Senior Year Research Paper

Most soon-to-be seniors spend the summer before their last year of high school hanging out with friends or working summer jobs. I spent mine packing my bags and moving across the ocean to start my senior year at a brand new school.

Seniors have a tendency of taking their last year of high school for granted. They do not realize that the relaxed classes and fun filled weekends with their best friends will all soon come to a devastating end. They have applied for college, bought miniature refrigerators, and sent in their housing applications, but none of them have really thought about college in the way that they should. When asked about college most high school seniors image the huge parties, attractive people, and freedom; however, college is much more than that and, in a way, much less. College and high school are completely different when it comes to a student’s actual lifestyle, but they have many of the same traits that most high school seniors do not see coming.

I am writing to give you some advice that I wish I had known coming into my senior year. To begin, Congratulations for successfully making it this far in your high school journey. For some, this experience flies by and is the best time of their lives. For others, the opposite is true; however, it is such a blessing to be able to say that you are on the track to graduation, and you may not realize it, but this year will be full of challenges that you may or may not choose to take on.

Your senior year was a wild, crazy mess. You started off the year not wanting to go to school to see Karson because you couldn’t handle it. You even left school some days when he would show up. You let your dumb self try again with Karson and it failed. You got hurt, and even cried.... A lot. You meet the love of your life, Kyle, and still talk to him even though you guys aren’t together right now. You both hope to reconnect after you finish your second year of college. Keep talking to him, don’t let him get away from you. You have had it tough this year, but by the end of the year you didn’t let anything affect you. Your grades were A’s and B’s all year. You made some amazing new friends like, Chandler, Clayton Ecker, Collin and more boys

Coming from being a junior in high school to now being a senior. Senior in high school is going to be one of the most favorite and scariest parts of my life. Everyone says that it is one of the biggest part of your life. They say senior year will be one of my favorite memories. My expectations for high school amounts to worrying about deadlines for my high school projects, everyone asking about where I will be attending college, and trying to figure out what I am going to do with the rest of my life.

High school, four of the most interesting years of life. It is a time to find yourself and figure out who you are and what you want your place in this world to be. During this process comes friendships that build because of alike interests and beliefs. From freshman year at the bottom of the totem pole, all the way to senior year, being the top dog of your school. It is such a great feeling knowing that those three years of hard work build up to essentially a grand finale. Many big changes happen as you grow older in high school. From summer camps, to starts of a new year. From homecoming week, to the end of sport seasons. From in school privileges to coming to and leaving from school early, and finally Graduation. This grand finale year has some similarities and some differences and as you read on you will see what I mean.

My senior year is coming to an end, high school is pretty much over. With the finish line quickly approaching, I reflect on all the things I’ve done in these past four years and, more importantly, all the things I did not do in the past four years that I probably should have. In retrospect, I never did feel like high school was going to be where the best time of my life would be remembered, but now that it’s pretty much over I think maybe I should have treated it like it was. I would love to be able to say there is nothing I didn’t do that I wanted to and that I didn’t have any regrets, but there is a fair share of both. When I think too much about the end, I get sentimental about the experiences, friends, laughs, awkward moments, and more.

I am excited to finally start my senior year. From what my parents, friends and family have told me, senior year is supposed to be a great year. However, I believe it will be like any other year; it will not be the year I remember the most out of high school. Most of my family has been out of highschool for a significant amount of years, therefore, they do not realize how much the pressure on students has increased since then. Students now are expected to take the SATS and the ACTS in order to get into a good college. In the society we live in now, if one was to go to a community college he is thought less of because he did not go to a college that is known. However, I think community college is a great option for everyone. It is ridiculous

As I am entering my senior year everyone has told me to make sure and slow down because it will be over before I know it. This year I want to learn how to build a strong support group for my emotional well being and grow closer with new people. I am striving to try and make the most of my senior year, so God will prepare me for the upcoming years.

With senior year comes many of the last. The last first day, last football game, last prom, last chicken patty, and last pick’em up and put’em down, but with the lasts comes many of the first. The first question they are faced with. “So…what’s next?” With the ever changing world, they are faced with the possibilities, options, and opportunities are everywhere awaiting them. They can become anything they want. What will they choose and how will they choose?

As a high school senior we look into what we want to do in our future. A big part of that is college. How do students know what college has the best opportunities? How do future students narrow down their options? A few things to look at when choosing a college includes the major of your interest, the campus, dorms, and class size.

Determination. The act of deciding definitely and firmly. I’ve strived to live by this word for the past 3 years of my life. As a student, I’ve always wanted to do great in my classes, get straight A’s, and miss as few days as possible, all because of my dad. In 8th grade, at my older sister’s award night, I told him, I would receive better grades than my older sister- (she received great grades but I’m highly competitive). And so the past three years have been full of studying, planning, and striving for A’s. Reaching senior year was something I’ve been waiting for my entire high school career for, because I knew afterward was college, which is the next step.

Senior year is often occupied with various class exclusive activities—prom, class field trips, football games—all events that screamed school spirit. My own school spirit was barely a whisper as I began my junior year at Lee Davis High School, and this was due to my family moving following my sophomore year at Varina High school. All of the people that I knew from middle school attended Varina, and I enjoyed being there despite the terribly cold winters spent outside, running

Senior year: you never see it coming. Before you start high school, you are told that the next four years of your life will be the best times. You are also told that those same 4 years will go by faster than you expect. Going into highschool I never expected it to go by fast. I thought these amazing four years of my life were going to drag on forever. Now I realize that is far from true. I am now a second semester senior and the time clock is almost to zero. Joining orchesis was one of the best things I could have ever done in high school. Being involved in something makes senior year that much harder. Everything you do is your last. You know you're a senior when it is time for you to make the senior chant for show.

While senior year seems to be what every high schooler is daydreaming about, walking into high school on the first day of freshman year is nerve racking. It is almost impractical not to feel overwhelmed. It seemed unimaginable that, throughout the next four years, every day will be spent eating lunch, and walking the halls with the people I was surrounded by. Just like winning an Oscar, becoming a senior in high school tends to be just as celebrated. Although they bear some similarities, the differences between the expectations and realities of senior year are clear.