Dear soon-to-be-graduate,
It’s finally here. After interminable semesters, you are about 16 weeks away from graduation. Now what? How do you leave the campus and the community that you've spent so long building?
I faced those questions in 2023 as I prepared to graduate from IU with my bachelor’s degree. Now, I’m wrapping up a master’s program and am once again reflecting on transitions. Dealing with change is going to look different from person to person — some people are loathe to leave while others can’t wait until campus fades in their rearview mirror — but I want to offer some suggestions based on how you might be feeling. Mentally preparing yourself now can ease the transition in May.
For the tired: Finish smart
Senioritis is real; it can feel like you’ve hit a wall, causing you to lose all motivation to keep up with your schoolwork. To get through it, I recommend making sure you get enough sleep and fresh air, and to do triage on your work.
In the medical community, triage is the prioritization of the sickest patients. The most urgent cases get a fast track to the emergency department or the operating room. In college, that might look like dropping an elective to focus on the classes you still need for graduation or spending less time making sure a smaller assignment is just right so you can focus on revising an essay.
For the nostalgic: Make a map of your version of Bloomington
Though we’re all walking the same streets, I’d argue that in a sense we all live in different versions of Bloomington; no one else has had the exact same experiences here as you. This is a bittersweet thing, so if you’re feeling like reminiscing, draw a map of the Bloomington and the IU that you know. It could be a literal map or a mental one, but mark the spots where you’vehad big or small moments worth remembering.
For example, my map of Bloomington includes Woodburn Hall, where my friends and I once played “Sardines,” which is like reversed hide-and-seek. There’s the arboretum where my phonology class sometimes met outside back during the pandemic. It includes the coffee shop where my friend worked, where I’d study and chat with her during her break.
For those with a bit of FOMO: Create a bucket list
At this point, you’ve probably spent a few years on campus. If you’re anything like me, there are still a few things you want to do at and around IU before you graduate — now’s the time! If you’ve done the activities that typically show up on college bucket lists (go to a basketball game or a theater production, etc.), start thinking outside that box. This is a great way to make some more memories.
In case you need some ideas, here are a few: Go find the words written on the underside of Herman B Wells’ hat (the statue by the Rose Well House, near the Indiana Memorial Union). Go through the Square Donuts drive-through between midnight and 4 a.m. for its late-night hours. Try log rolling or jumping off the high dive at the Student Recreational Sports Center.
For the nervous: Ask positive “what if?” questions
I’ve long had a tendency to dwell on “but what if…?” questions. What if I don’t have what it takes to do a Ph.D. after this? What if I can’t find a job? One of the things that keeps me from going too far down these rabbit holes is to ask myself a different type of “what if?”. What if I thrive in a Ph.D. program? What if I find a job that I love and I get to work in a field that I’m fascinated by? If you’re going to ask scary “what if?” queries, then be fair to yourself and ask some hopeful ones as well.
Finally, I want to share something I held onto when I was moving back to Bloomington for a master’s degree, which I think is applicable any time you’re entering a new phase of life: things will be different, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be worse.
Overall, I had a great undergrad experience, but lots of things changed during the time I was away from campus. People moved, friend groups shifted. I wasn’t sure how I was going to fit into the community anymore. Now, I’m closer than ever with my core friend group and have gotten to know lots of new people. There are things I really miss about undergrad and things that I prefer in grad school. Life is very different than it was three years ago, but it’s still good.
Now go, get started on that homework. We still have 16 weeks left.
