Starting mid-September, homework, sports, activities and the college application process all begin to pile up and start turning most of the senior class into a bunch of sleep-deprived, yellow-teethed-coffee-drinking, stressed out zombies.
For many seniors, finding time to fill out college applications or write college essays can be difficult. Although not everyone signs up for a busy senior year, those who do are typically doing so to keep colleges interested and to enhance their resumes.
In order to give hard-working students more time to work on the college application process but still keep their resumes up, we believe the senior class should be allotted a few days off during the first semester to work on their college application.
This break wouldn’t have to be frowned upon like a “senior skip day”; instead, it could be incredibly productive. This proposed “senior work day” could be even held at the high school – where seniors have full access to the entire counseling staff and technologies that would help them develop their best quality applications.
Seniors could come to school in their coziest pajamas, bring their favorite snack and just try and feel at home as they work on applying early decision or try to meet early deadlines for acceptance or for scholarships to their schools of choice.
Setting aside time to apply early would most certainly relieve stress for a majority of seniors. It would give them time to navigate through the confusing websites of college applications and get a feel for what information they need in order to apply. It would give them a chance to sort out their letters of recommendations and outline their resumes with a counselor’s guidance. It would also give Webster students an advantage to apply early if they are looking for good housing options, which go on a first-come, first-serve basis.
However, some seniors do not plan to attend a four-year university right out of high school, and they might have their eyes on the military, a trade school or even a gap year. A work day would be helpful for these groups of students, too, as it would give them time to look into applications, talk to recruiters and do research on their topics of interest.
We understand that applying to college is a difficult process — no matter what high school you attend, or what college you plan on applying to. The counseling department dedicates lots of time to the senior class and ultimately does a terrific job of helping students find a college where they will be happy.
We just think it would incredibly beneficial to almost the entire senior class if it were given time to specifically work on its post-high school plans.
