By: Er Umair Ul Umar

For students who have just cleared their 10th or 12th-grade exams, the social media hype can often become a serious distraction and even a curse. The period following the 10th and 12th board exams is one of the most crucial and sensitive phases in a student’s life. These transitional years shape one’s future, demanding focus, informed decision-making, and serious self-reflection. Unfortunately, this is also the time when teenagers are most vulnerable to external influences.

Social media, with its flashy content and exaggerated success stories, can hijack a young mind’s attention, leading them into a spiral of comparison, distraction, and unrealistic expectations. In the age of reels and re-tweets, where dopamine flows with every like and share, students—especially those in the 10th and 12th grades—stand at the crossroads of aspiration and anxiety. Academic results, once a personal milestone shared with close family, have now become digital spectacles, amplified through social media megaphones. As students anxiously await their board exam results, social media doesn’t just reflect their emotions—it shapes them. In this era, “How did you score?” is not just a question, it’s a trending topic.

The Celebration of Toppers: A Double-Edged Sword

Every year, the academic landscape lights up with newsfeeds celebrating toppers. Screens are flooded with pictures of smiling faces, scores flaunting 99% and above, and captions that scream #ProudParent, #HardWorkPaysOff, and #TopperDiaries. These posts do more than celebrate success—they set a benchmark for others.

For many students, especially those who didn’t meet their own expectations, this can be deeply unsettling. The overwhelming glorification of academic excellence creates a silent pressure cooker of comparison. “If she scored 98%, why did I only get 85%?” is not just a thought—it’s an internalized critique, made sharper with every scroll. While appreciating achievement is natural, the unintentional consequence is the creation of an elitist narrative—where anything less than ‘topping’ is treated as underperformance.

The Rise of Academic Influencers and the “Result Culture”

Social media has birthed a........

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