of sleep and routine meals can throw off one’s circadian rhythm, or the changes in our physical and mental health that are heavily regulated by night and day, according to Her Campus. Drowsiness, poor coordination and difficulty focusing can occur when these rhythms fall out of balance.

The idea of academic success is skewed, and this is the result.

Liza Meredith, associate teaching professor in the department of psychology at the University, said having high performance and outcomes in a course is more important than high GPAs and class completions.

“Academic success seems like a straightforward concept, but I think it’s actually quite complicated,” Meredith said. “You can potentially have a high grade in a class without necessarily learning a lot in the class.”

Meredith added that she believes it’s unfair for professors and faculty to demand perfection and be inflexible with their workload. This also heavily depends on the class. Because of this, demanding change from the University would be hard. However, there are ways in which Meredith believes instructors and students can work better together.

For example, many classes at the University don’t have a late-work policy, meaning all assignments are due at the end of the semester. There are still schedules put in place to help students not cram everything at the end, but along with all of the other responsibilities we have, it’s a big help to have that leeway. Meredith said she doesn’t make assignments worth so much in case one is missed.

This is not to say that this grading structure works for everyone. Still, she would like to see other professors prioritizing students’ schedules over workload.

As a second-year student in pursuit of being an academic weapon, I’ve learned that no one is truly an academic weapon when all of our lives are unique and different from each other. I’ve befriended many students of all years and majors while at the University, and they each take on their academic journey differently.

It’s not recommended to skip or miss classes, cram last-minute studying, multitask beyond your ability or condone distractions. If you want to be your version of an academic weapon, skew it to your needs, schedule and limits.

Do your best. I promise it’s enough. You can only reap what you sow, not what someone else on social media tells you to. 

“Your performance isn’t everything. You as a person matter more than any performance that you engage in,” Meredith said. “You don’t have to be perfect to have a good trajectory in life.”

Social media is a very rewarding place for those who don’t have the motivation to study. TikTok videos with inspirational quotes like “Obsession ALWAYS beats talent” and “Study until you can’t get it wrong” are convincing tactics when I need that little boost of motivation.

I won’t lie, life as an academic weapon looks glamorous and ideal. That old-money aesthetic mixed with music from the “Oppenheimer” movie truly makes me feel better about doing my math homework.

But what about the other videos promoting all-nighters and unhealthy meal choices?

Starting college, I was told to prepare to live off ramen and energy drinks when balancing school, work, social lives and personal health. Now, I’m in a friend group made up of different majors, but there’s one common variable — doing the most in order to be a successful student.

The University of Minnesota exempts students with a grade point average below 3.5 from graduating with honors. Mandatory introductory courses for first-years, such as CLA First-Year Experience I and CSE First-Year Experience, immediately prepare new students for the workload and expectations needed for future career-finding. In these classes, we are taught to write a resume, prepare for interviews and accumulate the perfect transcript.

On paper, college students are high-achieving and well-rounded. Behind the scenes, we are up every night until 3 a.m. or later, running on Celsius energy drinks and leftover pizza from a club event we attended earlier.

Ashleigh Brown, a first-year student at the University, found the academic-weapon lifestyle to consist of constant studying and having little to no life outside of that.

“I definitely felt the pressure just to do better, not for myself, but to also get into a good college,” Brown said. “Seeing your peers around you doing well in school and get good grades pushes you as well.”

There’s pressure to be the best — a mindset many parents implement in their children at a young age.

Jennifer Breheny Wallace, an award-winning journalist, wrote about how this anxiety in parents can stem from growing income inequalities and job market competitiveness. We all want the best for our children, but in this growing economy, it’s almost impossible to be the best.

This is where students suffer.

Lack of sleep and routine meals can throw off one’s circadian rhythm, or the changes in our physical and mental health that are heavily regulated by night and day, according to Her Campus. Drowsiness, poor coordination and difficulty focusing can occur when these rhythms fall out of balance.

The idea of academic success is skewed, and this is the result.

Liza Meredith, associate teaching professor in the department of psychology at the University, said having high performance and outcomes in a course is more important than high GPAs and class completions.

“Academic success seems like a straightforward concept, but I think it’s actually quite complicated,” Meredith said. “You can potentially have a high grade in a class without necessarily learning a lot in the class.”

Meredith added that she believes it’s unfair for professors and faculty to demand perfection and be inflexible with their workload. This also heavily depends on the class. Because of this, demanding change from the University would be hard. However, there are ways in which Meredith believes instructors and students can work better together.

For example, many classes at the University don’t have a late-work policy, meaning all assignments are due at the end of the semester. There are still schedules put in place to help students not cram everything at the end, but along with all of the other responsibilities we have, it’s a big help to have that leeway. Meredith said she doesn’t make assignments worth so much in case one is missed.

