Despite the COVID-19 pandemic posing several challenges and changes to your high school experience, you made it to senior year. Before you graduate, make sure you’ve gotten the most out of your high school experience, your hometown, and your time with the people you care about. Time is precious, so it’s important to make the most of it. Here are six tips to optimize your remaining time in high school. 

1. Figure out your long-term plans.

This is a must-do for every senior. Is college the next step? How about joining the workforce? Whatever you decide, make sure you have a concrete plan nailed down well before graduation rolls around.

2. Get involved.

Your senior year is your last chance to take advantage of any activities offered at your school that you’ve always wanted to try, but haven’t gotten around to. This is the time to explore new things and put yourself out there. Go to school dances, try new clubs, cheer on our colonels at games, and dress up for spirit week!

3. Don’t let your grades slip.

Your senior year grades do matter. Staying motivated can be difficult in the spring semester of your senior year, but there are a lot of consequences to letting your grades slip. Colleges require your final transcript as confirmation that you graduated from high school, which is usually an admissions requirement. They want to see that you’ve maintained (or improved) your grades during your senior year of high school. Evidence that you’ve continued to work hard in your classes tells colleges that you’re ready to work hard at their university. Poor performance senior year could even lead to a college reversing their decision and revoking your admission.

Former Bourbon County student and current University of Kentucky graduate student Dylan Montgomery reflected on his own high school experience and offered advice for seniors. “Find a schedule or pattern that works best for you. A lot of schoolwork can be completed in school, so if you do that you’ll have more time to have a social life and do extracurriculars without the stress of unfinished school work,” he said.

4. Enjoy the time with your true friends.

Your friends in high school are the ones who make your final year the best it can be. Before everyone goes their separate ways for college, to join the workforce, or wherever else life takes you, make time to capture those unforgettable memories with your friends.

“If I could go back and change one thing about my high school experience, I would have tried to do more things outside of my comfort zone and hang out with my friends more. Nowadays you don’t see your friends as much because after high school everyone starts their own path in life,” Montgomery said.

5. Take care of yourself.

Prioritize your mental health. Intentionally practice self-care and determine when it’s time to take a break. Take care of yourself now so that you’ll be able to fully experience and appreciate everything that life has in store for you in the years ahead.

6. Stay in the present.

In your senior year, it’s easy to spend a lot of time daydreaming about your future college and career plans, but you don’t want to miss out on all the great memories you’re living right now. Your senior year goes by fast, so make an effort to enjoy it.

“It’s your last year of high school, so do something you enjoy and don’t care what others think. Have fun!” Montgomery said. 

Your senior year will likely be your most memorable year of high school. You have a final year to spend with friends you’ve known since elementary school, a year to prepare for college, and a year to enjoy this closing chapter of your life. Make the most of it!