Now that finals are over for most people, the waiting game has begun. It is that time when those of us who are obsessed with getting good grades check for updates constantly to see if we reached our goal of at least a 98 or if we crashed and burned at the last moment. Believe me, you're not alone. In honor of that, here are some things that all of us with this problem know to be true.
1. You're basically a hermit.
You spend so much time in your room studying (or perhaps sequestered in the local Starbucks for a change of scene) that going out feels special, even if it's simply a trip to the grocery store. Sometimes you word vomit at people after a prolonged period of solitude.
2. You stress about assignments that should be easy.
Even if it's only a 200-word discussion board post for an online class, you are the person who agonizes over those 200 words for an hour. The rest of the class likely slaps out the required amount and flings it online, but your 200 words are a work of academic art.
3. You feel the need to do every single assigned reading.
While your classmates and friends pick and choose what reading assignments they think matter or simply pretend that textbooks don't exist, you feel an obligation to read every single word, even if you're already familiar with the topic of the reading. What if you miss a vital piece of information? What if you didn't know as much as you thought you did about it? The paranoia doesn't end until you've given in and read everything.
4. This is a familiar scene:
You pretty much take over the area around you -- everything is covered in textbooks, pages of notes, and snacks. You don't move around a lot, so you bring all the food you think you'll need for the next eight hours to your study area.
5. Getting a B actually gives you a sinking feeling in your chest.
Getting a B is the worst grade you're willing to accept, and while it's not going to bring your world to an end or make you cry, it's depressing. You know that it's still a good grade, especially for college, but that doesn't change the fact that you are extremely disappointed in yourself.
6. Even an A minus is depressing.
After all, it's almost a B. And it makes a bit of a difference in your GPA -- even if you get all As, you won't have a 4.0 if you get an A minus, which just defeats the purpose of getting all As.
7. In fact, no grade is ever enough unless it's a 100.
A 93 is too close to an A minus and a 98 is just two measly points from a 100.
8. You hear this all the time: "No one gets all As in college -- it's basically impossible."
You hear this all the time. People mean well; they really just want you to stop stressing so much and drinking so much coffee, but they don't understand that this is a non-issue. You'll make it possible, or you'll die trying. And if you have to settle for a B, at least you'll know that you couldn't possibly have done any better.
9. And this: "GPAs don't matter in college."
You can't tell us that our entire future is resting on our GPA from the first time we heard the word in middle school until the day we received our college acceptance letter and then tell us that it doesn't matter anymore. We have been programmed to stress about our GPAs. Any attempts to convince us otherwise will not compute.
10. You have the requirements to graduate with Magna Cum Laude, Summa Cum Laude, and Cum Laude saved on your phone.
Not only that, but you know your chances of getting each.
11. It's not all stress and coffee, though.
While stress and coffee are both big parts of being obsessed with getting good grades, there are good things, too. Even if you don't meet all your goals (because you're human, so you won't meet all of them, and that's okay) you know that you did your best.
12. You're always the teacher's pet.
Your professors recognize the effort and hard work that you put into your assignments, and they genuinely appreciate that. That's why, especially in high school when few people cared, you were always the teacher's pet. Which has so many perks, like getting to take naps in a teacher's office when you're not feeling well during school hours.
