Remember that point in your life your first year of college where everything was brand new and overwhelming, but as you got older and more adjusted to college life everything became easier? Now; however, you're in your senior year and wish you were starting college all over again. You wouldn't have to constantly be updating your resume, strategically planning your thesis, searching for places to live after graduating, and applying for "real people" jobs. On top of that, you're still trying to balance classes, work, and free time. Listing everything out like that sounds like a lot. Because it is. I know there are some of you that have your lives planned out to a T. I'd love to say I'm one of those people, but let's be real--I just pretend to be. Before getting into all the details of the future let's discuss the current issues at hand: classes, work, and extracurricular activities.
Although some of you are overachievers, the rest of us are not. This semester I took the minimal amount of credits required to be a full-time student (four classes) and even that is difficult. Additionally, I have three jobs, one of which is being a Teacher's Assistant for a class, so as of right now, I'm technically taking five classes. Another job I have is meeting with students at least once each week to discuss the rocky transition that's always expected as they jump into their first year of college. The third job I have is working as a writing tutor in the writing center on campus. Like all professional jobs, each of these requires weekly, biweekly, or monthly meetings. Finally, in addition to classes and work, I'm also involved in extracurricular activities. On Monday nights I rehearse for a senior piece, on Thursdays I have Earthkeepers right after my night class, and I'm also hoping to go to the gym with my friends at least twice, if not three times each week. This is the current state of my life; however, there's more I'm preparing for as you probably are too!
As a senior, you need to start planning your life out. What career do you want to have for the rest of your life and be content with? How am I supposed to know when I'm 21? Sometimes I lose my phone when it's in my hand or I forget to send out a super important email that I should have sent last week. Seriously, how do people expect seniors to know what they want to do for the rest of their lives? It'd be nice to have everything planned out now, especially considering all the loans I have to pay back for the next 30 years, and feel confident that the degree I'm getting is worth something.
Aside from all that, I'm doing other typical senior things such as continuously updating my resume, figuring out a topic for my thesis in the spring, and avidly searching for jobs as well as a decently-priced place to live after graduating. All seniors, or at least people who are graduating this semester or next semester, must understand how difficult the graduating process is. Some are lucky and get to live with their parents (maybe even rent free!) for a short time while looking for a job. Others want to abandon where they've lived all their lives immediately and go somewhere new. Either way, looking for a place to live and a job tend to happen simultaneously. People obviously want their commute to be as short as possible, so they opt for the closest place to their job. This can get expensive, especially for new graduates, so it usually ends up the further away from the job, the better. Wouldn't it be nice to live in a world where college was free, rent didn't exist, and people could teleport from place to place? If only utopias were real.
Besides all of this, those who have already accomplished their theses are probably much less stressed than those who have yet to figure out what they want to do. Because a thesis usually lasts throughout the entire semester or longer and is the culminating project of what the graduating student has learned over the past four years (or however long they've attended college) of being at school, it's a huge deal. If that's not intimidating, I don't know what is. Furthermore, while all of this is happening, you (or in this case me), are trying to figure out what to incorporate and what not to incorporate into your resume. This isn't something you can hurry through, rather it requires a decent amount of thought, and dedication since it's the gateway to get into getting hired. Finally, in all of this, there is one more important thing that seniors tend to forget, time for themselves. In order to be a successful senior a student needs to set aside personal time to rest and relax.
Every day I try to incorporate time for myself, even if it's only for an hour (though I wish it could be all day) by reading for fun, watching something on Hulu, or talking to my friends on the phone. Sometimes I listen to podcasts and color. Lately, I've gotten into drawing manga eyes, which also calms me down. By taking time out of my busy schedule and focusing on whatever I need that isn't school work or applying for jobs or looking for a place to live, I'm keeping myself healthy and giving my mind and body a break from everything. That's one of the most important things I, and my fellow seniors, need to keep in mind as I'm in the midst of my senior year so I can be successful and the best me possible.
I know life and classes and friends can be overwhelming, but it'll all be over after these next few months, and that's something every senior can look forward to.
