Last First Day as a Rambler
How bittersweet, the time has come, where it will officially be my last first day of my undergraduate career. It seems as if just yesterday I was a Freshman entering with no clue how to handle college level classes, making my way to different buildings and commuting almost an hour and half everyday. Also not knowing what you’re truly passionate for is something so challenging during the first few years of Undergrad and is something I personally struggled with. Today, I stand confident during my senior year, and finishing strong.
Something I told myself this winter break, was to not let senioritis get the best of me. As hard as that is, I feel confident that I will hold strong till the end. I recommend you all to do the same, whether you are a senior or not. Make a plan for this semester and aim high.
Some stuff that I do to make sure that I am on track is put down all my important dates on the calendar for this semester. That includes quizzes, labs, exams, papers, etc. The first week, that is what I primarily focus on because I know if I push it any later, I most likely will get caught behind, or just won’t do it because I will be so busy. Doing this, REALLY put me in the zone and got me to do stuff on time, especially studying for exams on time and not cramming when I realize I have more than 1 exam in a week or day. Include all of your finals slots. Yes its in 15 weeks, but it will definitely help you half way through the semester when you definitely WON’T do it.
Another thing I do is calculate my cumulative GPA. I know. So unnecessary. But no, really. Do this under https://www.luc.edu/advising/gpa_calculator.shtml and it will help you so much! I used to never do this my first two years, but now I do this in the beginning of each semester. The reason I do this is because I set a goal cumulative and/or overall GPA I would like based on this semester and figure out what grade I need in the class. Obviously, you should aim for an A always, but if I ever feel like I am falling into a B category, I kind of freak myself out and tell myself I won’t get a certain GPA and it makes me work hard for the A. It also kind of helps to not beat yourself up over a grade. It may not work for everyone, but I think it definitely makes me realize how I need to work for the A and to not slack off during the middle of the semester.
Additionally, I have told myself to incorporate more social time. A lot of times, I struggled with social time, where I would have too much, or too little. I definitely want to focus on balancing the two so that it doesn’t become a stressful semester and I can enjoy the last bit of memories I have left here at Loyola.
Make the most out of every semester, whether you’re a Freshman or a Junior. Take the endless snapchats, create study groups, explore the city, force yourself to go the library, let yourself get a bag of chips and watch Netflix. Whatever it may be, just try to do some of the things I suggest, it definitely will help rather hurt you.