Senioritis

​Sophia Shaikh
Staff Writer

   May has arrived, AP exams are nearly over, and summer is in the air.  Everyone is excited to escape the grips of school for a little while, but a strange sickness is spreading through the senior class.  Symptoms include laziness, a lack of motivation, constant groaning, over-wearing sweatpants, and overuse of the phrase “Whatever, I’m graduating soon.”  This sometimes crippling disease is also known as “Senioritis” and is known to strike every graduating class near the end of the school year.  With less than a month to go and postgraduate plans already set up, most don’t feel the need to put any more effort into high school. 
     Why would anyone ever feel this way?  For one thing, senior exemptions exist.  With no final exam for those with a good attendance record, there seems to be no reason to truly learn and study the material.  Especially after AP exams, there doesn’t seem to be any reason to keep trying.  Students only feel the need to do the bare minimum to pass the class and move on with life.  If senior exemptions didn’t count on attendance, you can bet no seniors would show up at all in this last month.  

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      Additionally, everything seems to finally be falling in place after four years of suffering.  Most students know where they will be going after high school and have made most of the major decisions regarding college.  It seems like things are definite, and they won’t rescind your acceptance unless you fail all your classes, right?  Many feel like they deserve to finally relax after working so hard for so long. 
      Sadly, the truth is that this attitude can in fact have a negative impact on your future.  Colleges do receive final transcripts, and significantly lower grades in your final semester make them question your work ethic.  The more competitive schools especially watch out for this and won’t hesitate to revoke students falling behind.  There are plenty of others on waitlists eager to take your place, so an acceptance to college shouldn’t be taken for granted!  Even if your school of choice isn’t as competitive, final transcripts will be tainted by lower grades if you stop trying.  Higher grades often lead to higher offers of financial aid, so keep working hard!  It’s definitely worth a reduced tuition. 
      If you’ve been infected by Senioritis, what can you do?  Is there a cure besides graduation?  For now, the one thing you have to cling to is motivation.  It’s never too late to build strong study habits again and keep up your grades for one more month.  If you’re feeling a little lazy, remember the possibility of losing your offer of admission.  Get your motivation from the idea of graduation, which isn’t far off at this point.  If you made it through nearly four years, you can make it through one more month.  It’s alright to relax a little because you have accomplished so much and come so far, whatever your postgraduation plans may be, but don’t let your Senioritis weigh you down.  Stay strong and good luck!  We’re almost done!