Senioritis and you: A senioritis management guide

With most of senior year over, is there anything to worry about?

Staff Writer

So, you’ve been diagnosed with senioritis. Don’t let up yet—the path to graduation is still long and grueling, and you aren’t alone. Millions of seniors are diagnosed with senioritis each year, and while there’s no known cure, treatment is available. After going through years of essays, tests, and projects, senioritis is the body’s natural way of letting itself know that it’s worked hard and that it’s time to rest. With graduation just over the horizon, managing this condition is more urgent than ever. Don’t let senioritis rob you of the final months of your high school experience—or your graduation day.

Senioritis comes in stages—at first, it’s easy to dismiss. After college applications are submitted, students start to sense the slightest feeling of freedom. Assignments are completed on time, and there’s a persistent belief that everything is under control. However, the phrase “I’ll do it later” becomes commonly used, and due dates always seem just around the corner. Deals are made with the clock: “thirty more minutes of reels, then start on the essay.” According to Dr. Dewit Laytr, an expert in doing things later, “This is the stage where seniors are most vulnerable. They often believe they can still manage, but in reality, senioritis causes the body to produce massive levels of delusion, forming the appearance of a studious mindset.”

After finals are finished and the first semester ends, the next stage of senioritis presents itself in the form of lazily-done assignments and lowered grades. At this point, the most frequent grade that seniors start to see is a “C,” and turning in assignments after the due date becomes a familiar occurrence.

Finally, as college results are released, the final stage of senioritis comes with a complete shutdown of the academic mindset. Assignments are left neglected and untouched, and grades are often hovering at or below “C” level. At this stage, motivation feels like a distant memory, and even the thought of doing work seems unbearable. Aineeda Break, a former senioritis patient, was a high school senior that once prided themselves on being a straight “A” student. “It was just a small break at first,” Break recalled. “I told myself that I would take it easy for a few days, and before I knew it, I was calculating how much of a hit my grades would take if I didn’t do that lab report. By the time I decided to lock in, I was swimming in missed assignments and was trying to convince myself that one paragraph was good enough for an essay.”

Without treatment in the later stages, Senioritis can be terminal to grades, often resulting in rescindment of college acceptances. Due to the rigid self-discipline needed to combat senioritis, oftentimes seniors will be prescribed a daily dose of “lock in”. This will kick the work response of said senior into overdrive, causing them to work with peak efficiency.

Senioritis, although seemingly absurd, is very real in its consequences. However, it’s not the end of the road. With a bit of self discipline, fewer distractions, and a bit of panic-induced focus, you can still make it across the finish line. It’s not just an academic test. It’s about proving that senioritis can’t stop you from walking across the stage.