This is not to say that this grading structure works for everyone. Still, she would like to see other professors prioritizing students’ schedules over workload.

As a second-year student in pursuit of being an academic weapon, I’ve learned that no one is truly an academic weapon when all of our lives are unique and different from each other. I’ve befriended many students of all years and majors while at the University, and they each take on their academic journey differently.

It’s not recommended to skip or miss classes, cram last-minute studying, multitask beyond your ability or condone distractions. If you want to be your version of an academic weapon, skew it to your needs, schedule and limits.

Do your best. I promise it’s enough. You can only reap what you sow, not what someone else on social media tells you to. 

“Your performance isn’t everything. You as a person matter more than any performance that you engage in,” Meredith said. “You don’t have to be perfect to have a good trajectory in life.”

Social media is a very rewarding place for those who don’t have the motivation to study. TikTok videos with inspirational quotes like “Obsession ALWAYS beats talent” and “Study until you can’t get it wrong” are convincing tactics when I need that little boost of motivation.

I won’t lie, life as an academic weapon looks glamorous and ideal. That old-money aesthetic mixed with music from the “Oppenheimer” movie truly makes me feel better about doing my math homework.

But what about the other videos promoting all-nighters and unhealthy meal choices?

Starting college, I was told to prepare to live off ramen and energy drinks when balancing school, work, social lives and personal health. Now, I’m in a friend group made up of different majors, but there’s one common variable — doing the most in order to be a successful student.

The University of Minnesota exempts students with a grade point average below 3.5 from graduating with honors. Mandatory introductory courses for first-years, such as CLA First-Year Experience I and CSE First-Year Experience, immediately prepare new students for the workload and expectations needed for future career-finding. In these classes, we are taught to write a resume, prepare for interviews and accumulate the perfect transcript.

On paper, college students are high-achieving and well-rounded. Behind the scenes, we are up every night until 3 a.m. or later, running on Celsius energy drinks and leftover pizza from a club event we attended earlier.

Ashleigh Brown, a first-year student at the University, found the academic-weapon lifestyle to consist of constant studying and having little to no life outside of that.

“I definitely felt the pressure just to do better, not for myself, but to also get into a good college,” Brown said. “Seeing your peers around you doing well in school and get good grades pushes you as well.”

There’s pressure to be the best — a mindset many parents implement in their children at a young age.

Jennifer Breheny Wallace, an award-winning journalist, wrote about how this anxiety in parents can stem from growing income inequalities and job market competitiveness. We all want the best for our children, but in this growing economy, it’s almost impossible to be the best.

This is where students suffer.

Lack of sleep and routine meals can throw off one’s circadian rhythm, or the changes in our physical and mental health that are heavily regulated by night and day, according to Her Campus. Drowsiness, poor coordination and difficulty focusing can occur when these rhythms fall out of balance.

The idea of academic success is skewed, and this is the result.

Liza Meredith, associate teaching professor in the department of psychology at the University, said having high performance and outcomes in a course is more important than high GPAs and class completions.

“Academic success seems like a straightforward concept, but I think it’s actually quite complicated,” Meredith said. “You can potentially have a high grade in a class without necessarily learning a lot in the class.”

Meredith added that she believes it’s unfair for professors and faculty to demand perfection and be inflexible with their workload. This also heavily depends on the class. Because of this, demanding change from the University would be hard. However, there are ways in which Meredith believes instructors and students can work better together.

For example, many classes at the University don’t have a late-work policy, meaning all assignments are due at the end of the semester. There are still schedules put in place to help students not cram everything at the end, but along with all of the other responsibilities we have, it’s a big help to have that leeway. Meredith said she doesn’t make assignments worth so much in case one is missed.

This is not to say that this grading structure works for everyone. Still, she would like to see other professors prioritizing students’ schedules over workload.

As a second-year student in pursuit of being an academic weapon, I’ve learned that no one is truly an academic weapon when all of our lives are unique and different from each other. I’ve befriended many students of all years and majors while at the University, and they each take on their academic journey differently.

It’s not recommended to skip or miss classes, cram last-minute studying, multitask beyond your ability or condone distractions. If you want to be your version of an academic weapon, skew it to your needs, schedule and limits.

Do your best. I promise it’s enough. You can only reap what you sow, not what someone else on social media tells you to. 

“Your performance isn’t everything. You as a person matter more than any performance that you engage in,” Meredith said. “You don’t have to be perfect to have a good trajectory in life.”

Social media is a very rewarding place for those who don’t have the motivation to study. TikTok videos with inspirational quotes like “Obsession ALWAYS beats talent” and “Study until you can’t get it wrong” are convincing tactics when I need that little boost of motivation.

I won’t lie, life as an academic weapon looks glamorous and ideal. That old-money aesthetic mixed with music from the “Oppenheimer” movie truly makes me feel better about doing my math homework.

