Seniors scared straight

Senior year is exciting, but it can also be scary and stressful.
According to some CHS seniors who are headed off to college next year, they are worried about being away from home, not seeing their friends every day, having bad study habits and having a bad roommate.
Roommates are probably one of the scariest things when going to college. In a lot of schools, you will not learn anything about your roommate until move-in day. Fears related to roommates often deal with not getting along, not being clean and stealing.
One thing that you do not want to do when preparing for college is procrastinate. A lot of CHS seniors have admitted to procrastinating, but some have said that they were for the most part staying on track.
Scholarships on the other hand, have not been thought about. Some scholarships are simple. You sign up for an account and your name is entered into a random drawing. Some are not so easy. Scholarships that are worth more money require letters of recommendations, an online profile and personal essays.
“I’m procrastinating 100 percent! I just hate writing the essays for colleges and scholarships,” said senior Laura Batts.
The size of some colleges can be intimidating, especially if you are coming from a small school like Cascade. Some students will be going from Cascade, which has about 500 students, to colleges that have about 50,000 students. That can be really overwhelming. The most common fear about the size of schools is making friends.
“I’m not worried about school size, but I am worried about finding where I’m supposed to be and making friends in classes,” said senior Jo Cameron.
The average cost of going to college is about $20,000 per year. That can really add up if you change majors, or if you decide to go an extra year. According to the Institute for College Access and Success, the average college graduate gains about $28,950 in debt while attending college. Some things students can do to make the cost of college easily include apply for scholarships, financial aid and possibly have help from their parents.
“I will try to apply for as many scholarships as possible so I can help out my parents and myself in the future,” said senior Noah Fisher.
“I am very worried about scholarships since I am going to a school that is very pricey,” said senior McKey Viers.
To all the underclassmen, the senior class would like to offer you a bit of advice.
-START EARLY! You don’t want to be rushing to get everything done. It makes it 10 times more stressful! Get your stuff done. It will really help in the long run.
-Take as many college visits as possible before your senior year. Actually going and seeing a college many completely change your mind about it.
-Take your SAT and ACT your junior year, and take them more than once to improve your score. Getting a good score can really help when applying for colleges and scholarships.
-Look into different careers. You might find something that you are interested in, that you didn’t consider before.
“Getting a diploma is important and difficult. There are no short cuts. School is your job right now. Do it well and you will reap the benefits,” said Cascade guidance counselor Marcia Bright.
Even if you are not a senior, it is never to early to start preparing. Study hard, stay focused and finish strong Cadets!