Whenever you ask an adult about their undergraduate education (at least in my experience) their answers are always strikingly similar; that their four years of college was the best time of their life. Sure, having four years at college is the perfect time for some people to explore their interests and possible career paths. For me though, I’ve never really needed that time to discover what I want to pursue. I have known since I was six years old that I would become a dentist one day, and that is the path that I have been following my whole life.
Any pre-professional student knows that what comes after undergraduate school is . . . drum roll please . . . more school! For students who know that they want to apply to grad schools after college, it’s definitely daunting to think about all the years they’ll have to spend in school before they can actually start their career. Perspective medical and dental students are also looking at several years of residency or specialty school even after their first four years of graduate school. So I don’t think of graduating a year early as “losing” a year. Instead, I think of it as getting one year closer to the career that I’ve always wanted.
When I tell people that I’m graduating so soon, a lot of people ask if it’s because I don’t like school or they tell me that I’m rushing it. I’m always surprised when someone criticizes my decision this way. I am not graduating because I hated my college experience, I’m doing it because I know that I’ll love being a dental student just as much. Of course, it has been stressful to get all of my academic requirements done and done well in time to graduate next spring. But what college student isn’t stressed out sometimes? I have pushed myself to take challenging courses, to take summer and winter classes, to pursue research and to work on campus, all so that I could ultimately reach my goal. I think that I should be respected for my tremendous efforts rather than being criticized for making a “hasty” decision.
So, am I rushing it? Sure, maybe. But at the end of the day, I am so proud of what I have accomplished here at UConn and I will never regret my decision to graduate early.