But what about the other videos promoting all-nighters and unhealthy meal choices?

Starting college, I was told to prepare to live off ramen and energy drinks when balancing school, work, social lives and personal health. Now, I’m in a friend group made up of different majors, but there’s one common variable — doing the most in order to be a successful student.

The University of Minnesota exempts students with a grade point average below 3.5 from graduating with honors. Mandatory introductory courses for first-years, such as CLA First-Year Experience I and CSE First-Year Experience, immediately prepare new students for the workload and expectations needed for future career-finding. In these classes, we are taught to write a resume, prepare for interviews and accumulate the perfect transcript.

On paper, college students are high-achieving and well-rounded. Behind the scenes, we are up every night until 3 a.m. or later, running on Celsius energy drinks and leftover pizza from a club event we attended earlier.

Ashleigh Brown, a first-year student at the University, found the academic-weapon lifestyle to consist of constant studying and having little to no life outside of that.

“I definitely felt the pressure just to do better, not for myself, but to also get into a good college,” Brown said. “Seeing your peers around you doing well in school and get good grades pushes you as well.”

There’s pressure to be the best — a mindset many parents implement in their children at a young age.

Jennifer Breheny Wallace, an award-winning journalist, wrote about how this anxiety in parents can stem from growing income inequalities and job market competitiveness. We all want the best for our children, but in this growing economy, it’s almost impossible to be the best.

This is where students suffer.

Lack of sleep and routine meals can throw off one’s circadian rhythm, or the changes in our physical and mental health that are heavily regulated by night and day, according to Her Campus. Drowsiness, poor coordination and difficulty focusing can occur when these rhythms fall out of balance.

The idea of academic success is skewed, and this is the result.

Liza Meredith, associate teaching professor in the department of psychology at the University, said having high performance and outcomes in a course is more important than high GPAs and class completions.

“Academic success seems like a straightforward concept, but I think it’s actually quite complicated,” Meredith said. “You can potentially have a high grade in a class without necessarily learning a lot in the class.”

Meredith added that she believes it’s unfair for professors and faculty to demand perfection and be inflexible with their workload. This also heavily depends on the class. Because of this, demanding change from the University would be hard. However, there are ways in which Meredith believes instructors and students can work better together.

For example, many classes at the University don’t have a late-work policy, meaning all assignments are due at the end of the semester. There are still schedules put in place to help students not cram everything at the end, but along with all of the other responsibilities we have, it’s a big help to have that leeway. Meredith said she doesn’t make assignments worth so much in case one is missed.

This is not to say that this grading structure works for everyone. Still, she would like to see other professors prioritizing students’ schedules over workload.

As a second-year student in pursuit of being an academic weapon, I’ve learned that no one is truly an academic weapon when all of our lives are unique and different from each other. I’ve befriended many students of all years and majors while at the University, and they each take on their academic journey differently.

It’s not recommended to skip or miss classes, cram last-minute studying, multitask beyond your ability or condone distractions. If you want to be your version of an academic weapon, skew it to your needs, schedule and limits.

Do your best. I promise it’s enough. You can only reap what you sow, not what someone else on social media tells you to. 

“Your performance isn’t everything. You as a person matter more than any performance that you engage in,” Meredith said. “You don’t have to be perfect to have a good trajectory in life.”

Social media is a very rewarding place for those who don’t have the motivation to study. TikTok videos with inspirational quotes like “Obsession ALWAYS beats talent” and “Study until you can’t get it wrong” are convincing tactics when I need that little boost of motivation.

I won’t lie, life as an academic weapon looks glamorous and ideal. That old-money aesthetic mixed with music from the “Oppenheimer” movie truly makes me feel better about doing my math homework.

But what about the other videos promoting all-nighters and unhealthy meal choices?

Starting college, I was told to prepare to live off ramen and energy drinks when balancing school, work, social lives and personal health. Now, I’m in a friend group made up of different majors, but there’s one common variable — doing the most in order to be a successful student.

The University of Minnesota exempts students with a grade point average below 3.5 from graduating with honors. Mandatory introductory courses for first-years, such as CLA First-Year Experience I and CSE First-Year Experience, immediately prepare new students for the workload and expectations needed for future career-finding. In these classes, we are taught to write a resume, prepare for interviews and accumulate the perfect transcript.

On paper, college students are high-achieving and well-rounded. Behind the scenes, we are up every night until 3 a.m. or later, running on Celsius energy drinks and leftover pizza from a club event we attended earlier.

Ashleigh Brown, a first-year student at the University, found the academic-weapon lifestyle to consist of constant studying and having little to no life outside of that.

“I definitely felt the pressure just to do better, not for myself, but to also get into a good college,” Brown said. “Seeing your peers around you doing well in school and get good grades pushes you as well.”

