Senioritis: The Silent Killer of Grades and Motivation

Do you find yourself suffering from a severe lack of motivation, perpetual narcolepsy, or the desire to roam around the halls instead of sitting in class? Have baggy sweatshirts and caffeine become your best friends? If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, then you’re probably suffering from a case of senioritis. 

Many of my peers and I can vividly remember pledging that senioritis will never affect us. We were definitely wrong about that. It’s essentially inevitable. According to most people, the only known cure is a phenomenon known as “graduation,” but it doesn’t have to be this way. 

Navigating senior year is hard, and there’s no denying that. It’s really difficult having to balance a busy schedule filled with high level courses, sports, clubs, and community service opportunities in addition to the complex college application process. While it’s easy to fall victim to senioritis, make every effort not to because all of your hard work can potentially go to waste. There is something called a mid-year grade report after all, so don’t let the urge to slack off overpower you!

At this point in the year, senioritis is definitely affecting many students, including Gabbie Girard. She “never thought [she’d] catch it,” but mentions that “the stress of college applications is really getting to [her].” Gabbie’s piece of advice to her fellow students is to simply “keep our heads in the game a little longer while still enjoying our time here.” She has been making a solid effort to stay involved in extracurricular activities and tries to make as much time as possible to maintain healthy friendships. Gabbie emphasizes that grades are undoubtedly important, but advises that “if you have to choose between studying an extra couple of hours for a physics test or eating lunch and catching up with a friend, not getting a perfect score won’t kill you.” Overall, the most important takeaway is that having some fun is important because senior year is one of the most exciting times in your life! Responsibility is key, so make sure you know your limits and stick to them. 

For some seniors like Stephanie Ross, their motivation to keep working hard is to hopefully receive those prized college acceptance letters. As with everything in life, Stephanie believes seniors should work towards finding a proper balance between work, play, and relaxation. In fact, she’s so committed to this mindset that she’s become a pro at multitasking. Stephanie proudly mentions that she has “started to do [her] homework while watching TV so [she] can satisfy both [her] laziness and [her] need to not procrastinate” during this busy time. She finds it helpful to keep her study skills sharp by making her notes more aesthetically pleasing; some of her favorite ways of doing so include re-writing them in script and various colors on either her iPad or chalkboard. Ultimately, Stephanie feels “ lucky to have not been completely hit with senioritis” although sometimes the ideas of “napping and cutting class” sometimes seem more inviting than being studious.

Some people aren’t as lucky though. Eddie Backer has been stricken with senioritis; his symptoms include participating in class less and receiving lower-than-usual test grades. He hasn’t been able to fully combat senioritis but has “embraced the best parts and worked towards improving the more detrimental parts of it.” In his opinion, senioritis “changes how you act and study,” even in the slightest of ways, so “the best thing you can do is work at managing the bad habits you pick up little by little.” 

Senior year is like the end of a really good TV show. We all just want it to end on a high note. We’re just trying to have a good end to the beginning of our lives, really, and it’s important to not let senioritis get in the way of that.