Ten Behaviors That Become Totally Acceptable Towards The End Of The Semester

College is a lot like a social experiment, throwing dozens of different kinds of people together in one space while they try to figure out what is socially acceptable now that they’re adults living away from their parents. Some people behave exactly how their hearts tell them, and some people choose to conform in order to fit in with more people. But when the month of April rolls around and the all-nighters become more frequent and needed, people tend to drop all pretenses and just do what makes studying and doing homework the most comfortable for them. Whether that’s not bothering to brush their hair or going into full out pizza-for-every-meal mode, below are some commonly seen, suddenly totally socially acceptable behaviors that college students adopt towards the end of the spring semester.

1. Wearing pajamas to the library

If you want to study AND be comfortable AND be able to fall asleep wherever you are AND be ready to go to bed as soon as you get home, pajamas 24/7 are the way to go. It may seem strange at the beginning of the semester to see people in the library in their pajamas and slippers, but towards the end, you can identify with them so much that it makes you want to grab your own PJs and head to the library for some comfy studying.

2. Doing the All-Nighter Walk of Shame

You’ve seen those people walking home at 5 in the morning with their backpacks and a venti coffees, vacant looks on their faces, and it may have seemed weird. But as the end of the semester comes into sight, all-nighters are something that we all at one time must conquer. And if you see a fellow comrade walking home after one of these hard nights, all you can do is simply slow-clap as they walk home.

3. Doing homework in class for a completely different class

While this behavior may not be allowed by professors, when you see a student scribbling under their desk during class or doing homework on their laptop for Orgo when you’re in English, you can understand their pain. Sometimes, you literally can’t afford to sit and listen in class while you have work due for another.

4. Begging people for swipes into the dining hall

Chances are, if it’s nearing the end of the semester, you’re close to the end of your swipes, and you know that soon you may be eating two meals a day instead of three if you don’t find someone with extra swipes. Some people choose to beg online for swipes, on Facebook or Twitter, and some people simply stand outside the dining hall and latch on to a meek-looking freshman who everyone knows is required to have a dining plan. Either way, you’re willing to take what you can get.

5. Having a meltdown in a public place

Maybe it’s in the library when you realize that you have an exam in an hour and you’re just now finding out, or maybe it’s in class when you realize that there’s only six weeks left of school and you don’t understand any of what’s been going on homework-wise. The upside is that the students around you understand and have likely been through the same situation. Especially if they’re a seniors; they’ve probably been in your place six or seven times already.

6. Completely ignoring your friends in favor of a 24-hour homework marathon

If you’re a college student, chances are all your friends are also college students. They understand if you can’t go to a party on Friday night because you’re drowning in homework, or if you can’t meet up for your weekly coffee date because you’ve just made a table in the library your new permanent home. You’ll have plenty of time to hang out with friends, but GPA is FOREVER.

7. Binge-watching Netflix waaaaay more than usual

You’ve learned that a great way to de-stress without having to leave your bed is to break out the pizza and ice-cream and just go to town on the newest season of your favorite show. I’m currently shamelessly chugging through the fourth season Scrubs and couldn’t be happier. Everyone understands the need to de-stress and the addictive nature of Netflix, so feel free to shut out the world and have a date with your laptop.

8. Ordering a Jimmy John’s sandwich at the library at 1:00 in the morning

When you’re hungry at the library and it’s past midnight, there are only a few places still delivering and Jimmy John’s is one of them. Maybe you order pizza or Chinese food instead of a sandwich, but that’s my go-to place. Though, as long as it’s fast, cheap, and they can deliver to the library, I’m not too picky.

9. Contemplating becoming a stripper

As your funds and your motivation for school run low, you keep thinking about how much money you could make as a stripper, and how less stressed you’d be if you didn’t have to worry about living paycheck-to-paycheck. While it might not be a real query, it can still shock friends and family if it’s voiced out loud.

10. Treating your phone like it doesn’t exist

It’s crunch-time, and your phone is just a distraction now; best to leave it and focus all your attention on homework, classes, and making sure you get at least two good meals a day. If you can’t answer your parents’ calls, maybe that’s just an added bonus.

However your behavior changes, whether it’s for the good or the bad, the important thing to remember is that there’s only a few more weeks of school, and then it’s time for summer. Then you can go back to acting like your crazy, spastic, normal barely-getting-by-on-your-own self.