When students go to college, many people assume they'll graduate in the traditional four years. One day you seem to be on track, then the next thing you know you hit a bump in the road and you're in school for an extra semester.
One of the worst feelings is coming out of the Advising Office after being told you're a few credits short of graduating. They try to convince you to take winter and summer classes but they're just as costly as a full semester of classes. You call your parents and tell them. They just try to make you feel better by saying it's okay, a lot of people don't graduate on time. To some extent you feel ashamed. How did this happen? I took the credits I needed, I did pretty decent in classes. Where did it go wrong?
You don't want to tell your friends because you don't want to be left out from the graduation posts by all your classmates from high school. You and your friend made a pact that once you both graduate college you two would travel and go backpacking. But now you can't do that for at least another six months.
You're all dreading having to tell everyone and seeing those graduation posts. You'll wonder how you managed to fall behind the others and feel like you're not successful. But you are.
Just because you graduate a semester or even two years later, doesn't mean you're not as successful as your friends. There's no competition on who's going to graduate on time. In fact, according to USA Today, only 19 percent of students graduate on time.
While it may seem like the end of the world, it's not. Your parents and friends will understand and will support you the same way they've always supported you. When you do get the news that you'll graduate they'll be there to celebrate it with you.
Life gets in the way. Sometimes it's for personal reasons or financial problems. Whatever the reason may be, it's okay. Graduation might feel a million years away but it'll be here in a blink of an eye. Getting the news that you won't be graduating on time sucks. Don't worry, it'll happen in time.
It's important to use the time you have left wisely. Try to make a plan for yourself of what classes you still need to take and try to stay on track. Remember not to overwhelm yourself by taking too many classes to try to graduate on time.
There's no need to rush. Study and focus on your classes. Enjoy your extra time in school before you have to go out and face the real world. Just remember the old saying, "Slow and steady wins the race."