There’s pressure to be the best — a mindset many parents implement in their children at a young age.

Jennifer Breheny Wallace, an award-winning journalist, wrote about how this anxiety in parents can stem from growing income inequalities and job market competitiveness. We all want the best for our children, but in this growing economy, it’s almost impossible to be the best.

This is where students suffer.

Lack of sleep and routine meals can throw off one’s circadian rhythm, or the changes in our physical and mental health that are heavily regulated by night and day, according to Her Campus. Drowsiness, poor coordination and difficulty focusing can occur when these rhythms fall out of balance.

The idea of academic success is skewed, and this is the result.

Liza Meredith, associate teaching professor in the department of psychology at the University, said having high performance and outcomes in a course is more important than high GPAs and class completions.

“Academic success seems like a straightforward concept, but I think it’s actually quite complicated,” Meredith said. “You can potentially have a high grade in a class without necessarily learning a lot in the class.”

Meredith added that she believes it’s unfair for professors and faculty to demand perfection and be inflexible with their workload. This also heavily depends on the class. Because of this, demanding change from the University would be hard. However, there are ways in which Meredith believes instructors and students can work better together.

For example, many classes at the University don’t have a late-work policy, meaning all assignments are due at the end of the semester. There are still schedules put in place to help students not cram everything at the end, but along with all of the other responsibilities we have, it’s a big help to have that leeway. Meredith said she doesn’t make assignments worth so much in case one is missed.

This is not to say that this grading structure works for everyone. Still, she would like to see other professors prioritizing students’ schedules over workload.

As a second-year student in pursuit of being an academic weapon, I’ve learned that no one is truly an academic weapon when all of our lives are unique and different from each other. I’ve befriended many students of all years and majors while at the University, and they each take on their academic journey differently.

It’s not recommended to skip or miss classes, cram last-minute studying, multitask beyond your ability or condone distractions. If you want to be your version of an academic weapon, skew it to your needs, schedule and limits.

Do your best. I promise it’s enough. You can only reap what you sow, not what someone else on social media tells you to. 

“Your performance isn’t everything. You as a person matter more than any performance that you engage in,” Meredith said. “You don’t have to be perfect to have a good trajectory in life.”

Social media is a very rewarding place for those who don’t have the motivation to study. TikTok videos with inspirational quotes like “Obsession ALWAYS beats talent” and “Study until you can’t get it wrong” are convincing tactics when I need that little boost of motivation.

I won’t lie, life as an academic weapon looks glamorous and ideal. That old-money aesthetic mixed with music from the “Oppenheimer” movie truly makes me feel better about doing my math homework.

But what about the other videos promoting all-nighters and unhealthy meal choices?

Starting college, I was told to prepare to live off ramen and energy drinks when balancing school, work, social lives and personal health. Now, I’m in a friend group made up of different majors, but there’s one common variable — doing the most in order to be a successful student.

The University of Minnesota exempts students with a grade point average below 3.5 from graduating with honors. Mandatory introductory courses for first-years, such as CLA First-Year Experience I and CSE First-Year Experience, immediately prepare new students for the workload and expectations needed for future career-finding. In these classes, we are taught to write a resume, prepare for interviews and accumulate the perfect transcript.

On paper, college students are high-achieving and well-rounded. Behind the scenes, we are up every night until 3 a.m. or later, running on Celsius energy drinks and leftover pizza from a club event we attended earlier.

Ashleigh Brown, a first-year student at the University, found the academic-weapon lifestyle to consist of constant studying and having little to no life outside of that.

“I definitely felt the pressure just to do better, not for myself, but to also get into a good college,” Brown said. “Seeing your peers around you doing well in school and get good grades pushes you as well.”

There’s pressure to be the best — a mindset many parents implement in their children at a young age.

Jennifer Breheny Wallace, an award-winning journalist, wrote about how this anxiety in parents can stem from growing income inequalities and job market competitiveness. We all want the best for our children, but in this growing economy, it’s almost impossible to be the best.

This is where students suffer.

Lack of sleep and routine meals can throw off one’s circadian rhythm, or the changes in our physical and mental health that are heavily regulated by night and day, according to Her Campus. Drowsiness, poor coordination and difficulty focusing can occur when these rhythms fall out of balance.

The idea of academic success is skewed, and this is the result.

Liza Meredith, associate teaching professor in the department of psychology at the University, said having high performance and outcomes in a course is more important than high GPAs and class completions.

“Academic success seems like a straightforward concept, but I think it’s actually quite complicated,” Meredith said. “You can potentially have a high grade in a class without necessarily learning a lot in the class.”

Meredith added that she believes it’s unfair for professors and faculty to demand perfection and be inflexible with their workload. This also heavily depends on the class. Because of this, demanding change from the University would be hard. However, there are ways in which Meredith believes instructors and students can work better together.

