Student Blog: So You Want To Talk About Senioritis

Let's play the alphabet game! Ya know, the one you always play on road trips in the car with your annoying little brother. The only difference? This is The Alphabet Game: College Edition. A is for 'anxiety,' B is for 'burnout,' C is for 'career planning,' D is for 'debt,' and so on and so forth. For you, these words might be far off places or far out of reach. To the class of 2021, these things are already disappearing into the rearview mirror. The destination on the next road sign is hard to make out at first, then the exit just jumps out at you out of nowhere: "SENIORITIS, NEXT 30 EXITS."

If you're not familiar with the term, senioritis is the feeling students get their final year in college, high school, or even middle school (we've all been there, 8th grade is hard). As we understand it, there are two main kinds of senioritis: nostalgia and anxiety. Let us take a moment to examine each strain in an attempt to self-diagnose.

Symptoms of nostalgic senioritis can include not wanting to leave the place you've called home for the last four years, wandering the quad reliving memories, and finding the time to squeeze in every last activity in your college town before graduation. Among my roommates, this is the prevailing theme...and I get it. You finally got the chance to be a top-dog mentor on campus. Yes!! Your college friends become more like family faster than people you've known your whole life. It's bittersweet to risk leaving those friendships and memories behind with a better future in mind.

This is where senioritis nostalgia symptoms can become more severe, and we re-diagnose as anxious senioritis. These symptoms (understandably) include a fear of the future, a desire to move back in with your parents, or a prevailing sense of dread at the next chapter of your life. As a student in the performing arts, this is the strain that is strongest among my classmates. With such an uncertain future for regional, Broadway, and international performing arts in the 21-22 season, we have no freaking idea if and when we're going to get our first job. I've already submitted close to 30 job applications and I've got tabs open for more. Anxious seniors can risk losing focus of those final memories in an effort to secure their futures.

So, where do I fall on the spectrum? Well, I'm not a particularly sentimental person, but I'm too well organized to be that afraid of the future.

Upon further scientific examination, both varieties of senioritis boil down to 'I don't want to leeeeeave.' However, two sets of negative symptoms make a positive, right? At least, that's what I think is happening to me. The combination of burnout and sappiness is making me excited to launch into my future. I'm thankful for the experiences I've had in undergrad, but I'm SO looking forward to making new connections and memories in my career as a professional arts administrator and advocate.

(A quick word on burnout? It's gonna happen. If you're a passionate artist with a desire to make new friends and be an advocate in this ever-changing world we live in and still manage to do your laundry...you're gonna blow a fuse. It happens to everybody and it's nothing to be ashamed of. Use your desire to be involved in campus life to make connections to mental health, social justice, or career counseling resources. These will mitigate the symptoms of burnout and give you someone to go to when you're feeling run down.)

So, the next time your brother wants to play the alphabet game, instead of dreading it, try rolling with the punches. If you're driving and you miss the first exit, know that there are probably twenty-nine more ahead of you. A is for 'arts advocate,' B is for 'bachelor's degree,' C is for 'congratulations,' D is for 'doing the damn thing...'

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