They say that high school years are the best years of your life. Freshmen year welcomes you to the school at which you will spend the next four years. Sophomore year comes with its own challenges and experiences. Then comes junior year, the worst of it all, in which students struggle to pile on AP class after AP class into an already crammed schedule. But finally, after three grueling years of awkwardness and stress, it’s senior year. Some students are excited to reach this point, while others are just elated at the thought of being one year away from finishing high school. There are some, however, that would rather skip this year of high school altogether, deeming it unnecessary or useless in terms of what it has to offer. Nonetheless, many more would argue that one’s senior year of high school proposes social, emotional, and educational benefits regardless of what media has likely made it out to be.
When speaking of senior year’s social aspects, many things come to mind. It’s the chance to spend your final year of school with your friends, and others you may never see again. Considering the majority of students will be heading to college the following year, the probability that you will end up in the same place as everyone from your class is bleak. Senior year offers up the opportunity to take advantage of these final moments by presenting different ways to make your final years in high school count, whether this be through school dances like prom, or through fun activities like spirit week or competitive games like assassin. It’s in this final year that you may find yourself talking to people you never thought you’d be associated with or laughing harder than you ever had in the past.
Senior year also serves as a transition to adulthood. It allows you to grow up and be prepared to take on the future alongside your friends and family. It puts you in a position of making decisions and taking steps toward the type of person you are going to be after you graduate. This emotional aspect of senior year is one of the reasons that it’s something that should not be skipped. In many ways, it provides closure of some sort, allowing you to leave behind your high school days so you can be your best self when you leave. It’s hard to say goodbye to your past, but by doing everything you wanted to do in senior year, you can leave without regrets.
Despite how it’s depicted in the movies, senior year, in many ways, plays an important role in one’s education. This is when college applications occur, and believe it or not, senior year does matter when it comes to that. Colleges take into account the classes you take, the grades you get in these classes, and your overall behavior. Though this part isn’t as glamorous and certainly is not what comes to mind when thinking of senior year, it’s essential to consider that it can still play an important role in your future. Keep in mind that it is your final year to make life-lasting memories with your friends there, so make it count.
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