Early Cum: No Need for Pre-Finale

As Exonians, we are not ranked against each other for colleges to see; there is no list comparing each of us to our fellow peers (at least, not in a place that we or colleges can breach). Generally, this is a positive thing: when colleges have access to these types of lists, they often put a priority on, say, the top 10 percent of a student body and overlook the rest, no matter how qualified those remaining 90 percent may be. Even worse, internal ranking places a priority on competition over cooperation, which is detrimental to the learning and experience of all Exonians, especially in a Harkness setting.One exception to this is the Latin honors that are bestowed to some students at the end of the school year. Every spring, the top 20 percent of the graduating class is endowed with the distinction of cum laude, meaning “with honor.” While many students aspire to this honor, it is given out at graduation, long past the admissions decision period for colleges. Were colleges able to take this into consideration, students would feel much more intense pressure during the school year to achieve cum laude, leading to some of the drawbacks raised above. However, Exeter has also adopted another, more controversial practice that can be highly valuable on a college application: early cum laude.In the fall, the top five percent of the senior class is elected as early members of the Cum Laude Society—a distinguishing honor arriving just in time to be put on college applications. The list of these students are posted, of all places, online, where the entire world can easily access it with just a click of a mouse. But early cum laude seems to be a direct and important ranking of Exeter’s students, one that runs headlong into the problems of pressure and competitive ranking of students.Some would say that early cum laude is a great motivator, that it encourages students to work harder to achieve the honor. But Exeter is already enough of a pressure cooker without pitting students against each other in a race for honors; we all already realize the importance of getting into a revered college. Cum laude is an act that comes at the end of the year, and it’s called a “finale” of the year for a reason. Is there such thing as a “pre-finale?” Do we really need a “pre-finale” for Exeter’s cum laude?