“Single-source articles are due today guys; let’s get those to the editors by the end of class,” said our journalism teacher Mr. Neal Morgan. These are the words that once again triggered our “panic mode,” as we haven’t written a word of our new article yet—all thanks to Senioritis, a notorious syndrome where high school seniors’ motivation in achieving high academic performance decreases.
As the famous American speaker Earl Nightingale once proclaimed, “People with goals succeed because they know where they’re going.”
Unfortunately, for many high school seniors in America, their “goal” ceased to exist during their last semester. Throughout their high school years, students strive to maintain a high-level academic record that would make them stand out among the millions of college applicants each year. But once this energy-draining and time-consuming process of college admissions is over, and students click on that commit button, they seem to lose that sense of direction.
We’ve seen it everywhere, from empty classroom seats to gaps in the school parking lot. Especially after May 1, the National College Decision Day, the drive to complete schoolwork doesn’t have the same sense of urgency as it did when we were juniors trying to get high GPAs.
Teachers always seem to complain about this widespread lack of effort, but as seniors ourselves, the argument against us seems a bit close-minded. After all the long nights spent at our desks, hunched over to get that A in those AP classes, or fall application deadlines closely impending with almost no free time, we feel like us seniors deserve some recognition. Now that the application process is much more intricate and holistic, the threshold of “the perfect student” has reached places unimaginable. From conducting external research to babysitting for their Congressional representatives and doing splashes of nonprofit work during their winter breaks, many ambitious high schoolers have nearly no time as well as feel incredibly pressured.
Now, you may argue that a dramatic decline in high school grades and GPA can lead to revocation of college acceptance letters, but the truth is, in a desperate attempt to protect their yield rate, even the most prestigious universities in the country would rarely rescind any decision. In fact, only around 0.8 percent of Harvard’s Class of 2021 got their acceptance rescinded, all of which were due to sexual assault cases, not academics.
Of course, this is not to say that senioritis doesn’t have any negative consequences. Procrastination over school work can lead to severe sleep deprivation, which causes the lack of energy to pay attention during the day, thus resulting in more overdue work. This “negative feedback loop” not only damages students’ health, but can also lead to low confidence—a leading cause in anxiety or depression among teenagers in the U.S.
After pouring all our energies into applying to all of our early decisions and early actions and regular decisions and whatnot, we feel it’s respectable to give some leeway to seniors.
At this point, even sitting down at a desk is hard. I open my computer to many missing and late assignments, but the urgency is completely gone. I see peers run off home after their first few periods, and I honestly wish I could do the same.
Senioritis really does hit hard for high school seniors across the nation, and the cliched solutions of “setting new goals for yourself” or “take a break and regain your spirits” just won’t do. While us seniors should try and find ways to reestablish our motivations, we genuinely hope that institutions and the government could institute changes in high school curriculums and schedules to address this problem in the future.
Photo courtesy of Davis High News
