Youth Talk: The Summer Before Senior Year

By Clarissa Tan, Year 13 Student at Dulwich College Shanghai

The months leading up to the summer holidays are often filled with enthusiasm, high school students looking forward to the long-awaited, wonderful, “much too short” summer holidays. Sitting in the sun without a care in the world and without the thought of daunting assignments due the next day or exams that are rapidly approaching, is simply bliss. 

However for high school students, this might be just too good to be true. Summer assignments, extended essays and CAS activities are our reward for our year long perseverance in tests, homework and exams. To add to that, we are faced with the problem of what to do to fill 42 precious days of summer in the most productive and impressive way to help our college applications. 

So we plan our summer holidays with the anxiety of not getting work done and anticipation of having an actual holiday. The planning begins with deciding between summer courses, internships, summer jobs and/or visiting colleges during the summer. 

This can all be really stressful especially if one is unsure about what plans to pursue in the future. Frantic, we start to worry about how this may reflect on our applications. 

Before we know or realise it, summer has passed right before our eyes and anxiety and panic sets in. Therefore, the last week of summer often consists of us rushing around and staying up late to get as much done as possible. 

Still, the first day of school arrives and despite the pressure of senior year dawning  on us, we’re excited to see our friends again.