This article is for everyone who's ever asked me "why are you graduating early?" or some variation of that question. The answer can be simplified, but also I want a chance to fully explain my decision here. That way, if anyone asks, I can simply send them this article for them to read.

Yes, you read the title right! I am planning to graduate a year early (hope I'm not jinxing it here, whoops). This is for a couple of reasons, which I will elaborate on.

1. My major

In case you didn't know, I am an anthropology major. And at Stony Brook University (the college that I attend), the anthropology major is pretty small, meaning that you don't need a lot of credits to get a bachelor's degree in anthropology. The entire major is only 36 credits. Most anthropology majors finish their major in two years and are done by second semester sophomore year. So, since my major is already small, I don't need to spend four years in college anyway. I can complete my major in two years and even fulfill a minor in a year and graduate early.

2. Money

I don't know about you, but I have a very realistic and analytic view of the world. Now don't get me wrong, college is a great time for discovering yourself and meeting new people, but each minute you spend in college is costing you money.

The more time in college, the more money you spend. And it's arguable whether that money is going to waste or if it's going towards a purpose. But I, for one, do not like to waste money. If I'm able to complete a major and a minor in three years of college, another year of college would just be a waste of money for me. A year less in college is a year less of money for tuition, boarding, meal plans, transportation, etc.

Furthermore, I'm fully aware that anthropologists don't make a ton of money, so why make repaying my college loans and debt harder for me? The less debt I have to repay, the better, especially for my career path.

In general, for me, it's a smarter and financially savvier decision to graduate early. This option is definitely not for everyone and I don't recommend it to everyone either; it's just that my decisions and circumstances have allowed for an easier way out.

To people who say I might miss out on college experiences and such, I don't think an extra year of college will amount to me missing much. College is great and all, but it's expensive and I'd rather save money than waste it partying throughout senior year. Might I miss out on some opportunities by going down this path? Maybe. But every decision comes with pros and cons, and for me, the pros outweigh the cons immensely.

And yes, this does mean I have to take more courses each semester to graduate with 120 credits. But it's really not that bad: for me, it's just an extra class and it's certainly doable for me so far.

So yeah, there's the long explanation everyone wanted as to why I am making this decision. I will update you guys on the process and how everything goes and if I happen to change my mind (which I don't think is likely but you never know.)