I know a student who earned A’s and B’s in high school, had a part-time job, and was admitted to several colleges.

Another student was the co-captain of the softball team and sang in the school choir. Her first choice was a large state school that admits 70% of its applicants. She got in.

And I know a C student who was a nice kid, participated in two clubs, and got into four colleges that most people probably haven’t heard of (but he’s excited to attend).

I know. At this point, some readers have already abandoned ship.

You won’t read stories like these in the local press. Parents won’t try to regale guests at their next dinner party with these examples. Next year’s applicants won’t cite these students as noteworthy case studies to learn from.

But if the valedictorian gets turned down by five highly-selective colleges? Look out. We’ve got a conversation-starter on our hands.

A student who gets admitted to Stanford with two B’s on her transcript will be the subject of rampant admissions hypotheses and rumors (most from people who have no idea what they’re talking about).

And when a kid gets into all the Ivy League schools, CNN (and every other news outlet) will come calling.

The press covers what people will pay attention to, and we all talk about subjects that people (hopefully) will find interesting. After I take my trash out tomorrow, I won’t tell a single person about it. I do it every Friday. Nobody cares. Normal isn’t newsworthy.

But when families mistakenly believe that newsworthy equals normal, that feeds the college admissions pressure.

The fact that out of more than 2,500 colleges, only about 40 are absurdly difficult to get into, that most good kids with even average academic records and test scores will be admitted to scores of colleges, that what a student does in college is much more important than where he or she does it—that is what’s normal. It’s typical, routine, and expected by pretty much everyone who’s in the know.

It might not be newsworthy, but that normal is still pretty great news.