You are nearing the end of spring semester senior year, you can’t get out of bed, you are procrastinaing on that paper and you haven’t touched a book.
Sound familiar? Watch out. You’ve got senioritis. Its symptoms include laziness, procrastination, apathy towards schoolwork and a general malaise.
Seniors agree that senioritis affects your motivation to do anything, except maybe party, being so close to graduation and trying to have fun before entering the real world.
While senioritis has long been thought to be the imaginary syndrome attributed to students nearing the end of high school and college, there actually is some biological basis to it, according to some health workers.
Shifts in emotions, as one prepares to take a significant change, set in, said Jeanne DiMuzio, director of Wellness and Prevention.
Changes that seniors face include leaving deep friendships, having an unknown future, departing the security of a safety net, contemplating the financial obligations ahead, and fears that accompany launching yourself.
Warning signs of senioritis include self-absorption, when students begin to focus on the future, which may manifest itself in a study less and party more mode,as the prepare to leave the college environment said DiMuzio.
“I just don’t feel like doing my work, going to class or anything,” said Andrew Wadden ’05. “I just feel like next year is going to be so different and I want to hang out as with my friends as much as possible.”
Other warning signs are high stress, common at a time when mny students are trying to complete college while facing with the demands of job-hunting, interviewing and facing the reality of the end of schooling or the rigors of applying to graduate school, according to DiMuzio.
“This time of the year is extremely stressful as seniors are trying to finish up their college careers, find a job and live out your last few months to the fullest of your capabilities,” said Paul Duffy ’05, FUSA president.
Rutherford firmly believed in the validity of senioritis.
“But really knowing that the end is near and wanting to make the most of it by enjoying your last moments before entering the real world make senioritis both real and an excuse,” she said.
DiMuzio posed six solutions to senioritis:
*Stay with organizations you have been involved with
*Understand that your relationship with the university is just beginning-students for four years-alumni for life
*Know that employers may have a condition of hire based on your final grades or research
*Seize the moment-instead of lamenting with friends-embrace all social activities on campus and soak it in
*Bring closure by reminiscing with your favorite faculty;
*And finally, if needed take a moment to examine your fears with a counselor.
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