Advice for High School Seniors

senior year

I’ve been thinking a lot about my future lately. It’s hard to believe that I’m almost 21 and in my junior year of college. It seems like just yesterday I was a high school senior freaking out about college and what I was going to do with the rest of my life. Then it hit me. I graduated almost 3 years ago. For some people, that might not seem like a long time but for me, it’s kind of scary. High school just keeps getting farther and farther away and grad school keeps creeping closer and closer.

As I think back to my time in high school, I can’t help but realize how much I’ve grown since then and how much I’ve learned. I know that this is a college blog but I wanted to take a second and reach out to the high school seniors out there who still have one last year of high school and have so much ahead of them! I wanted to share my advice for high school seniors in hopes that you will live your last year to the fullest and be able to leave for college with no regrets.

Friendships will change.

Sure, you’ll still hang out with your friends after graduation but it will never really be the same again. Unless they all decide to go to the same college as you, you’re going to go through a unique change in your friendship. I’m still friends with most of the girls I hung out with in high school, but those hang outs are few and far between now because of everyone’s busy schedules! I still treasure those friendships more than anything because those are the friends I’ve had for years and those are the girls (and guys!) who have helped shape me into who I am today.

High school isn’t the end.

Many times throughout my senior year, I found myself scared and worried about what was going to happen after graduation. I kept thinking that what if my senior year was as good as it gets? What if I hate college? What if I make no friends? If you’re having those thoughts, you’re not alone! However, making friends was a lot easier than I anticipated and my life only got better after graduation. College is such a fun time where you can really find yourself and learn so many things. Keep your head up and know that after graduation there’s a whole world waiting for you!

It’s okay if you don’t know what you want to do with the rest of your life.

You’ll learn so much throughout your senior year and so many people come into college undecided about their major. You are absolutely not alone! It’s okay to take some time to really explore all that college has to offer (although it’s good to pick your major after your freshman year ends so you don’t have to stay extra semesters).

Enjoy your time spent at home.

After your senior year, you won’t be living at home much anymore (unless you decide to commute to college). I never thought about this before I came to college and it’s kind of scary. Unless I move back home after grad school, I will probably never be at my childhood home for more than a few months at a time. This is still weird to me but it’s always nice to spend a few nights in my own bed and hear the familiar sounds of my house when I fall asleep at night.

Speaking of home– your hometown might suck, but you’ll miss it.

I’m from the most boring town in all of America (basically) and I still miss it almost every day. Whenever I roll up in my hometown, I always get this fuzzy warm feeling that only comes with being surrounded by familiar scenery.

Work hard.

Even though it’s senior year, grades do matter. And the more you try, the less of a shock it’s going to be when you start your fall semester of college and you’re faced with tons of readings, homework, and studying.

Enjoy the little things about high school.

When I was in HS, I was a theatre/choir geek (in the best way, of course). I wish I would’ve spent more time enjoying what it felt like to have a “home” within the walls of my high school. Once you get to college, it might take you a while to find your “place” like you might’ve once had in high school. Since I came to Temple, I have barely spent any time singing. I miss walking into the choir room and being surrounded by a group of kids I knew and loved. My choral director was my favorite teacher. I still wish I could go back to high school just for one day back in the choir room. Those memories are what make high school special. Whether it’s being a part of a sports team, a choir, or a club… those little things are what you’re going to miss as a college student.

high school seniors

What advice would you give to a high school senior?

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29 Comments

  1. Abby
    September 14, 2015 / 10:01 am

    I love this! I teach high school and I’d love to tell my students these things, especially the one about your hometown. Our town is really small and they can’t wait to “get out”, but I wish I could help them understand how much they owe this town for shaping them, and how much the people here have their backs.

  2. Ashley Vickney
    September 14, 2015 / 11:39 am

    These are honestly all so true! My senior year was the best year of high school, but my relationships chagned SO much! It was a blast, and these are such great tips!
    xoxo

  3. September 14, 2015 / 11:40 am

    Hey Kayla, I love that you mentioned that “work hard” bit. It’s so easy to fall into a slump senior year of highschool (especially after you’ve been accepted to college) but it definitely is vital to keep working hard! My advice would be to embrace your personality and hang out with the friends that you feel comfortable with. Being “cool” in highschool actually doesn’t matter once you enter college, it’s a whole different world 🙂

    Jadore l Jadoregrace

  4. September 14, 2015 / 12:54 pm

    This is great advice for high school seniors. I totally became uninvolved my senior year (for a lot of reasons), I wish I wouldn’t have been so stressed about being an adult!

  5. Miss ALK
    September 14, 2015 / 12:58 pm

    Oh my gosh I almost teared up reading this! (I have been so emotional this week haha). I’m a senior in college this year and I was just thinking today about how LONG ago senior year of high school was now-when did I get old?!

