I could’ve sworn I was just in kindergarten. Where did all the time go? I don’t want to leave. What do I want to do with my life? Thoughts are scattered all around my mind. We are seniors.
Ahhh yes. The anticipated senior year is officially here, but what does that entail? It entails that our lives are just going to begin. There is still work to be done, however. And that’s okay!
We are all in different stages. Some submitted applications when the CommonApp opened, and others are scrambling to finish supplemental essays and finalize last-minute schools to add to their list. Amongst us are those who could not wait to hit the “submit” button for their early decision application, and others who are applying to a dozen or more schools. There are also those who don’t wish to pursue a college education, and that is perfectly okay too! With variety comes comparison. With comparison, comes setting ourselves up for failure. “It is very hard to stay grounded and level headed with the realization that there is a school out there for everyone,” Mrs. Perry, Ramapo’s Supervisor of Guidance, says. “We can all get caught up in the ‘bumper sticker’ mentality of the name of the school and miss the value of the fit between the student and the institution itself. The actual application to college requires all prospective students to be organized with the information and authentic in representing themselves in their essays.”
There is no right answer. I mean it! There is no “perfect” amount of schools to apply to. There is no formula for something so personalized to an individual. Senior Eleni Xanthos says, “I think that there isn’t the wrong amount of colleges to apply to, but if there is too much, the person can get overwhelmed and they need to balance out which colleges they really like and want to go to and colleges that don’t really stand out to them.” She makes a good point: balance is key. We have all put in what we will get out. “I worked very hard in high school to earn strong grades in challenging classes, I committed myself to community service (I was a Gold Award Girl Scout), had a lot of leadership positions and maintained a part-time job throughout high school. My strengths at that time of my life were being able to be involved but not overextended,” says Mrs. Perry. We have all done different activities, lived different lives, and continue to have different circumstances surrounding our criteria for a school.
Not only is the physical work difficult, but it is also an emotional time for us and embracing it is necessary to accept the reality of this year and what next year will bring. “I would say that the hardest part is not the actual application part itself… it is processing the fact that in less than a year, I will be moving on to live a new life in a new place with new people and that scares me,” says Senior Erin Freeman. It is scary. Being scared and taking risks is part of our plan. We will only grow from here.
As we approach deadlines and submit all of our applications, we wait. We wait, and wait, and wait. It will feel like forever, but those letters will come. We are the seniors… Class of ‘23! Let’s make this year count!