Sadness going into senior year

Student Lounge College Life
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<p>For most of college, I've preferred being at school to being at my parents house. I'd miss my family and my childhood home but not enough to really crave being back there. I always felt like my visits home were long enough and never felt like I didn't want to go back to school afterward.</p>

<p>This past semester, though, that changed. I went home in April for a dentist appointment. I was only supposed to spend one night at home--I had finals coming up--but I ended up not leaving until Sunday (the appointment was on Thursday). The idea of leaving on Friday or Saturday sent me into a crying jag more than once and even once I had returned to school, I didn't get over that feeling as quickly as I would've expected.</p>

<p>This summer, I was offered a job at the dining hall I work in during the school year. I wouldn't have been able to find a job at home. I spent the first two months at home, which was pretty boring. Even though I normally love my college town and really need a job, I was extremely reluctant to move back last week and I have spent a great deal of time since wishing I was back at home rather than here.</p>

<p>At this time last year, campus was preferable to being at home. Now it's not--all I want is to crawl into my childhood bed. I don't really understand what's wrong with me.</p>

<p>The worst part is that I want to go to grad school straight after college and am looking almost exclusively at programs hours away from my family. I'm not sure how that's going to happen, though. Despite having always loved school and being in love with my university and the program I'm in, the idea of dropping out has been burning in my head for the last few months. I'm not going to, of course--I'm extremely close to graduating and if I really wanted to leave school, I'd finish up the one gen ed requirement I'm missing this fall and just graduate--but it's alarming that I would even consider it. I mean, up until recently, I was practically begging my parents to let me stay the full four years rather than graduating in three or three and a half.</p>

<p>Has anyone else felt this way?</p>

<p>In fairness, I do suffer from anxiety and depression. My mom thinks I'm just so stressed about the idea of not knowing what's going to happen after graduation that it's making me feel what I normally feel more intensely, and I'm not saying she's wrong--I am extremely stressed out and the thing is, being at home has always made me feel like I don't need to deal with school or anything that has to do with school--in this case, the idea of grad school or finding work after graduation. I guess I just need someone to say they feel this way too because it's really kind of scaring me.</p>

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<p>I have a daughter who is also starting her fourth year. I think it is natural at this time to start growing a bit tired of where you are in school, and the idea of getting a job or applying for grad schools is looming. </p>

<p>Last week, I got a call from DD, who was a bit stressed about the whole job search process. She really wants to work for a year or two before grad school. Anyway, I think this is just a transition time. </p>

<p>Perhaps you could look at graduating in the fall and really concentrating on the grad school process in the spring. The time off might be very therapeutic if you can afford to do it that way.</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

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<p>Your mom may be right - sometimes, the anxiety of the uncertain world after college creates depressive symptoms in college seniors. I had a few student advisees who were suffering this in their senior year. It’s rough.</p>

<p>Seriously consider taking some time in between college and graduate school. Not just because of this, but also because IMO it’s generally a good idea and helps you develop your goals and ideals more concretely.</p>

<p>It would be lovely to compartmentalize yourself like that, but you can’t really focus on the grad school process in the spring because most deadlines are in the late fall or very early spring, so the majority of the work needs to be done during the fall semester.</p>