Everyone thinks that junior year will be your best year in college. You're more mature. You're over halfway finished. Junior year, you probably turn 21, which means you can get in all the best bars and clubs and buy all the alcohol your heart desires. You're done with General Ed. courses, so you finally get to take the classes that actually matter. Yay for junior year because it's going to be full of fun and sunshine and all happy-go-lucky, right?
Except no one tells you how extremely difficult and challenging junior year is. Maybe your advisor does, but no amount of preparation could ease the stress that comes with being a junior. Whether you're a nursing major or an accounting major, you can kiss homework and attendance grades goodbye. Say hello to tests and projects that account for 30 percent or more of your final grade. You're lucky if you actually have more than four assignments in a class.
The nine months that comprise junior year are consumed by searching for internships, preparing your résumé, looking into grad schools, and attending job fairs. This is all on top of the two tests, the paper (or three) that are due, the group project, and probably a few pop quizzes that you have most weeks. At this point, you realize that the "rest of your life" actually isn't so far away. You really are an adult now. It can be a terrifying time, especially if you're still uncertain about what it is you want to do. There is suddenly an immense amount of pressure to have everything together and have your entire life planned out.
Let's be honest, it's almost unbearable. You have a mental breakdown at least once or twice a week. Seriously, crying in public becomes casual. A full night's sleep is some distant fantasy that you only get in your dreams. You think about dropping out more times than you like to admit, and your mom's heart probably breaks from knowing how stressed you are. Your planner will be overflowing with all the things you have to do. If you don't have a planner, I promise that you will get one before it's over.
That social life that seems so awesome? It's pretty nonexistent. Between the demands of class, studying, work, and all the other organizations you're in, there is no time left to be a social butterfly. Sure, every now and then you find a night to go out, but the next day you realize just how much has to be done.
Junior year is no joke. It's hard. It's like that level of Candy Crush you thought you'd never beat. It requires some serious effort and hard work. But you know what the best part is? You have friends and family to push you through it. They'll help you keep your faith, and they'll believe in you even when you may not believe in yourself.
Always remember: you is kind. You is smart. You is important. And you will make it through junior year.
