102 seniors, 102 diplomas, 102 hand shakes, 102 decisions . . .

Senior year is supposed to be the best time of our lives. With all the parties and events, senior year is something everyone looks forward to. However after all the partying, sports events, and yearbook signings there is so much to think about as you walk across the stage and into real life. 

What will I do? Will it be college or trade school? Will I drop out, work, or join the army? With school starting a couple weeks ago, most senior teachers keep asking us where we see ourselves next? Some kids can give you a full response without hesitation. They know exactly what college they want to go to. They are confident in what they want to major in and what they want to do as soon as they graduate college. However, for others it is not that easy. 

If you would’ve asked me this time last year where I see myself next, I would have said a student at Monmouth University, double majoring in criminal justice and psychology. However, as the time comes closer to making that decision I feel more lost than ever. 

With all of these deadlines for applications coming up, the pressure just keeps getting worse and I know I am not the only person who feels this way.

Jazmin Canelon, a senior here at UACHS feels extremely pressured into applying for colleges. 

“My parents and teachers won’t stop speaking about it and they are making me apply everywhere, even schools I do not want to attend,” said Canelon. 

It is hard for us to focus on what’s next if we do not even know what is going on right now. Most seniors have not even taken the SATs yet and we have no idea how we are going to since most schools hosting it keep cancelling because of corona. Seniors not taking the test adds even more pressure because not all college applications are SAT optional. Therefore, if the college you want to go to requires your SAT scores and you never took it, this adds another obstacle in your way.

It is not only the SATs though. It is also applying, not being able to sit face to face with your guidance counselor to talk about it, being unsure of how our senior year is going to go. We are in a time of complete uncertainty while trying to make the biggest decision we have ever encountered in our lives. 

A lot happens when you walk out the doors of your high school for the last time. Everyone is in such a rush to graduate and live their lives post-high school. We do not realize that we are walking into a new world where things are going to change. People are going to change and we are going to change.  

 This change is not something you should avoid. It’s something you should embrace but not rush into. This is the moment when you say a final goodbye to your childhood and walk into adulthood. Though some of us already feel grown, high school is our final tie to what we will never get back. So as we make these big decisions and answer the million dollar question “what is next?” We should remember to take a step back and live in the moment. We should enjoy it before it becomes a memory.