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As an educational consultant and college planner, I meet with high school seniors frequently. Most are finished with their college applications and some are continuing to work on scholarships. A few tell me how "done" they are with high school and how hard it is to study. I can only look at them and say, "You've got to hang in there the next few months. You can't let senioritis affect your college admission." Senioritis, as it is often times referred to, can include any or all of the following: lack of motivation, turning assignments in late, not studying for tests, skipping classes, and discipline issues that seniors need to avoid. While this is something that frequently takes place later on in the spring, for some high school seniors it begins anytime during their final semester. I am already seeing the signs. Most students think that once they have been accepted to a college, they are in if they want to attend. What they often don't realize is that college acceptances are conditional which means that students are responsible for finishing their senior year with the same or better grades than they had when they applied. All schools ask for a final transcript from students to make sure they have graduated and that senioritis has not been a problem. Senioritis can have some pretty significant consequences. Since colleges are receiving more and more college applications each year, they are putting more applicants on wait-lists than they normally do. This is to make sure that in the end they will have the right number of students to fill their freshmen class. If they need to go to their wait-list, there are plenty of well qualified students from whom to choose. What does this mean to seniors who slack off? Schools will be looking at applicants very carefully when they put together their final freshman class. If students have let their grades drop and shown other signs of senioritis that may have affected their school record, they could have their college acceptance rescinded. According to the National Association for College Admission Counseling, of the students who had their college admission withdrawn, about 70% were for academic reasons. Some students may not pay attention to the find print on their college acceptance letters. It usually states that seniors are responsible for maintaining the grades they had when they applied and that college admission is contingent upon this being the case. Although students must accept an offer of admissions by May 1, until the final transcript has been received from your high school, nothing is set in stone. No one wants to be in the position of suddenly not having a college to attend in the fall. You don't have to be in this position either. Continue to work hard in your classes, pursue your activities with enthusiasm, and use good judgment for the rest of your senior year. Don't let senioritis get in your way of your college plans.
Susie Watts is an educational consultant and college planner in Denver, Colorado.
To receive a free college planning newsletter, go to http://www.collegedirection.org. Susie has been working with high school students for more than twenty years.
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