Is Senioritis Real?

You may have noticed that there are fewer seniors in the building this semester and that the ones that remain are less inclined to do school work. After college applications are turned in, and GPAs are established for the year, seniors often lose motivation to stay in school. 

“Senioritis” is a real phenomenon that students in high school and college face in their second, and sometimes even first,  semester of senior year. It brings a loss of motivation, a drop in grades, and a handful of bad decisions. In fact, there are many cases of seniors not graduating due to decisions made in their second semester. They may stop attending classes as often, forgo turning in assignments, and might even start working at a job more often, taking up a lot more of their time usually spent on school work. 

The reason for this loss of motivation is that it seems like there really isn’t much reason to continue trying your hardest. After being accepted to college and knowing that you have a set path after high school, it can feel like there’s no reason to continue doing your best in school.

We talked to Riley English-teacher Bridgett Kent for some insight into senioritis.

We asked: What are the common symptoms of senioritis?

“Disengagement with class activity lowered attendance rates, and lack of motivation are the most obvious and observable signs of senioritis for me,” Kent told us.

We asked: Are students in AP classes also affected?

Mrs. Kent responded: “There is some effect in AP—the expectations are naturally higher and so students really have to put their noses to the grindstone and build back their stamina.  Most AP students are intrinsically motivated and therefore are willing to work hard at whatever tasks they are offered.”  

Personally, as a senior, I have also been affected. In fact, even writing this article took an unusually large amount of effort. I’ve also noticed a dip in my grades, and an overall loss in motivation which began soon after submitting my first college applications.

My personal opinion is that senioritis is justified. Your last semester of high school should be more focused on social life and enjoying life before fully transforming into an adult- and this all can be done without making too many bad decisions.