As winter resigns and spring is ushered in, colds and the flu take a back seat to another type of disease.  It is just as contagious and even more harmful than the common cold.  It’s like mono, amnesia and A.D.D. all rolled into one – senioritis.

With only six weeks left, seniors are finding it harder and harder every day to stay focused on the matters at hand. While school is getting more challenging as we step closer to finals, attention spans are shrinking at an alarming rate. Compounded with the increasingly beautiful weather outside it only makes it that much harder to stay seated in class all day long.

It is not just class that can suffer due to senioritis.  Involvement in clubs and activities has experienced a noticeable wane over the last few months.

While many students still complete their obligations to school and organizations to the fullest necessary extent, it is the overall mindset that has shifted. Seniors are finding it harder to feel motivated to stay involved because they know in a few weeks they will no longer be part of the ESU community.

I know my class is not the first to suffer from a lack of motivation during the home stretch of school. Senioritis is something we have been warned against since the start of high school. Teachers and parents both try to prepare students for the eventual feelings of restlessness that occur once the end is in sight.

So what might cause senioritis? I think it stems from the realization that college, the thing you spent the last four or five years stressing and obsessing over, is finally drawing to a close. The brain is filled with relief but also pangs of nervousness about what is to come.  Attentions shift from school to whatever challenges or adventures come next.

Most students I know entered into college directly after high school. That means we have been in school for 18 straight years, give or take a few. Many people do not know how to prepare for the dramatic shift from academic life to the “real world.”

The amount of anxiety we face post-college says something about the kind of education we are receiving. While we are being adequately educated on an academic level, I do not feel that enough time is spent preparing students for life after school.

ESU already provides numerous services to help usher seniors into the business world. Job fairs and resume-building workshops are abundantly found around campus. But they are under utilized for the most part, due to lack of strong advertising. Schools could work harder with seniors to emphasize the notion that life will be changing drastically for them in a few short months.

Students too should work to become more proactive in battling senioritis. Taking large steps to prepare for graduation and all that follows will help ease them into the transition, and make it less shocking once the big day comes.

At the same time students should stay dedicated to their work in school. We all know that the best way to make time fly is by staying busy. If we continue to stay deeply involved in our school and our activities it could help prevent some of the restless “hurry up and wait” feeling that seem to accumulate around the end of every school year.

Senioritis is a naturally occurring event. It only makes sense to start feeling excited that one chapter of life is ending and other is soon beginning.  But we can all do more to make this a tie of productivity and excitement, instead of stress and unprepared consequences.

By working more closely with the school and utilizing all the resources that are available, seniors can learn to enjoy the final months of their year without succumbing to the symptoms of seniorities.