For example, many classes at the University don’t have a late-work policy, meaning all assignments are due at the end of the semester. There are still schedules put in place to help students not cram everything at the end, but along with all of the other responsibilities we have, it’s a big help to have that leeway. Meredith said she doesn’t make assignments worth so much in case one is missed.

This is not to say that this grading structure works for everyone. Still, she would like to see other professors prioritizing students’ schedules over workload.

As a second-year student in pursuit of being an academic weapon, I’ve learned that no one is truly an academic weapon when all of our lives are unique and different from each other. I’ve befriended many students of all years and majors while at the University, and they each take on their academic journey differently.

It’s not recommended to skip or miss classes, cram last-minute studying, multitask beyond your ability or condone distractions. If you want to be your version of an academic weapon, skew it to your needs, schedule and limits.

Do your best. I promise it’s enough. You can only reap what you sow, not what someone else on social media tells you to. 

“Your performance isn’t everything. You as a person matter more than any performance that you engage in,” Meredith said. “You don’t have to be perfect to have a good trajectory in life.”

From bouquets and garters to designer dresses, has anyone else noticed this drastic change in prom culture? They even have bachelorette-themed parties with Shein pajama sets before the dance. For those who don’t follow people from high school on social media, you may not see all of the work and money being put into these 18-year-olds’ annual school dance.

There are dresses from designers like Sherri Hill and Johnathan Kayne, nails, spray tans, makeup, hair, shoes, flowers, professional photos, proposals and jewelry — all of which seem to be the new standard for today’s prom.

I’m not the only one noticing it. Before we begin, let’s dive into the original purpose and value of prom.

These coming-of-age dances are a huge part of American culture, as this sort of celebration isn’t seen much elsewhere. Originally stemming from ancient Greece, the prom, or “promenade,” we know today mimics debutante balls, formal gatherings from the 18th and 19th centuries that celebrated young women transitioning into society and adulthood.

Prom also holds this rite-of-passage tone. 

The tradition really set in when Ivy League schools in the 19th century included concerts at their proms, bringing the music aspect to the formal festival. The “junior prom,” or high school prom, grew popular in the 1930s. By the ‘40s and ‘50s, dances were moved from gymnasiums to hotels and venues, and the crowning of prom king and queen took place. 

Prom at my rural, Midwestern high school was just as important, maybe even more so than at bigger schools. It was a chance for the volleyball girls to ask the football guys and vice versa, taking away half of the choices for dates. Some people brought their sister’s college friend from the university 15 miles away. I, like many others, experienced prom at the bigger schools in the area by going with my friend’s boyfriend’s friend.

The richer schools tend to have better after-prom activities. At the end of a night spent dancing in tight, uncomfortable dresses that we’ll only wear once, climbing an inflatable obstacle course until 4 a.m. felt well deserved.

But I’m not here to discuss after prom.

Last weekend was the majority of South Dakota and Iowa’s proms, the areas in which I grew up. As I scrolled through countless posts, I couldn’t help but see more bridal accessories than when I went to prom in 2023. That was the year when bouquets were getting popular, but only a select few had them. Now, if you don’t have a bouquet, did you even try?

Apparently, the bouquet trend was also alive through the ‘80s and ‘90s. Reddit commenters, along with my mother, remember carrying small bouquets at prom. Some agree that bouquets were for prom and corsages were for small-scale dances like homecoming.

Missy Bye, a professor in the College of Design at the University of Minnesota, said there’s a limited number of prom dress manufacturers.

“Oftentimes, a single company will produce them and put different labels in them,” Bye said. “It’s a one-time wear for the most part, so it doesn’t need to be constructed with the best materials and attention to detail, but it would be nice if it were made well enough so someone else could wear it.”

The majority of popular prom dresses are found in bridal shops nowadays, Bye said. This could explain the rise in bouquets, garters and prices. It’s less common for high schoolers to shop at Macy’s and JCPenney today.

Bye said she was disappointed to see Generation Z not treat prom more sustainably, since our generation appears to focus heavily on the value. The second-hand market is growing thanks to the addition of poorly-made fast fashion. Bye said cheap prom dresses also add to the abundance.

Bye added that U.S. culture is very individualistic, and most people look away from second-hand because it’s already been worn before.

“For proms and weddings, it’s an opportunity if they can get the consumer to buy into it,” Bye said.

Ashley Tsasse, a first-year student at the University, said she believes we tend to acquaint ourselves with money and how much we spend.

“It makes sense to spend so much for this special event because that’s how it’s always been advertised to us,” Tsasse said.

Tsasse spent around $113 on her prom dress, but the one night of memories wouldn’t suffice for a dress worth hundreds of dollars. 

