For years I had the perfect plan going. After high school, I would go to college and graduate in four years with my degree in education. I'd get a job right out of college and live happily ever after. I'm now in the spring of my senior year of college and I won't be graduating with the rest of my class. I decided on a program that will allow me to graduate with two Bachelors degrees and a Masters in special education. I took a semester off to do an internship in Florida. Things didn't really go as planned for me; I don't mind taking six years to get three degrees, but it doesn't feel great to watch your friends graduate and move on.
I'll be honest and say I'm very jealous. I'm jealous that you chose paths that allowed you to graduate in four years. I'm jealous that you won't spend an extra two years' worth of money on tuition and fees. I'm jealous that you'll get a start on the "real world" while I'm still taking classes as an undergraduate student. I'm jealous that you've finally earned that piece of paper that I would have if I had taken a different path. Jealousy is an emotion that I've been feeling more than usual with the upcoming class of 2016 graduation. College was always something that I felt I could conquer in four years. The jealously surfaces when I see my friends applying for graduation and accepting jobs, but I really am happy for them. I'm envious of the fact that they can actually feel the finality of this semester and celebrate their accomplishments.
Frankly, I'm ready to move on from college. I feel as though I've been in school for so long that I'm just ready to be done with it, and it seems like there's no end in sight. After four years of college classes and three years of working a part time retail job, it's gotten a bit monotonous. It would be nice to be able to finally have a job with solid hours and pay instead of working around a crazy schedule of classes. I'll probably think about this a few years from now and think I'm being naive, but at this current moment in time, I'm ready for something different.
I'm worried. I worry every day about how I will pay for two extra years of school when I run out of my tuition scholarship. I'm worried about being older than the other students in my classes. When I finally cross the stage with hundreds of 21-year-old graduates, I'll be 23. There isn't an enormous age difference, but just thinking about it makes me feel ancient. I'm currently taking an elective class with half seniors and half freshmen and you can see a clear difference between the age groups. I'm worried that when I graduate, interviewers will question my age and why it took me six years to graduate. Hopefully my Masters degree makes up for that.
To the seniors who are graduating, I really want to congratulate you. You deserve to be proud of your achievements and your future accomplishments. I'm a bit jealous of you, and I'd love to cross the stage at the same time. After all, we've made it through the same four years together. I wish you all the best, and I'll see you on the other side.
