College recruiters are actively seeking Waldorf educated youth for their programs in record numbers. Since the release of this 2015 study published by Stanford University, primary and secondary educators have become increasingly aware of the exceptional quality and deeper learning opportunities of Waldorf education, and increasingly enthusiastic.
This year alone, 94% of graduating seniors at the Denver Waldorf High School have been accepted to high quality postsecondary institutions, earning $4.4M in scholarships.
Waldorf students leave high school with three traits the best colleges and universities are particularly excited about.
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Self-direction. In a world where change is the only thing we can count on, it’s not enough to wait for instructions. To be successful, one must be able to assess circumstances and direct their own actions. This is so not only for employment, but for life.
A self-directed individual can look beyond the norm to piece together a fulfilling life for themselves based on their own needs and joys. These are the individuals who are least susceptible to mental illness and spiritual fatigue.
Personal Development. Before adulthood, personal development is a physiological function of growth. Later, however, we must actively and consciously endeavor to continue growing toward our best selves.
Waldorf education prepares graduates to strive continuously toward personal growth and development. They’re challenged not only to examine the world around them, but the world within them. And they career this ability into the rest of their life.
Academic Confidence. It’s long been understood that confidence, one’s belief in themselves, is the spice of success. However, overreaching confidence can become detrimental when not focused. Academic confidence is specific. Waldorf high school students are challenged to learn that they can learn. They leave high school confident in their ability to identify problems and investigate solutions.
We know from experience why Waldorf students are in such high demand at the world’s best colleges and universities. But what does the research say?
“One overriding result is that Waldorf students seem more interested to learn and more socially engaged than mainstream students,” according to Bob Dahlin, international academic and author of Rudolf Steiner: The Relevance of Waldorf Education.
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But this study isn’t all roses. In his conclusion, Dahlin suggests that while Waldorf students leave high school with a greater likelihood of being driven to continue their education not only immediately in college or university, but throughout their life, they may be behind their peers in fact recitation. He notes in his examination that we may have to choose between fostering wrote memorization of a greater pool of facts, or fewer recitable facts and a greater passion for inquiry.
Higher education administrators appear to have made their choice.
In a world wherein all factual knowledge is accessible instantaneously, fostering the intrinsic drive to discover is the most important trait we can foster in our youth to ensure lifelong success.
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