College Acceptance - Committed Seniors
by: Amanda Springer
After wading through the somewhat nauseating process of college applications, many seniors have already received at least one letter from a college or university with an anticipated opening statement such as "We are pleased to inform you..." or "Congratulations!" Although being accepted to a college or university may be a relief, students should remember that they cannot afford to slack off during the remaining portion of their senior year.
Once a student finally chooses to commit to a particular college or university, he or she may entertain the thought that it is finally time to relax. Unfortunately, this is not the case. The slightly threatening comment tacked on to the end of almost every acceptance letter that cheerfully reassures the student that the university will promptly withdraw its offer of admission if the student's academic record drops may be the first hint that the final semester of high school is not the time to relax. In addition to this, after accepting an offer of admission to a particular school, students are then faced with questions about their future housing, meal plan, and how they plan to pay for attending their chosen school.
Once students mail in their deposits, begin to figure out where they want to live and how they are going to pay for living, and finally finish the FAFSA, senioritis may set in, despite all the warnings from teachers, counselors, and the college or university itself. Although senioritis may have begun much earlier, once a student knows where he or she is attending college, high school seems to become much less important. Particularly for most students, who are balancing extracurricular activities, a social life, college matters, and possibly part-time jobs, the amount of attention homework receives may slide their senior year, and with it, their grades may slide. It is important for seniors to remember that not only is their admission contingent on their continuing success in high school but financial aid packages initially offered to students on the basis of merit may be withdrawn if a student's performance drops. In addition to this, the more selective the college a student is applying to, the more important a student's senior year may be. Since selective colleges have a large pool of qualified candidates, they can afford to wait to see which students will stay strong throughout their senior year and which students will succumb to the "senior slump."
Kushang Vashi, a senior at Signature who has committed to Purdue University, says senioritis is not hitting him too hard. Vashi says although he is "excited to get out of high school and start college," he does not expect his grades to drop. Actually, he says, he thinks his second semester grades will be better than his first semester grades.
Senior year is an exciting time for most students. And as long as students maintain their grades and keep up with their responsibilities, senior year should go smoothly and the transition into college life will be much easier than if students chose to slack off their senior year.