Senioritis: The Hard Truth Behind Senior Year

Royce In | January 30, 2023

Illustration courtesy: Hyelynn Kim

We’ve all seen the two favorite senior pastimes in action: sleeping in the common area or working hard in a library room. What we have not witnessed, however, is the behind the scenes—sleepless nights, mental breakdowns, and more. The excruciating pain that a senior suffers throughout these months is unfortunately a sign of normality. This is the truth of senior year, according to the senior house representatives.

For many seniors, even going to school can be difficult. For Jinhyeok Kim (12), high school "[started] off really rough," as the significant increase in work became detrimental to his mental health. The daunting volume of work to accomplish in the first five months of the year already has the class of 2023 suffering from a condition called senioritis.

Senioritis, which comes in many forms, is caused by stress due to a combination of factors, such as academics and college applications. It affects a widespread majority of seniors. Common symptoms of this condition have included falling asleep in class, not submitting homework, and a general lack of energy.

For Irish Shin (12), the effects of senioritis began to emerge near the end of her junior year. For her, watching seniors graduate and escape to college was the starting point of senioritis, generating a sense of anxiety and fear over the future. Looking into the future after junior year is a nerve-wracking time for many students. Meanwhile, as Emily Jung (12) says, even as juniors also face a tough year of exams and assignments, they can never really understand the senior experience until they live it first-hand. For Emily, "the saying 'work hard, play hard' doesn't exist for no reason." Juniors should learn to handle this as they move onto their final years of high school. The transition from junior to senior is no easy responsibility, but when managed responsibly, the results of senioritis are guaranteed to be less severe.

Luckily, for current and upcoming seniors, the house representatives have some advice—to start, have a goal. As Iris says, "if you have no goal, what is the purpose of putting yourself through IB?” Motivate yourself to put in effort and work towards a greater cause. Especially with the lack of energy that comes with being a senior, being motivated is a vital part that keeps students stable and focused. A student shouldn't waste their time without a goal in mind.

The second piece of advice is to be social. Don’t be afraid to have "lots of talks with your friends," as Jinhyeok recommends. A great method for getting through senioritis is to have friends that you can trust and rely on. Overall, a senior should “have a strong mentality and keep good friends around.”

Finally, prepare yourself for senior year. "You can't avoid senioritis. It’s something that’s going to happen,” warns Emily. Learning to cope with senioritis and similar anxieties beforehand is a valuable experience almost all seniors wish they had more of in previous years.

Seniors are going through tough times, despite the many misconceptions behind the final year of high school. “Everyone romanticizes senior year because it’s when everything ends and you’re hoping to escape to college,” Emily says, but the reality is different. For her and other class representatives Iris and Jinhyeok, being a student leader for SFHS is what they hope will make senior year better, distracting them from the stress of their final year at SFHS.

As they begin to wrap up their high school experience, be sure to congratulate your fellow seniors and wish them well in this final stretch before graduation!