It’s happened. That moment when senior year arrives and you begin the introspective process known as graduate school applications, job resumes, and senior class seminars. For me, this painstaking rehash of the past four years of my life has led me to conclude one thing for certain: the work habits of college students (for the majority of people) early on in their college careers have an enormous impact on how enjoyable their senior year will be.
Having taken several classes with underclassmen has only reinforced this idea for me. Freshmen and sophomores who take the free passes that are given to them during the first two years of their college career eventually face the consequences of their actions—lowered GPAs, scrambling for that last required class for graduation, and other additional stresses to an already incredibly anxiety-filled senior year.
As a freshman, I started out my college career with the mindset that classes came first, social life second, and skipping class because I “didn’t feel like going” wasn’t acceptable.
This lasted for about a year; towards the end of my freshman year I began to struggle with balancing my academic responsibilities and the desire to explore what the college scene had to offer socially. Sophomore year came and with it the typical “sophomore slump,” a phenomenon most closely associated with the mid-40s mid-life crisis.
During this time, for both my friends and myself, the appeal of college seemed to wane and existential questions such as “What is the meaning of life?” were front and center in my mind. Towards the end of the year, with ten days in South Africa under my belt, my passion for learning was reignited, and that revival has lasted me until this year.
For many people, the pattern I described is relatable. Everyone goes through periods of growth and struggle—the college lifestyle of constant work, studying, and social pressures only work to amplify those hills and valleys—and everyone handles those challenges differently.
However, one nearly guaranteed way to avoid the added stress during the last year of college of negotiating for classes you thought you didn’t need and spending precious time attempting to bring up a floundering GPA is to pay attention and be proactive as a freshman and sophomore.
These two years are formative times in a student’s life and, although it may be hard to pass up a weekend opportunity to party in favor of studying for that midterm, in the long run, your future self will thank you for it.
Hannah Walker can be contacted at
hwalker@keene-equinox.com