When COVID-19 led to the widespread cancellation of college spring breaks, news sources such as Vox discussed the importance of having a spring break in college, particularly for student’s mental health.
As spring break 2024 comes to an end and finals season creeps in, students may reflect on how relaxing spring break really is.
“I would refuse to open Canvas over break to give myself a break but I kept pushing myself further because I was not on top of my work,” said Fiona Fawcett, a Sophomore at American University. She continues, “it feels like I am always moving onto the next thing, so when I finally took a break, I felt further behind. I thought having a break would help me reset and it did but I felt really guilty about taking a break from my work.”
While some students were able to take a break, others felt pressured to do work. Another student expressed this similar stress over spring break, feeling the looming dread of homework while trying to enjoy break.
“I felt like it [was] not possible to have a spring break where you actually relax and not do work. It doesn’t work for me personally, but I know people who are able to get things done before spring break started,” said Avery Zabar, a Junior at AU. She continues, “I tried to only work on assignments that were more time pressuring and I tried not to do homework, but I still felt really guilty that I didn’t do more.”
While for some students, spring break may be a helpful time to reset, students like Fiona and Avery feel like it is not enough.
Students at other schools seem to feel this way too. Emily Phally from the University of Southern California mentioned Spring semester felt too long and that even some scattered study days or an extended spring break would benefit students, especially for those like her who feel a looming dread of needing to do work over break.
Similarly, Molly Koch of New York University explained spring break is not long enough to truly combat burnout and that many students are stuck doing homework, even if they are on a trip or vacation.
In the University of Georgia’s independent student publication, James DeBetta shared why he believes students need an extra week of spring break to properly rest before resuming the semester.
“There are numerous benefits to having extra time off, especially in the middle of the semester,” DeBetta shared. He continues, “many students are burnt out after midterms, having studied for exams, written essays and worked on projects, which are all typically due the week before spring break. Although a week off following this high-stress period is nice, one week is not enough time for students to recharge and regroup before finishing the semester.”
As students continue speaking out, it is clear not all students feel the true rest and relaxation spring break is intended to provide.