Heading into my senior year, I should be more prepared. Well, that is what almost every junior is saying right now. Juniors are embarking on the summer before their senior year of college and wondering if they have done enough so far, even to graduate, never mind get a job after college.
I am in that same boat, but not because I am insanely behind on work and helplessly stupid. It is because that is how you should feel if you care about what you are doing and about the future. There isn’t even a summer internship lined up, so I’ll spend this summer stocking beer as I did the last two summers. But that is alright, and I will explain how to go into senior year without feeling all stressed and worried.
Let’s first talk about what senior year might look like for you and what it does for me. I am a dual major, and this spring I completed my Communication major. So, my senior year will revolve around finishing my Multimedia Journalism major with only three classes this fall. Now, most seniors, no matter the discipline, should be in a similar spot. A small number of classes, but classes focused on the major and probably harder than others you’ve taken in college so far.
This is also a small guide on how to set yourself up for that senior year, so sophomores, make sure you are paying attention. There will always be classes, so make sure that the fall and even the spring of senior year are not spent catching up.
The big point here is to just chill out. I don’t even have an internship and it’s a part of my literal major that I have one. I know that I have the resources to get an internship, so it is not this thing that is stressing me out all the time. If you currently have an internship lined up, then I see no reason to even stress about senior year.
If you have done your work over the three years and made a dent in your major, then you are probably set up for the internship. And if you are set up for that internship, then all you have to worry about is that new experience. That new step with real-world application will be challenging, but it will certainly make senior year less stressful.
The last piece to not having a stressful senior year has nothing to do with academics or internships; it has to do with relationships. I am not stressed out because I have some of the best people who have my best interests in mind. My girlfriend, my friends, my roommates, my coworkers at The Equinox, my professors, my advisor and my family all have my best interests in mind and want me to succeed.
Having a strong supporting cast is almost more important than anything else because you will make it with those who want you to win. Those are the people with me now and they will be the people supporting me after college, so they will always be more vital to my success than anything else.
Jacob Enscoe can be contacted at
jenscoe@kscequinox.com
