As I scheduled my last classes for the upcoming year with my counselor this summer, it hit me suddenly that I am a senior in college. Honestly, it has been hard to accept that I will not be a student anymore. I have only ever been a student. Especially as a high school graduate of 2020, it feels surreal that I am a senior again because I feel like I lost half of my “college experience” due to COVID and the pandemic. It feels like time stopped when the lockdown happened. But four years later, here I am, a senior again. While I acknowledge that this is dramatic, I am not sure if I will ever feel ready to graduate in a year.
Despite these feelings, however, I am not going to let this take over my year. So, here are some things I plan on doing during my last school year as a student at Grand Canyon University.
Volunteering
Growing up, I came to love and appreciate volunteering. Helping people and changing their lives is the best feeling in the world. Unfortunately, because of my busy schedule in college, I haven’t been able to prioritize volunteering as much as I would like to. However, as a Christian university, GCU has many volunteer opportunities on and off campus. I am looking to join more volunteer clubs, participate in GCU’s on-campus distribution ministry CityServe, or participate in the annual Service Week events. Overall, being selfless and spreading kindness during my last year will make my year feel more fulfilling.
TAKing ADVANTage of What Campus Has to Offer
From career services, ministries, and study abroad programs, there are a lot of diverse on-campus resources at GCU for students to use and take advantage of. It is important to take advantage of everything the school has to offer because you won’t get these perks once you graduate. For my senior year, I want to participate in a few career fairs/development programs, take in all the student discounts, and, hopefully, participate in unique travel experiences.
Attending As Many Events As Possible
One of the things that makes GCU so unique is the millions of events and activities on campus. Some of the events that I am looking forward to attending this year are Lip Sync Battle, Midnight Madness, GCU’s Got Talent, and Hanging of the Greens. I even hope to attend more sporting events, such as the famous GCU basketball games, baseball games, and others. When I graduate in the spring, I don’t want to feel like I missed out on anything.
TAKING CARE OF MY MENTAL/PHYSICAL HEALTH
If there is one thing I want to focus on this year, it is taking care of my mental and physical health. My mental health hasn’t been the best recently. As a college student, it’s tough to prioritize your mental and physical health when you have a million things on your plate. I have tried to make this a goal for several years, but I would always fail or not be as consistent as I should be.
For my mental health, I want to take a small part of my day to prioritize myself. This might be in the form of journaling, praying, or doing something creative like reading or crocheting. I am also planning to keep my therapy sessions going (because it is okay to ask for help sometimes!). Regarding my physical health, I want to go to the gym more consistently. My favorite campus gym classes I want to attend more frequently are yoga and indoor spin cycling!
Living IN THE MOMENT
Especially as a senior, it is hard not to think about the future when my future feels so uncertain. However, I am not going to be an undergraduate student ever again. I want to take in as much as possible for this school year, from learning as much as possible in classes to making memories with my friends. I want to live in the moment and take advantage of every minute I can get so I don’t regret it later.
For fellow seniors, congratulations on getting to this moment in your life! We have been through a lot in the past couple of years. With everything going on, this year will be scary, but you aren’t alone. If the last four years have taught us anything, it is that we are stronger than we think. So, here is to the best year yet!