The Plight Of The College Senior | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Student Life

The Plight Of The College Senior

It's like being a high school senior, but with more fear.

7
The Plight Of The College Senior
FreeImages.com/melodi2

With this year over, we say congratulations to our graduating seniors and start welcoming new freshmen into the post-secondary world. On a lesser note, freshmen finish up their first year and go into sophomore year with new knowledge of how college life works, and sophomores go into junior year, now with even more wisdom of college life and perhaps even a change of major. And we can't forget transfers as they move up into a new school. The one group this article is about is the juniors (myself included). We move up into being the "big kids" on campus, replacing our friends, the seniors, as the ones our younger friends look up to.

And we're freaking out about it.

This isn't at all new to us. We were seniors before in high school. We've all moved up before and had our friends look up to us before. Easy. Yet we're so on edge about our last year in college. We all know the reason for this, but some people still seem to think telling us that everything will be fine and that there's nothing to worry about will solve everything and magically make us calm down. So here's a quick, two-point rundown for those people on why we're freaking out.

First of all, it's our last year before graduation. For most of us, this means we're all stressed out with making sure we don't check out of our mental hotels so that we can all get our degrees ASAP. That means doing our best in buckling down to save our GPAs (especially for those people trying to get into grad schools right after undergrad is done), get precious internships (to get experience for so-called "entry-level jobs"), and even hold down part-time jobs (partially for more experience, partially because of debt). Essentially, year four is always the most taxing year, particularly for those students who didn't get much done in the first few years.

The second and most crucial point is the real "no, duh" point. After high school, we just had more school to look forward to for the next four years. But now that we're finishing up college, we're facing the real world after this graduation. It's the sole reason we're stressing out and are mildly in denial about school this coming fall. This is our de facto last summer as students (as well as our last summer to use that as an excuse for things, hehehe...).

We know our last three years just flew by like nothing, so now we're doing anything to make sure our last year is not only our most enjoyable year, but also our most productive year. It is upon ourselves to make sure we get good grades and job experience all while making sure we don't crack from the pressures coming from both our social and academic spheres.

And that's why we're freaking out.

The next time you're talking to students and they say they're seniors or going to be seniors in college, congratulate them for making it thus far. If anything, say congratulations, ask them their majors, ask them about the major and keep it there. Encourage them, let them know you believe in them and support them. Just for the love of all that is mighty don't ask them what their plans are after college unless they bring it up.

We're trying our best to succeed, so please try your best to support us.

Thanks.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Gilmore Girls
Hypable

In honor of Mother’s Day, I have been thinking of all the things my mom does for my family and me. Although I couldn’t write nearly all of them, here are a few things that moms do for us.

They find that shirt that’s right in front of you, but just you can’t seem to find.

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

10 Reasons To Thank Your Best Friend

Take the time to thank that one friend in your life you will never let go of.

3317
Thank You on wooden blocks

1. Thank you for being the one I can always count on to be honest.

A true friend will tell you if the shirt is ugly, or at least ask to borrow it and "accidentally" burn it.

2. Thank you for accepting me for who I am.

A best friend will love you regardless of the stale french fries you left on the floor of your car, or when you had lice in 8th grade and no one wanted to talk to you.

Keep Reading...Show less
sick student
StableDiffusion

Everybody gets sick once in a while, but getting sick while in college is the absolute worst. You're away from home and your mom who can take care of you and all you really want to do is just be in your own bed. You feel like you will have never-ending classwork to catch up on if you miss class, so you end up going sick and then it just takes longer to get better. Being sick in college is really tough and definitely not a fun experience. Here are the 15 stages that everyone ends up going through when they are sick at college.

Keep Reading...Show less
kid
Janko Ferlic
Do as I say, not as I do.

Your eyes widen in horror as you stare at your phone. Beads of sweat begin to saturate your palm as your fingers tremble in fear. The illuminated screen reads, "Missed Call: Mom."

Growing up with strict parents, you learn that a few things go unsaid. Manners are everything. Never talk back. Do as you're told without question. Most importantly, you develop a system and catch on to these quirks that strict parents have so that you can play their game and do what you want.

Keep Reading...Show less
friends
tv.com

"Friends" maybe didn’t have everything right or realistic all the time, but they did have enough episodes to create countless reaction GIFs and enough awesomeness to create, well, the legacy they did. Something else that is timeless, a little rough, but memorable? Living away from the comforts of home. Whether you have an apartment, a dorm, your first house, or some sort of residence that is not the house you grew up in, I’m sure you can relate to most of these!

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments