Kiely Goss:
After student teaching in the fall and being abroad last spring, I finally felt like I was back on campus this semester; which was simultaneously exciting and off-putting. I was the senior who was walking around like I was a first-year with very little clue of where I was supposed to be heading.
We created a senior year bucket list of everything we wished we had done in the last three years, but had been unable to or unwilling to do before. Now, I can tell you it’s going to be hard to check off that list. So far, we have yet to complete a single bucket list item. When you watch all of the TV shows or movies that depict life as college seniors, they forget to include any mention of how set in their ways everyone has gotten by senior year.
Senior spring for most consists of finishing off your major or taking easy classes and enjoying yourself. Apparently I didn’t get that memo. In addition to my two senior-level seminar courses in psychology, I decided to take a few career relevant human development courses, intern at an elementary school two days a week, and finish my four year internship at a local legal advocacy center, where I currently manage events and train new interns on the legal process. Unlike the relaxing days I had banked on for senior spring, I find myself wondering whether I’m even going to have time to grab a sandwich for lunch. In an effort to prove myself as the overachiever I strive to be, I frequently find myself double and triple booked between coursework, internships and trying to be a normal college student.
One recent Friday, I found myself rushing to my internship at the elementary school to work with a class of first-graders and hoping to make it back in time for a meeting with my professor which started at the same time my internship ended; meanwhile, my students from the fall were on campus for a field trip and after running into one of their teachers on my way to grab a quick bite of lunch, I was convinced to say hello to my students and spend some time helping them on their field trip. Any given semester, I do try to keep myself as busy as possible, but my only conclusion for my chaotic schedule this semester is that I am trying to avoid the question: “what are you going to do after graduation?”
Carolyn Cross:
Senioritis is real. Even if you think you can escape its wrath, it can sneakily get to you. I think it is a combination of disbelief that it’s your last semester of your undergraduate career, panic about what is in store for you post-graduation, and trying to enjoy the semester as much as possible while also passing your classes. I refer to this lovely mix of feelings as “Senior Spring Woes.” I believe the term will catch on.
For me, striking a balance between focusing on the current tasks at hand (homework, meetings, emails, etc.) and planning for the future (applying to jobs/grad school, doing interviews, thinking about housing, $$, etc.) has proven to be a bit difficult. I find that I usually have to sacrifice something, which is not my fave. Another difficulty I have is attempting to connect the work I am doing in my classes to the jobs I am applying to. I think this can be a challenge for anyone who has a liberal arts education, but it seems more pronounced for me this semester. Perhaps this is because I am a Sociology major, and I am applying to jobs not directly related to that field. Another thing that comes up in conversations with other Seniors is the topic of regrets or things they wish they had done differently during college. I think this is inevitable because one person cannot possibly do every single thing here. So, my advice would be to acknowledge these feelings but also focus on all of the things you have done during these four years.
Despite these woes, Senior Spring does have a certain nostalgic charm to it. It encourages you to do things you haven’t yet gotten the chance to do, visit nearby attractions or restaurants that you’ve always said you would do some other time, and appreciate the college lifestyle a little more than usual. I was not in love with Conn when I first came here, but each year I met more cool people and took advantage of the many opportunities the College has to offer. Because of this, I grew to have a fondness for the school, which I am trying to remember when things get stressful during this last semester. Good luck to all the seniors!!!