December is approaching rapidly, and with it comes the excitement of the holidays. Students, however, have to overcome a few more hurdles before they can enjoy their Winter Break. So in the style of the Christmas classic, Elf, here is a summary of the end of the semester, as told by Buddy the Elf:
When you started college at 18 you probably thought you were SO old. Now at 22 or 23 you realize that you still are not "old," but you are to the 19-year-old that may pop up in your classes. You seem like a grandparent to them, and no I will not buy you your alcohol or help you find a fake ID.
Sure, you still have friends on campus. But your "squad" is no longer all there. You go from Thursday night pre-games and 2-for-1's to Skype dates to try to stay connected with all your friends. On a positive note, you are likely going to make new friends with other people who are in the same stage of life as you.
You thought you had it rough this last year, yet this year you are more ready to graduate than ever. But, the real world still scares the hell out of you and you are low-key happy you had an extra semester or two to prepare.
When you see your friends moving all over the country you may feel a little down as you realize you are doing the same thing you have been doing for the last four years. But it is important to remember that it is completely normal to not graduate in four years and you can do even more things to help prepare you for the next phase of your life.
At least in your college town, most things that are going on with your campus are going to be things that you have already done before. So, on nights you would rather lay in bed than go downtown, the FOMO will probably be much more toned down.
On the plus side of being a fifth year, you've got this whole thing down. You know the ropes of college: how to study, how to get in with your teachers, where to go on what nights. This is all old news to you and you've got everything down to a science.
Sure, you can still be involved but odds are your social calendar just really opened up, AKA no more events you are going to be fined for if you don't go to. With all this extra time maybe you'll get a job or maybe you'll lay in bed. Ultimately, it is your choice.
Every time you get on Facebook you see so-and-so from high school getting married, having children, etc. And while you're happy for them, you're happy being single and not having that responsibly and being in college an extra year doesn't sound so bad anymore.
Odds are people in your classes will know you are a fifth year and know that you pretty much have the campus figured out so you are going to have to answer questions about where the best spots to study are, where to go for game days, etc. You may get annoyed answering questions, but you're still happy you've got the lowdown on everything.
You are going to learn more about yourself and for the first time since you came to college as a confused, excited and scared freshman you are going to have to get out of your comfort zone a little and make sure to make your (hopefully) last year your best year yet.
Aubrey Plaza is one of my favorite humans in Hollywood. She's honest, blunt, unapologetic, and hilarious. I just started my sophomore year of college, and found that some of her best moments can accurately describe the start of the school year.
