I applied to eight four-year colleges/universities in total this past autumn season. Five in North Carolina, three in Massachusetts. I have been accepted into three so far, all in North Carolina. Deep breath. Five more to go, and I won’t get any more letters until April. APRIL!! Such a long way away.

Meanwhile, I personally believe that my entire being (body + mind) has developed a serious case of senioritis. For those of you who do not know what this deadly disease is…

Senioritis-a “disease” involving decreased motivation toward studies displayed by students who are nearing the end of their high school, college and graduate school careers; SYMPTOMS include chronic procrastination, lack of motivation, a drop in academic performance, and “coasting,” which is the act of going through classes with very little concentration or application of intent. Source: Wikipedia.

Sounds horrible, I know. In my case, this is the end of high school. Seniors are typically diagnosed at the beginning of their spring (last) semester. To be honest, I believe I am one of the first few to have caught on a serious case of senioritis, as few people have shown symptoms. Most students in my classes have been working as diligently as they worked before college application season, though there is more grumbling over extra Calculus problems or the four slides of Notes in Forensic Science (a supposedly “easy, laid-back” class).

The sad thing about senioritis is that it usually spreads “with permission,” so to speak. Students who do not WANT to continue working hard and putting in 110% effort in their classes end up with senioritis because they allowed themselves to catch it. These kids daydream of college life when they no longer have to live under parental rules and supervision. They begin to skip days. They get a Jersey Mike sub ten minutes after Forensic Science starts and try to bribe the teacher into not counting them late. They procrastinate until last minute They get 84.5’s It’s true, they have senioritis.

The funny (and unfortunate) thing is, senioritis has caught me by its cold clammy hands and sucked me in…against my will. No, I haven’t been skipping or buying subs during third period. For some awful reason, my mind and body has slacked without my permission! I still try as hard as I did before college applications started, yet my grades seem to be deteriorating nonetheless…perhaps deteriorating is not the right word, though regardless it has taken me more effort to keep up with my work. I have had to do little tasks here and there that take up more time and energy than they did in the past.

I admit, a lack of motivation does play in as a factor regarding my special case of senioritis. I have always strived to do the best in my classes, though for some reason I just seem to want to relax and not do work. I still do my work anyway, but that psychological need and want is not all there anymore. :(

Thus, I have come up with a short little list for myself and for others who need a boost of confidence and motivation to keep working hard. It contains five main reasons why numerical grades and college acceptance letters are not the only benefits of maintaining those A’s. This list is mainly focused towards high school seniors (like myself), though you can apply them in general terms to any situation.

1) You entered and survived through high school with grades shiny enough that you wished you could polish them like trophies. It would really suck having to leave (even with your lovely little diploma) with that record broken and your trophies duller than their original gold. =) You do not want to break your streak, basically. Knowing that you managed to keep a steady, solid record of good grades all throughout high school will make you feel extremely proud about yourself. The worst thing that could happen and totally pop your balloon is getting an 84.4 in Calculus…the only C you have ever gotten on a report card before.

2) If you were actually paying attention in class, you might actually realize that the stuff you are learning is pretty interesting after all. Lots of kids I know are too busy groaning all through class about the amount of work they have to do and don’t stay open-minded long enough to consider how cool it is that water is the universal solvent, meaning that no other liquid can dissolve as many solutes as water can. The lessons you learn in class will make you appreciate all the little things in life that make up the world we live in and allow us to survive…they are usually things we tend to take for granted. Like water.

3) Your parents have done so much, caring and nurturing for you since you were a child. Don’t you want to make them proud of their baby who got all A’s and is a part of the Honor Roll?

4) Whatever you are learning in school will help you for the rest of your life. Granted, there are just some subjects, like Forensic Science, that are useless to you if you are not planning to specialize in…say, Forensic Science. Even so, the general concepts you learn in every class will end up benefiting you in some way during your life. Maybe even save you. I mean, who knew that you could be charged as a sex offender if you mooned someone (source: my forensic science teacher)?

5) Education allows students’ imaginations and intellects to stretch to their fullest potential. Education provides you with the necessary tools to become a more open-minded, knowledgeable and overall better person. Education makes you think.

Embrace what you’re learning. Love what you’re doing.

~TRA

P.S. I think I just motivated myself to do some homework. :3