Senioritis - Lock it Up Before Colleges Lock You Out!

You've all heard the term before - "Senioritis" - but what you may not know is that behind the cute term lies a very serious issue for high school seniors hoping to go off to college. Senioritis, in a nutshell, refers to the general lack of motivation and effort in high school seniors. When that fourth year comes around, many seniors feel like they can just coast along. This assumption is reaffirmed as soon as they receive an acceptance letter from their first choice college. Once they've got that letter of acceptance, they're in, right? WRONG.

What many students fail to realize is that, now more than ever, colleges are reevaluating potential incoming freshmen even after they've been given their acceptance into the school. Colleges are paying close attention to declining grades, attendance, or a course load that differs from that which the applicant originally submitted with their transcript. Colleges are sure to include with every application the line stating that "your admission is contingent on your continued successful performance" , and that fine print is becoming an unfortunate reality.

The last thing any high school senior wants is to be notified at the end of their senior year that their first choice college who accepted them five months earlier is now taking away the scholarship they offered, or putting them on "academic probation", or, even worse, revoking their acceptance. The last thing any senior wants is to learn that they're no longer invited to attend the college where they've already been present for orientation and got acquainted with who they thought would be their future room mates. The last thing any senior wants is to have to suffer the humility that comes with having to tell his or her family and friends about the unfortunate situation.

This wasn't meant to scare you, but perhaps it should've been. Senioritis is no laughing matter, and it is in fact a very scary reality. Luckily, the imaginary disease can be treated, and I've compiled a list of some helpful advice that got me through my senior year of high school.

1. Don't go skimpy on your schedule: Senior year sees many students taking a light course load that's not demanding and offers little challenge. This popular decision hurts students twofold. Firstly, the light course load does not bode well on college applications. Colleges look for demanding courses and look favorably on average grades in higher level courses over above average grades in lower level courses. They want to see the student challenging themselves, and not looking for an easy way out. It may sound like such a small detail, but a student's schedule reflects the type of student they are. Secondly, a less demanding schedule will further lead to senioritis. Courses that do not challenge the student will not motivate them either. Students will instead receive excess free time which they tend not to use productively anyway. Instead of going skimpy on the senior schedule, take a wide variety of courses that provide both interest and challenge, and you won't find yourself getting bored halfway through the first trimester. Challenging courses will keep you on your toes and further prepare you for the level of work that you will find in college.

Also, while on the topic of schedules, do NOT under any circumstances lie about the course level you are taking on your college application. Do not say you are taking Honor, AP, or IB level courses when you are taking standard level courses. Do not say that you are taking courses on your level that you are not taking. Remember, colleges will receive your official transcript, and it surely won't look good for you when the Advance Science course you promised turned out to be an Introduction to Biology course instead. Be honest about your courses - You won't have anything to lie about if you don't go skimpy on your schedule to begin with!

2. Be aware (not beware) of deadlines: While college application deadlines are important, it is very easy for seniors to forget about the deadlines that they have within their own school. Term papers, projects, essays, tests - Don't let these go undone. Get your college applications done early and pay attention to your course deadlines. You don't want your grade sinking because of incomplete or late homeworks. It's little things like this that may not seem important, but they could hurt your grade. Also, with senioritis comes procrastination, so try your hardest to force yourself to hand in work on time because if you let it pile up, you will back yourself into a corner and wind up in a place you don't want to be - Sitting for hours upon hours writing paper upon paper, all of which are mediocre at best due to their bleeding into each other, and of course, mediocre work returns a mediocre grade.

College is huge, but it's still some time away. Don't get trapped in planning where you're going to be and forgetting where you are right now!

3. Organize your time: Yes, it's senior year. Yeah, there will be tons of parties, Prom preparation, SATs, and the list goes on. There will be so many distractions both school related and not. Your job is to make sure that your work remains a priority over all of those distractions. Make it a priority to live strictly by "work before fun", even if it's just for this year. If you're struggling in a subject, take the time to see a teacher after school. Do this until you know your stuff, because your friends will be around forever. There will be another hang out next week, another party next weekend, but there won't be another opportunity if you slack off and let your grades plunge.

4. You're not in until you your first class is over: During your senior year, live your academic life as if you haven't been accepted into college until you finish your very first class there. Even once you've got that acceptance letter in hand, continue to work as if you never got accepted - Work as if you have something to prove, as if you have to earn your way in, as if the past doesn't matter and you're being accessed on the here and now. Don't float on that letter of acceptance. This is so important, because some schools don't notify students about their acceptance revocation until the summer before class is in session. It may be hard, but focus on working harder than you ever have, as if you've never been accepted - As if this year is do or die, because really, it could be.

My message to you is simple - Don't take this lightly. This is college, this is your future. Don't let senioritis hold you back from doing what you know you are capable of doing. Take control, take initiative, and lock senioritis up before colleges lock you out!