“I look back on my prom and the pictures are cute, but everything else, like renting these fancy cars and buying these dresses for one night, it’s not beneficial at all,” Tsasse said. 

I only wore my senior year prom dress twice. Then again, my dress was only $130. My friends from high school, however, spent $300-600 on their dresses. Now, some of the 2025 graduating class are spending more than $1,000 on a dress. Most of their decision-making comes from the brand and designer.

The pressure to show up, having spent hundreds or thousands of dollars, is increasing each year. To those who can’t afford it, it can make a rite-of-passage feel like a walk of shame. At the end of the day, the people putting their all into prom are doing it to themselves. I hope they know that their dress will either never be sold on Facebook Marketplace or end up in a Goodwill. 

“I would like to see both (bridal and prom fashion) move towards more either second-hand or more rental,” Bye said. “Rental is really common in menswear, but we just don’t have that same practice in the U.S.” 

Tsasse and I agree that it’s just one night, a few hours. You can make it as memorable as you’d like, but remember to have fun. Prom goers don’t need bouquets, fancy cars and Shein pajama sets to celebrate their youth.

It’s in the TikToks we see of trad wives and University of Alabama sorority girls. It’s in the wealthy influencers who attended the after-party in Washington, D.C. on President Donald Trump’s first night of his second term. 

In this cruel kids’ table setting, it looks like a picture taken from another time. That is, until you look closer at the iPhones, beer cans and TikTok screens posted around the room. 

The women are feigning a glamorous, old-money style with sheer silk and lace. Men are in tuxedos, with the occasional attendee even wearing a Make America Great Again hat. The Butterworth’s venue in Washington, D.C. is dimly lit and decked with rustic velvet seats and chandeliers.

The folks from Trump’s so-called working class have made it to the top. Well, at least these party-goers. 

The MAGA movement, a term coined by Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign, is on the rise among Generation Z. This right-winged movement has gained thousands of followers over the years advocating for gun rights, pro-police, pro-life, anti-lockdown and much more, according to the Panel Study of the MAGA Movement.

So what happened to America before MAGA? Which era of the U.S. do MAGA followers want to revert to so badly?

The 2024 election after-party is only one example of MAGA followers flaunting their version of America. Now, Gen Z is living out their greater America through the fashion of either 1920s New York or 1970s Dollywood. Women are progressively falling back to traditional gender roles and attire of Southern preachers’ daughters (shout out to Ethel Cain), both of which are aesthetics of older American women’s fashion. 

It’s interesting how these influencers and MAGA supporters, especially women, are glamorizing eras in which rights were limited. So, yes, I’m sure that 1950s housewife cleaning in perfect, blonde curls, makeup and heels on the Hoover ad would’ve appreciated the classy attire. If only she could own a credit card and bank account under her name — a right I’m sure a lot of women forget about.

I know what you’re thinking. It’s a party, so let them dress up in the usual attire one would wear to a party. 

I’m more so talking about the wealthy status embodied by the people celebrating voting their rights away, but let me throw in another example.

Recently, The Conservateur, a lifestyle publication centered around America’s “quintessential style and traditions,” held another party at Butterworth’s. This one, though, featured a new motto for conservative women, Make America Hot Again.

Besides the biblical-themed drink menu and pink MAHA hats one could easily find at New York City street vendors, the women (and men) present expelled pride. 

Kara Voght, the journalist who wrote this piece, summarized the attendees’ feelings. 

“It’s about being patriotic. It’s about saying what you want without regard for political correctness. It’s about being unashamed to put marriage and children at the center of a feminine identity,” Voght wrote.

Journalists felt the same energy at the election after-party. Many interviews and observations found the attendees saying slurs and making racist jokes to exercise their newfound freedom.

So why is the conservatism elite now? Why is dressing like the Kennedys or Reagans the ideal representation of America as a whole? Do all MAGA followers feel this way, or are they just waiting for their time in the sun?

There are more than just parties rebranding the new Americana. 

Cowboy and southern attire are big in the Midwest and the South and are usually associated with MAGA followers, since much of this style originated in rural America. This image even extends to the blonde, slim, white girl standard that’s arising in this Christian-leaning administration. 

The Boston Globe interviewed fashion historian Summer Anne Lee on the matter. Her observations are simple — political merchandise has been used to create unity within parties for decades. 

“Trump and his supporters have taken political branding to a new level, largely due to his business-minded approach,” Lee said.

The mixing of merchandise and fashion, as seen in both Butterworth’s parties, creates a whole new image of wealth, status and loyalty. 

Maggie Hennefeld, a professor of cultural studies and comparative literature at the University of Minnesota, brought up Sarah Palin, John McCain’s running mate in the 2008 presidential election, and her motto of the “real America.”

