“I won’t get into college.”

“My GPA isn’t high enough.”

 “I’m not doing enough extracurriculars.” 

“I have a B: that’s horrible.”  

These statements are constantly uttered in the halls and classrooms of WHS.

According to Niche’s website, Westborough High School ranks #17 out of all the public schools in the state and is in the top 2% of schools nationwide. With this high ranking and school prestige, how does the student body handle the pressure? Is there coercion to succeed? All signs point to yes. 

Often, students dismiss positive feedback, over-prepare, berate their performance, and set overly high expectations at WHS. 

Impostor Phenomenon is the inability to believe that success is deserved or has been achieved as a result of one’s effort and/or skill. It is not recognized as a mental disorder, though it breeds many mental illnesses, such as anxiety and depression. Due to this, many psychologists refer to it as impostor Phenomenon (versus “impostor Syndrome”) to destigmatize the negative connotations with the word “syndrome” in the mental health field.

 I believe many WHS students identify with this term, as it affects high-achieving individuals who experience self-doubt or a sense of not belonging.

 As a senior at WHS, and after being in the Westborough Public Schools since preschool, I’ve transitioned through every aspect of the system. I have had wonderful teachers who genuinely care about my success and persisted to prepare me for the future. In spite of this, I have found the majority of students are very competitive, care a lot about their grades, and often don’t take their achievements for what they’re worth. Many of my classmates and I have fallen guilty to doing activities solely to look good on college transcripts, rather than participating in things they genuinely enjoy. 

I consistently notice the patterns of many WHS students including me — we overwork through an abundance of activities, go home just to study for hours past midnight, and still talk about our low achievements despite how much we exploit ourselves. We set goals regarding our successes, hit those goals, and never feel satisfied enough. With this, it is clear that many WHS students suffer from impostor Phenomenon.

Impostor phenomenon can manifest itself in multiple forms, most prominently through academics and leadership positions. For more accurate data on this theory, I decided to ask a portion of WHS students from all grade levels a question in order to determine if this candid study would prove that many students struggle with impostor Phenomenon. 

I asked students to rate how much they agree or disagree with the following statement, “I doubt myself and my work academically at WHS”. For all grade levels, more than 60% of people agree or strongly agreed with the statement, translating to impostor phenomenon academically at WHS. Only 11% disagreed with the statement, while the other 29% lied somewhere in the middle. Overall, it appears that much of the student body experiences impostor Phenomenon and the effects it comes with. These results don’t surprise me, and there are many parallels with these responses and the high scholastic ranking of WHS.

A lot of impostor phenomenon deals with subconscious thoughts about yourself. Someone may seem confident and have an overall positive mindset when it comes to life, but oftentimes, there is a voice in the back of their head that doubts their abilities and makes them feel inadequate.

 An anonymous student in the junior class notes their experience;  “I think of myself as very confident, and other people would say the same, but there is always a subconscious feeling that I am not good enough. I have had people tell me that I am gifted, and I have had big moments where I have accomplished a lot, but all of those moments seem surreal whenever I think about them.”

Taking a look closer into WHS’s standards for academics, they have a very high college readiness rank, according to usnews.com it ranks in the top 4% of schools in the nation for college readiness and this is felt by students and staff

With an average of 1310 SAT scores in Westborough, and high proficiency levels in both English and Math MCAS exams, Westborough prepares students exceptionally well for college and future endeavors.  

In my experience, I feel as though I have received a very high quality education and have been exposed to so many different electives, such as art, business, and journalism that have prepared me for the future. The core classes are rigorous and deal with a lot of deep thinking, which I definitely think is rewarding. With this, sometimes the expectations I set for myself cause me to stress more than I should. At least in the college application process I endured this fall, I often compared stats with friends and constantly checked rankings online, scared to know if I would even get into a college. I now have learned that the stress was NOT worth it, and I worried for nothing.

A WHS sophomore relates, “With such high standards at WHS and being surrounded by so many students with all different abilities, it is hard for everyone to not get competitive. Many students measure their progress by comparing themselves to others and this causes people to be upset that they are not the same or better than other students in WHS at a specific skill.”

In specific skills and extracurricular activities, a senior notes, “I’ve had impostor phenomenon regarding my music, sports, and academic achievements. I think it’s mainly because WHS is a competitive school and I feel like I need to live up to high expectations. While I love all the activities I do, there are times when I doubt myself with how far I have come.”

If you believe you may be experiencing the effects of the impostor phenomenon, here are some ways to help and/or cope from the following website:  https://www.apa.org/monitor/2021/06/cover-impostor-phenomenon

• Do your research and learn about it!

Impostor phenomenon can be found in numerous forms, so do some research and find which type you most align with. Understanding why/how you’re feeling a certain way is a great skill to have.

• Share your feelings.

Sharing your feelings is a great way to reduce loneliness and serves as a way for people to share what they see in you. Trusted individuals can support and validate you. If your effects of impostor phenomenon are affecting your functioning in everyday life, it may be of better interest to seek out help and talk with a therapist.

• Celebrate your successes.

No matter how big or small, celebrate and appreciate your accomplishments, each of which are well-earned. Speak positively about yourself, which in turn will help you internalize these successes and make it more comfortable for you. Have concrete reminders of your success, such as a print out of an email from someone saying you did a good job, or a reminder of positive feedback.

• Let go of perfectionism.

Focus more on progress than striving for perfectionism. Aiming for perfection not only increases your rate of failure, but also causes discouragement. You should be able to learn and grow from a process that is moving you forward, regardless of the progress you make.

• Take care of yourself — have some compassion for you.

Observe how your impostor feelings arise and respond to them in a conscious manner. This mindfulness can be helpful for moving you in a different direction and help you let go of perfectionism.

• Accept it.

If you become aware of impostor phenomenon within yourself, learn to work with it rather than against it. This way, it will interfere less with your well-being. Be aware that the feeling may leave and come back again, but accept that you are successful regardless of feeling like a failure.

As much as some of these mechanisms may seem easier said than done, please know you are not alone in this feeling, and that this is an extremely common experience for students, especially at Westborough High School. If you are looking to learn more about impostor phenomenon, here is a helpful link: https://www.apa.org/gradpsych/2013/11/fraud. You can also reach out to the guidance department for support. Mr. Wolfson, the head of guidance department’s email can be found here: [email protected] 

Sources used: 

https://www.verywellmind.com/imposter-syndrome-and-social-anxiety-disorder-4156469 

https://www.niche.com/k12/d/westborough-public-schools-ma/ 

https://www.apa.org/monitor/2021/06/cover-impostor-phenomenon 

https://www.brown.edu/sheridan/impostor-phenomenon-classroom 

https://tsl.news/lets-talk-about-imposter-syndrome/