To The '5th Years' Who Don’t Fit Into The Traditional 4-Year Graduation Plan
It doesn't mean you failed...just makes you a little more prepared for the real world.
Yes, what you are reading is in fact true! It is completely okay to not graduate with a bachelor degree in the traditional four year time period. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard people say “I am nowhere near ready to graduate" or “I wish I would have taken a fifth year." You mean to tell me that people actually want to take a fifth year? ABSOLUTELY!
College is all about what you make of it. We are all here to get an education! So why does it matter how long it takes to earn it? I mean sure.. we have the costs to think about, we have our timelines to consider, and we ultimately want to be independent and on our own starting our careers. And let us not forget that we don't want to be ancient compared to all of the rest of the student body! But what about why it shouldn't matter how long it takes?
For one, college is pretty hard. I do not care what your major is or how easy learning comes to you, college is not “easy." So instead of taking 15-18 hour semesters, summer courses and intersessions, do your mental and emotional health a favor- sit down, take a nap, eat a decent home-cooked meal, enjoy your summers, and realize it is not just about the end goal.
While you aren't stressing yourself out so much, you will see that you have so much more time to prepare for life after graduation. You get more time to prepare a resume to land that dream job, more time to figure out how you're going to manage to move to NYC despite all of the factors saying it just isn't gonna happen (but it totally is), and best of all..more time to put off that student loan debt!
Remember when I mentioned that we don't want to be ancient compared to everyone else? Well, here is where being older gives you the leg-up on life after graduation. The older you are, the more life experience you have, the more confident you find yourself, and the more mature you are!
And if those few reasons aren't enough for you, here is one of my favorite reasons why I can justify being in my fifth year! The longer I am in school, the more psychology classes I get to take. Why is that my favorite reason? Well, it took me a long time to get to where I am. I decided just this past February what I really wanted to study (psychology) and grasped an idea as to what I wanted to do as a career (mental health nurse practitioner) over the summer months. I get to truly enjoy learning what I am studying instead of putting myself through complete misery to get a degree and get out just so I can still have no idea what I want to do.
I was supposed to graduate this past May based on a traditional four year time period. So, whether you are a parent, someone who took a year or two off from school, someone who didn't transition well into college, it took you a while to figure out what you wanted to do, or whatever it may be, I am here to tell you it is perfectly okay to take your time! It is kind of like driving 18 m.p.h. on Manning Way.. a little bit annoying in the moment, but when you become mindful of everything you get to see while going so slow, it makes the ride enjoyable!