McCain and Palin claimed that the real America resides in the small towns of the country where “patriotism and pro-America” continue to thrive. This aligns with the predominantly white, Christian, rural-living population who often lean toward the Republican Party.

“On one hand, there’s the connotation of the ‘You don’t belong here,’ but it was in a less violent, blatant way than what Trump is saying,” Hennefeld said.

We’ve seen this MAGA mania before. 

About 86% of Americans live in metropolitan areas, with almost half coming from ethnic or racial backgrounds. If the real America in 2008 was rural towns unchanged by the progressive state of the world, what’s the real America now?

To conservatives, it’s about being seen, but it’s not just fashion that’s changed. 

Pop culture is experimenting with conservatism in its music, movies and celebrities. 

Country music is more popular than ever. The hottest documentaries feature the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders and Mormon TikTokers. “Twisters” with Glen Powell and “Top Gun: Maverick” with Tom Cruise are a couple of the hottest films since I graduated from high school.

Hennefeld said she also associates Americana with mid-20th century music, such as jazz, folk and blues, all of which are radically associated with the anti-war and civil rights movement. Now, a whole new image represents these genres. 

As traditional gender roles become popular again, women are reverting to slick, European styles, such as beige colors and natural-leaning makeup, especially amongst Gen Z.

Much of this natural, clean aesthetic is used by trad wives and conservative women on TikTok. Nowadays, it seems it’s too exhausting to be an independent woman. Why on earth did we ever decide to have a mind of our own? 

According to Classically Abby, a conservative social media influencer, the newfound age of conservatism is about being modest but sexy, demure but desirable. 

This is the current symbolism of America. When you see the American flag, who do you think of? The stars that once represented the unity of 50 states make me squeamish. It’s like chanting “liberty and justice for all” from the end of the Pledge of Allegiance, it’s hypocritical. Even when I think of cowboys, I no longer think of their freedom motifs and neither do others. 

Annika Horne, a third-year student at the University, said she believes the Americana aesthetic used to mean individuality. Now, the Republican Party has a uniform style that includes most American symbolism. 

“I think, at the outset, it was really a way to bond people together and to make it like, ‘This is our country and we don’t have to follow the rules of someone else’ and a free nation and all that,” Horne said. “I think recently, it has really changed towards symbolizing a particular group and symbolizing, ‘We are free to do whatever we want, but you have to do whatever we say.’”

The 2024 election saw an increase in voters from the working class, a demographic often associated with the Democratic Party. Trump’s promise to remove unionized immigrants from the workforce also boosted his popularity. 

The working class of America barely hits the mark for the middle class. With 61.7% of America accounting for the working class, you’d think this is the poorer side of America. This is blue-collar America, right? It’s the foundation on which our country stands.

These trending MAGA followers aren’t even close to the 1% benefiting from Trump’s new reign. These people have more in common with the middle class than the billionaires they support. 

This wave of elitism in the right-winged party may feel glamorous, but at the end of the day, who’s really benefiting? Not the working class. Not the low-middle class Americans Trump promised would be seen and heard. 

“The Republican Party is the party of billionaires, and somehow they’ve still appropriated Americana style, which is meant to represent a radical critique of capitalism and corporate ownership,” Hennefeld said. “It just speaks to how broken and meaningless any of these symbols and cultural signifiers are now.”

Too many times have the eyes of new friends lit up every time I mentioned my upbringing in a small town. They ask the usual questions: “Did you grow up on a farm? Did you have a lot of friends because it was a small graduating class? Was it like living in an ’80s movie?”

“Wow, you’re so lucky,” they would all chant.

Sure, growing up in a town with a population of less than 2,000 offered me a sense of community, whereas city folk have to find their place among the many communities. The usual coffee shop gatherings and school-sanctioned sporting events were, in fact, there to connect with the small community. I don’t think I could walk 10 steps without being stopped by a peer’s mom here or an old elementary school teacher there. 

My school’s physics professor was our head football coach. My great-grandfather’s name is on a plaque in my high school cafeteria, honoring him for helping to build our tiny, one-story school. My dad and I graduated from the same high school. My school was so small that half of my graduating class was related to me one way or another.

No, the dating life was not as glamorous as “Footloose” would have you think. 

In other ways, though, it is kind of like “Footloose,” with the disproportion of schools and churches and the lack of dedication toward education.

Half of the adult population in Midwest towns say they’ve lived there their whole life. I can attest to the many weddings of high school sweethearts and my parents and grandparents’ many friends from high school who continue to reside there. My dad’s childhood peers had children at the same time he did, leaving me to experience a copy-and-paste upbringing with families my dad has known for decades.

This is what makes these rural communities so close. No one ever leaves.

