Are you going to college? Where? Have you applied yet? When will you get accepted? Cost? Scholarships? Deadlines? …Sound familiar? If you’re a senior in high school, the answer is most likely yes.
Senior year is full of exciting events as well as experiencing all of the “lasts” that you never thought would come so soon. Last FNL, last homecoming, last color wars…last year. Although, experiencing the end of an era, only means you’re entering into a new one. For many seniors at Prairie High School, college is their next chapter. With that, brings much added stress to this year.
“It’s really my whole future. It’s what my parents and high school have been preparing me for.” shares Lena Le, when asked about her stress level with future plans. This feeling of what’s next is definitely bittersweet, especially for Ella May, another fellow senior. “It stresses me out because it’s going to be a lot of work and is really important, but I’m excited because I’m happy to move onto the next chapter of my life.”
While many are experiencing an overwhelming feeling of emotions during this time, Mubina Mohamed explained how there can be a sigh of relief when you’re able to talk through it with someone who has already had the first-time college experience. “Asking other people who have applied before, how they did it, and listening to them, has really helped ease a little bit of the stress.”
All three senior girls are undecided as of now but are keeping their options open as they wait for those acceptance letters, and seeing what opportunities arise. They also have two things in common; their plans to go into the medical field, and how much they’ll miss their friends. “I’ve been with the same people since kindergarten. It’s going to be weird to have a total change,” says Ella. While Lena and Mubina both spoke about the friendships they’ll miss, they similarly added the difference in school size. “High school is smaller than college for sure, it’s definitely easier to make friends here.” and “In college, it’s going to be a bunch of random people and random faces, I won’t know everyone’s name.”
“They expect a 4-year plan with every detail possible,” noted Ella May. While that may be the case for some people, it is important to remember that it’s okay to not know everything for your future. Enjoy the senior year and what is to come!