    I love everything that you said here! High school honestly wasn’t a very good time for me and I didn’t feel like I began to flourish as a person until I moved out of state for college, but I am blessed to still have a couple close friends from high school.

    xoxo A
    http://www.southernbelleintraining.com

  6. Sara Holt
    September 14, 2015 / 1:06 pm

    Oh my gosh, yes, yes, and YES! When I look at my timehop app each day there were so many posts with friends from high school and when we all went to college, we kind of lost touch. And as for home, I said I’d never return to my hometown… until I went away to college and realized it wasn’t all that bad! haha

  7. Nicole Leigh
    September 14, 2015 / 1:07 pm

    It’s super important to remember that friendships will change because leaving high school & going into college is only the beginning of that – there’s plenty more where that came from…so just make sure the friends you love know that & do what you can to keep in touch! x Nicole | http://www.changeanddress.com

  8. Courtney Dunsmore
    September 14, 2015 / 1:36 pm

    These are such good tips! We all miss our home towns when we aren’t there, it’s the little things we don’t appreciate when we’re gone!

    Courtney//As We Stumble Along

  9. September 14, 2015 / 2:28 pm

    I just graduated from high school and these are all great and accurate tips!

  10. Ally
    September 14, 2015 / 2:53 pm

    Great advice! I used to think that ending high school was the end of the world. I took everything so hard! I moved to a different province and I missed my friends – they all went to schools in the same area. I really should have embraced all of my experiences as they came, rather than dreading the end of everything. This post made me so nostalgic!

    Alessandra | The PumpUp Blog

  11. September 14, 2015 / 4:53 pm

    Sadly, friendships change throughout high school. But new friends will come in your life and change it in a positive way!

    Mikayla | A Seersucker State of Mind.

  12. September 14, 2015 / 5:05 pm

    Some of these even apply after college, great life lessons!

  13. September 14, 2015 / 5:13 pm

    This is great advice!
    I wasn’t a huge fan of high school and absolutely loved college even though I was pretty much petrified to go in the first place…but it was even better than I could’ve ever imagined.

    xoxo, Jenny || Breakfast at Lillys

  14. September 14, 2015 / 6:38 pm

    Perfect for what I’m going through right now. Thank you. 🙂

  15. September 14, 2015 / 6:45 pm

    Great post! Kinda wish I had this post when I was a senior in high school seven years ago. #goshtimeflies

  16. September 14, 2015 / 7:42 pm

    This is such great advice! I second what Jenny said, I didn’t love high school but I loved college and found a lot of what you said to be true after leaving.

  17. September 14, 2015 / 9:42 pm

    This is great advice! I had a little different experience, and I would say that it’s okay to fall out of touch with friends. When I got to college, I quickly realized that a lot of my friends were only my friends because I saw them every day. I’ve stayed close with three friends from high school, and seeing two of them get married this summer was the sweetest thing!

    XX, SS || A Little Seersucker Sass

  18. Lauren Ashley
    September 14, 2015 / 10:42 pm

    And to think I was a high school senior 4 years ago.. I feel SO old! This is really great advice!

    Lauren

    The Fashionista’s Diary

  19. Ashley
    September 14, 2015 / 11:21 pm

    Don’t you wish you knew these things when you were in high school?! I always think…”oh, if I only knew then…”. This is great advice! Passing along to my high school senior sister!

    xo Ashley

  20. September 15, 2015 / 7:34 am

    Life goes on, we do not know that always as seniors in high school, I hated senior year but I would have enjoyed it more If I had focused on the fact that there was so much more afterwards

  21. September 15, 2015 / 9:51 am

    This article definitely reminded me of how old I am, haha! I wish I had this advice in high school, especially the whole friends changing thing. It’s not the end of the world, people just grow apart!

    xo, Alicia | Alicia Tenise

  22. Ally Gagliardo
    September 15, 2015 / 3:43 pm

    My sister is a high school Senior, definitely passing this along!

  23. Macarena Ferreira
    September 16, 2015 / 5:31 am

    This is such a cute post! Totally makes me miss high school. I agree that high school grades do matter and it’s definitely an important time where you should be learning!

    xo // http://www.thematerialgirl.co

  24. September 16, 2015 / 8:21 pm

    Changing friendships was definitely one of the hardest things for me to deal with…it happens, but you know what? It makes room for more fruitful things in the future!

  25. September 16, 2015 / 8:22 pm

    Changing friendships was always definitely something that I struggled with. But, in the end, it makes room for more fruitful relationships in the future.

    Coming Up Roses

  26. Jemma Dee
    June 14, 2016 / 3:09 pm

    All high school seniors should set up an email address using just their name. Email addresses using references to hobbies, nicknames, shenanigans, etc. are not appropriate for college or professional use. (speaking as a former college admissions rep)

    • June 15, 2016 / 11:15 am

      That is a GREAT tip! I didn’t even think about that much since I’ve been using a first name-last name email address since I was a freshman in HS but that’s a really great point and valuable information! Thanks for dropping by and leaving a comment, Jemma!

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