The semester is finally winding down. Projects, papers, and finals loom ahead and all the work of the past four months is coming together. Our professors will judge us by the fruits of our labor. And then these judgments will lead us toward the ultimate goal of college, graduation. The reasons that people go to college vary. Some return to polish up on skills that they use in their careers, some attend because of their parents’ wishes, and some just follow that natural progression in life, high school and then college. Either way, for all cases graduation is the finish line.

The moment that graduation becomes real can be both exhilarating and very scary. “When I filled out my petition for graduation is when it really hit me that I was almost done,” said recent graduate Bernadine Schultz. “It was a sense of relief and uncertainty about the future.”

The last semester before graduating can be a time of excitement but it also can be the worst semester of all. Although the finish line is in within sight, it can be torture writing those last papers, taking those last tests and completed the last requirements necessary. “My last semester has been hell. It is a struggle just to get everything done. I guess I just have that senior laziness thing,” said senior Stacia Young.

It would seem that getting up to go to class wouldn’t be such a big deal anymore after numerous semesters of having to do it. Fulfilling requirements, working an internship, passing the WPE, these are all accomplishments to be proud of and all are necessary evils of graduation.

The necessary tasks can seem so much more tedious when the end is near. Try writing an original paper when you know the bare minimum will get you through, or staying up to study for a test that you know you can pass without really studying. Even those who started out striving to get the best grades can sometimes come to a point where they don’t even care about the grade as long as they pass. Passing to graduate is maybe not the ideal, but can be appealing when you know you’re almost done. It’s not about not caring, it’s more of an all-out burnout.

For seniors who do care about school, making your mark is not the most important thing anymore. Getting as far as your last semester is a mark in itself. Basically this is a get out of jail free pass. It’s okay to feel burned-out, it’s alright to be lazy when you’re at the end. Don’t bother beating yourself up because coming this far means something. It means that you are on your way to your future and a little goofing off at the end is allowed. Just make sure you’ve gotten there, if by any means necessary.