As the college application season is coming to a close (except for rolling admissions schools), students across the world are filled with a sense of relief with a slight tinge of horror. Sure, there are no more essays to write, no more application fees and no more standardized tests, but you’re left in a three-month period of purgatory, waiting for the colleges’ decisions. Here’s a few things you could be doing your senior year:
- Keep your grades up. Senioritis is real, I get it. But if your first semester isn’t over, remember that colleges look at your mid-year grades when assessing your application. Keep working hard. In your second semester, you can relax a little bit, but still continue to try in your classes. Many colleges will rescind their acceptance to you if you’re a student who had gotten straight A’s their entire high school career and is suddenly failing half of their classes.
- Apply for scholarships. Many of the larger scholarship deadlines have passed, but there are still plenty of scholarships out there if you know where to look. Websites like Cappex, Fastweb and Naviance have lists of scholarships that students can apply to. You can also look locally, your school or local businesses and organizations may have scholarship opportunities available to you.
- Relax. As the majority of college decisions come out in March/April, you may see the several months of waiting as a sort of Hell on Earth. It’s really hard to get rid of your anxiety, but you should remember that you’ve done everything you can. Whatever happens happens and everything will work out in the end.
- Enjoy yourself. While high school doesn’t (and shouldn’t) have to be considered the best time of your life, you should find ways to enjoy your last moments there. Hang out with your friends, befriend some of your classmates, go on an adventure around your town/city, make the best of your situation.
You’ve finally made it through three and a half years of high school, you’re in the home stretch! And remember, if you’re unhappy with your college decisions in the spring, just know that you are the sole creator of your future and you hold the power to be successful. It’s not about what school you go it, it’s about what actions you take to accomplish what you want to do.
