Fall semester is officially over and teachers scramble to grade final papers and tests from September they had procrastinated to do until the very last day. Students calculate their grades over and over again and send desperate emails to their teachers begging for extra credit, to which they are denied.
“If only I had gone to class that one time, or studied a little harder for that quiz,” regretful students think.
“Maybe I shouldn’t have gone to that party the night before my math final…” others ponder.
The inevitable feeling of regret that makes our stomachs drop when we see our semester GPA procures an intense introspection on our past semester. Luckily, the transition between Fall and Spring sessions brings forth a new year for new goals. New Years resolutions gives students on academic probation the opportunity to vow to never skip class again and prioritize their studies over parties.
Winter break ends and college kids excitedly return to school with those promises of doing better kept in their back pocket. The hiatus from frat parties and bars quickly ends as syllabus week allows leniency to put off those first week assignments. Hangovers and below zero degree weather convinces students to stay in their warm beds and miss that one class that doesn’t even take attendance. It’s okay though, because they can get those notes from some acquaintance they have who always goes to class. The next day rolls around and the snow still hasn’t melted from the street. Someone else can sign them into class, it’s no big deal. Missing a few lectures here or there is fine. Right?
Wrong. The mantra “you can always retake the class, you can’t always relive the party” convinces students that their resolutions to do better in school aren’t as important as hot-boxing a car or playing hooky from class because last night got the best of them. Retaking a class is actually a huge pain in the ass, whereas skipping one party isn’t that big of a deal.
Some say that college is supposed to be the best four years of our lives. There are no responsibilities, a monthly allowance is put on our debit cards, food is paid for and no parents are around to tell us what to do. The only buzz kill is that we have to go to class and study.
It’s hard to pay attention to homework when the devil on our shoulder persuades us to ditch the books and party with our friends but the angel pleads us to make flashcards and do the extra credit. It’s easiest to give in to temptation, especially when YOLO is a factor, but the best four years of our lives doesn’t have to be defined by the parties we went to.
The fact that we only live once should underline the importance of excelling in school to ensure a good and stable future for ourselves. In 15 years it’ll be hard to remember how fun that party we went to was instead of studying for a psychology test. In 15 years it’ll also be hard to remember the aggravation we felt staying in to study for that test that we got an "A" on.
The college dream is to kickback and relax with no homework to worry about, but once there’s finally nothing to do for days on end, having nothing to do for days on end actually gets boring. The next time you think about skipping a discussion class because the points don’t actually add up, reconsider it. Sleeping in for an extra hour won’t be worth it when you graduate college with a less than desirable GPA and a beer belly.
You only live once, so play hard, but work harder.
