Yale, Harvard and Princeton, the infamous three. How many times have you heard your parents utter this collegiate trio of higher learning -- a million, two million perhaps? Well, if you are anything like the thousands upon thousands of stressed out kids with overbearing parents, you probably have.

Most of us develop very mixed feelings about these words, with the draw of the unlimited potential of higher learning on one side, and the never-ending pressure of overbearing parents on the other.

But when you hear this dreaded trio, or any other prestigious college, don’t you ever think about what you want? What would you ideally gain from your college experience? Well, I faced a very similar dilemma when I applied to colleges while enduring the constant nagging of my father, begging me to become a doctor.

When I applied to college, my goal was not only to get into a good school (yes I am a sell out), but also to go to a school that would enable me to experience college for what is was, a four-year period of self discovery (with some education thrown in too). But my father, being the way he was, constantly bothered me about “the big three”.

One day I made my point clear, I was not going to compromise my ideals for the sake of attending a well-known school. I was more interested in the smaller liberal arts schools, and some of the other well-known schools in the east. He instantly went ballistic, ranting and raving about the importance of those three schools, and we got into an argument. Fortunately for him, I did have some interest in the schools and did apply to two of them.

But after that incident, I began to think, what’s up with all the school labels, and why all the pretentiousness?. Why all the pressure and arguments with the parents? The school of your future attendance is your choice to make, you are the one who is going to spend at least four years there and you are the one who has to adjust to the new setting. The least parents should do is to let you make your own choice, since it is your future that is being shaped.

This is your time to discover yourself, to find out who you truly are. To not make that first step of self-discovery by choosing your own school and place of learning is a mistake most people always regret. You, as a person, have to carve out your own future, your own path, for “it is not the experiences and events who make us who we are, it is our choices.’ So take a reflective look at your aspirations and goals, and base your decisions on what you plan to do, instead of what others want you to. Don’t worry too much about the future and the prestigious names. After all, what you’ll really take from college are friendships, life experiences — and a little education thrown in too.