Congratulations! You've made it three-quarters of the way through high school, conquered finals, countless essays and those 3-hour-long AP exams. By now you know everything there is to know about high school, right? Well, not exactly. Even the best students find their senior year full of new obstacles. This is your last year together with all your friends, your last chance to win the state championship you've been dreaming about since freshman year and don't forget the "minor detail" of applying to college. All of this can become pretty overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be. There are a few simple things you can do to stay sane and make the most of your senior year.
Don't procrastinate.
I knew a girl who decided to wait until winter vacation to fill out her applications. Her reasoning was that she just didn't have enough time during school. While her friends and family were having fun over the holidays, she spent all of her time holed up in her room, sweating out the essays. The pressure wore her out and she regretted not having time to give her applications as much attention as they deserved. Get a head start on the application process by reading carefully through the entire application as soon as you get it. This will give you a chance to start thinking about what the college is asking for and your possible responses. Keep a planner with important dates and deadlines to keep you on track and fully aware of just how much time you have. If you're having problems getting started, do the easy parts first (i.e. name, address, etc.), then tackle the activities list and essays in parts.
Stay on top of your classes.
Another, and probably the most common, problem faced by high school seniors is "senioritis" - slacking off during your last year. Even though I had always been a hard worker, I tricked myself into thinking that I could get away with doing less, not knowing that I was sabotaging the work ethic that made me successful. Soon, I found myself walking into class and being surprised by tests and quizzes that had been announced, but I completely forgot about. It was a terrible feeling to be unable to correctly answer half of the questions in classes that I thought I didn't need to study for. I spent the rest of the semester scrambling to learn old material while trying to keep up with the new material presented in class. It was an awful experience, but it really made me value how hard I had worked before. Bottom line: keeping up with course work will make things easier with the bonus of making a good impression on the college admissions office.
