Mark Duffy
Editor

By this time of the school year, early action and early decision deadlines have come and gone, and many students are finalizing their applications for fast-approaching January deadlines. As students begin to breathe sighs of relief, and decision letters start rolling in, it is important to remember to enjoy senior year while also staying on top of our academic work.

Holding that first decision letter in your hand, whether it is from a safety school or your dream school, is a monumental moment. Finally, after these last three years of diligent work, a college or university has accepted your application. A wave of excitement falls over you as you realize that a school will welcome you with open arms come next August. Seniors often fall into the habit of sleeping on their school work, especially in the second semester, once they have learned of their acceptance, however, this time off can prove to have disastrous results.
“A decision from a university is never final, and students should be careful not to let their grades slip below average,” said English teacher Mrs. Ramsey.

For all of your regular decision applications, schools will most likely be requesting your mid-year reports, and at the end of the year, all your schools are going to check up on your final transcript. If you fail to meet a university’s standards, or if you are performing well below your usual best, universities may think twice about the “yes” you received in the mail.

It may be easy to also forget why you took many of your most rigorous classes in the first place. Always remember that AP and ECE classes translate into college credit, and if you begin to fall behind, it will be extremely difficult to gain enough momentum to catch back up in time to finish above that C+ threshold or score a 3, 4, or 5 on the exam. It will be difficult for many of us to stay excited about all our APs, but if we perform well now, we’ll save ourselves and our parents hundreds of dollars next year.

“AP classes are basically free college credits. It would be so wasteful to sleep through class now and pay $1,000 per credit in college to learn the same material,” said senior Julia Mahroos.

We also should maintain a positive work ethic to avoid being hit too hard by the academic demands of college. I am sure everyone is aware that college is a big step up from high school, and by leaving our school work incomplete and tossing our textbooks to the corner now, it will only make the change that much more difficult. While it may be hard to imagine, college is just around the corner, and we should make sure we are prepared to study and work hard because, unlike public high school, college costs big bucks.

Alright, enough of the nagging. I know many of us will continue to do our best from now until graduation, but everyone could use a couple extra tips to keep them motivated.

“I have already been accepted to two of my schools, but I keep myself on top of my work by making flashcards nightly to keep material fresh in my head, and I make sure to get enough sleep every night so I feel refreshed when I come to school in the morning,” said senior Brianna Dudding.

There you have it folks – if you thought second semester was going to be pre-summer vacation, I would urge you to rethink that thought. So until we walk across that graduation stage next June, stay studious, but be sure to enjoy the last few months of high school as well.