Written by NCU senior entrepreneurship major, Victoria Cortese, Class of 2020.
Hey Seniors,
It’s over. Well, not quite, but it feels like it is. We still have our virtual learning to complete, but due to the spread of COVID-19, our in-person college classes are finished. If you’re like me, you thought you had more time to process the end. Your whole life has been planned up until this point, so for the first time, you have no expected next step. Will you move back home? Or move out? What type of job will you apply for? Will you go to grad school? Suddenly, with campuses closing and graduations postponing, it feels like we are moving into the unknown without truly saying goodbye to what we called home for the past four years.
In the wake of all this chaos, and as we grapple with the emotions we’re left with, we still need to move forward. Because whether it feels like it or not, we’re still going to graduate. And we’re still going into the unknown. So, for me, right now that looks like finding closure. Here are some ways in which I’ve found—and am still finding—closure for my senior year. I encourage you to join me.
Reminisce on the past, reimagine where you are going
It has been four years (give or take) since you arrived on campus. Do you remember those first days, meeting more people than ever before in your life? Did your school have fun activities for you to participate in, leading you to believe college would be nothing but a big party? Do you remember your first roommate? How about your second-year one? Did you get involved with student organizations, play sports, or maybe both? Did junior year hit you like a ton of bricks? Did reality sink in and motivate you to take your internship seriously because you would need a full-time job soon? Then suddenly, it was senior year. Everything was nostalgic because everything was ending—you would have appreciated it just a little more if you only knew how soon it’d be over.
As a senior, I was, and I still am ready to graduate, I just did not think it was going to be like this. I am ready to graduate because I truly believe that my time at NCU has prepared me to be an excellence-driven, kingdom-building, gospel-living adult in the real world. But I still need closure on this season before moving on to the next. So, I’m taking my time to remember all the great and all the tough moments of the last few years. I am also beginning to reimagine my future. Maybe your “dream job” is different than what you thought when you were a freshman. Maybe you took a class you never thought you would like, and it awakened in you a passion for something unexpected. Take this time and reimagine your ideal life. Set new goals. Dream big and get excited because we’re so close to graduating college!
Be intentional about relationship
This may sound a bit harsh, but the current life of social distancing may bring to light who you’ve really become close with at school. For some of us, it might be the people we met freshmen year and have lived together since, or it may be a friend you made this past year. Either way, times are changing, so this is a perfect space to be intentional with your closest friends and celebrate all you’ve done and experienced together. Begin now and use technology to remain intentionally connected. In all honesty, some of your friends are going to be moving around the country or around the world after graduation, and this might serve as a launching pad for retaining intentional friendships.
Write thank you cards
We’re not in person, so we can’t shake our professors hand on as we turn in our last final, or hug our friends in celebration at graduation, but we can still thank all the people who have helped us make it this far. In a season with an abundance of time at home, use some of it to write thank you cards to friends, parents, staff, and faculty who have helped us get this far. Thank the financial aid counselor who helped you find that scholarship, or the professor who took extra time to mentor you. Thank that friend who supported you during the break-up, or the one who helped you study for your finals. Thank parents, thank security guards, thank housekeeping, thank anyone and everyone who has played a significant role in making your college experience something great.
One thing I want to keep in mind is that this global pandemic is an unexpected curveball for all of us. It’s out of the hands of our college administration, it’s out of our hands, and it’s likely everyone we know is doing their best to adapt. Although this is not the ending we imagined, it doesn’t have to be one without joy, celebration, and gratefulness.
Lastly, to all my fellow seniors, congratulations! *Tosses baseball cap in air*
