Senior Year Of College As Told By 'The Bachelor'

"The Bachelor" franchise and I go way back. I haven’t missed an episode of "The Bachelor" or its counterpart, "The Bachelorette," since I started watching seven seasons ago. I am one of those people who ends up a little bit too emotionally involved after insisting that I won’t be. I have more than once contemplated writing on my résumé my greatest achievement to date: Staying on hold for almost three hours and speaking with Chris Harrison and the iconic, perpetually drunk Lace during the after show, "Bachelor Live."

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I completely acknowledge that the show is a bit of a hot mess, and that going on a date in a different country every week to fall in love in nine weeks isn’t exactly realistic. However, you may be surprised that "The Bachelor" mirrors a greater multitude of situations than you may think.

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Any given episode has drama, suspense, humor, adventure, heartbreak and a whirlwind of emotions, usually brought on by excessive alcohol consumption. All of these things encompass senior year of college, which can be just as dramatic and unpredictable as a group of women who have quit their jobs to be cut off from the outside world in the hopes of marrying a man they’ve never met.

Initially, you think it will be like this.

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But it turns out to be a whole lot more of this.

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With homework, job applications and so little time, multitasking becomes essential.

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You’ll have to learn how to network and ask all the potential employers the right questions at job interviews and career fairs, which is a lot harder than it seems.

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After fall, winter and spring break, you realize that they will be your last ever.

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You haven’t quite accepted that you’re old enough to have Facebook friends from high school that are getting engaged and having kids.

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Since apparently there’s no other way to initiate small talk, you will be asked the tried and true, “So what do you have lined up after graduation?”

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Reading job rejection letters is always fun.

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And so is pretending to be excited for people who have nailed their dream jobs.

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But don’t worry, because eventually you’ll get an offer!

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Towards the end of the school year everyone will become deep and reflective on social media.

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After all of the stress and sleepless nights, getting your diploma will feel just as good as getting Ben's final rose!

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