The population in rural towns remains 76% white, according to the U.S. 2020 census. As a half-white, half-Indian girl interested in music and the arts instead of sports, the typical Midwest lifestyle felt limited. My school didn’t have a debate or speech team. There was no orchestra, no swim team, no chess club, no coding classes, no advanced placement classes and so much else missing.

I don’t think much of this comes through in movies.

“Gilmore Girls,” a show that aired in 2000, features a single mother raising her daughter in her small hometown in Connecticut. The show offers notes of autumn and academia as Lorelai and Rory Gilmore navigate small-town troubles. Although it isn’t explicitly mentioned, fans believe the town, Stars Hollow, has a population of just under 10,000, which is pretty big for a small town, in my opinion.

Film Flavor observed how “Gilmore Girls” portrays small towns as walkable places with upper-middle-class residents. Star Hollow also has successful and independent businesses, a fantasy that most Hallmark movies use in their main plotline.

Charles Kronengold, an assistant professor of cultural studies and comparative literature at the University of Minnesota, said many movies and novels from the 19th and 20th centuries depicted rural living.

“People who were growing up in the metropolitan areas like Paris, London, New York wanted to have a taste of what is outside of that,” Kronengold said. “And I think it goes in both directions, so I think a lot of the time urban people misunderstand rural people and rural people misunderstand urban people.”

Kronengold said movies, in particular, can get lazy when depicting small-town living. Filmmakers want to film in a setting that looks the part, so less time is dedicated to accuracy. This makes for a glamorized depiction of all geographic zones, not just the rural Midwest.

A common genre of movies featuring Midwestern towns is horror. “Children of the Corn” and “Nightmare on Elm Street” make use of the open, eerie space in the Midwestern countryside and small neighborhoods. The classic farm and lack of light pollution make for a perfect horror film setting that people often picture when they think of the Midwest.

I even find myself resonating with the old-fashioned folk, rusty pickup trucks and cowboy boots whenever I watch these films, reminding me of my 20th-century Midwestern gothic-looking town. 

It’s movies like these where students agree that depictions of the Midwest are accurate. From the people to the religious overtones, many students find that these films authentically capture the rural, small and secluded world that is the Midwest. 

Andrew Palik, a third-year student at the University, grew up in Grand Rapids, Minn., a town with a population of less than 12,000. Although he grew up in a tight-knit and safer community than that of the Twin Cities, there were many opportunities he didn’t receive as a student until coming to the University.

“Education in my high school was so much worse than here,” Palik said. “I noticed when I came to the U of M, I had classes with PSEO (post-secondary education options) students from around here, and they were so much farther ahead than I was.”

Like Palik, many of the students at my school took on trade schools after graduation. It was unheard of to want to go so far from home. My guidance counselor even instructed me to do my own research when it came to transfer credits, since she rarely dealt with Minnesota schools. PSEO was not an option for me.

The lack of education also created a divide. It limited those who had potential and desires to take on school at a more advanced level. Sadly, much of my early education felt like a joke. 

To paint a brighter picture, I had to argue with an 18-year-old senior who thought satellites and gravity weren’t real. I was a freshman in high school and couldn’t believe people took such knowledge for granted. 

These were the same people who asked me why I’d ever want to travel the world or go to a university 284 miles away. I do believe that the fear of leaving small-town communities behind makes for close-minded people in an ever-changing world of diversity and progress. 

Coming to the cities and talking with people continues to open my mind and hits me with the realization of how obsolete my knowledge was. 

Mason Bierbaum, a second-year student, grew up in Albany, Minn., a town with a population of less than 3,000. Bierbaum said diversity was absent at his school and the lack of experiences and cultures made for racist undertones within the town’s people. 

“I think my school was 99% white with the only diversity being if you were protestant or catholic,” Bierbaum said. “I could probably count on one or two hands the number of people of color in my grade, let alone the whole school.”

Kronengold explained how Hollywood still gets away with a lot of stereotypical depictions of people, especially those from the Midwest and the South, who are commonly grouped as being uneducated and old-fashioned. 

This acts as a barrier to small-town residents who fear progression, as much of modernized media and culture continues to make fun of the rural Midwest. These generalizations keep the Midwest in a cycle of constant standstill. 

Kronengold said there are two ways the nation and Hollywood view the small-town Midwest: as a homogeneous society or a microcosm of the U.S. as a whole. 

With all of this being said, the lack of funds in education and diversity makes the rural Midwest a restricted place to live.

Aric Moriak, a first-year student at Concordia College, grew up in Rice, Minn., a town of about 2,000. Moriak’s take on small towns is the perfect way to end this argument. 

“Small towns, it’s hard for change. Change is very hard,” Moriak said. “I think that’s a stereotype that’s accurate in the sense that, whenever there’s a change, everyone freaks out, whereas in a bigger city, change happens all the time.”

Maybe someday we can remove the fear of change and move toward a future that’s inclusive and welcoming for all people.