The 10 Stages Of Graduation

By Victoria Robertson on May 3, 2015

As a graduating senior, I think it’s safe to say there is a multitude of emotions running through our heads on a daily basis. We’re excited, yet scared, and we can’t help but think about our future at almost every possible moment.

But we’re not quite at that finish line yet, so here are the 10 stages that every student goes through when it comes time for graduation.

1. Denial

I can’t count the number of times I’ve told myself this can’t be real. I mean, we’re just days away from leaving the safety of college into the “real world.” That can’t be right, can it?

I guess denial is the first step in this long process, but the spring semester has gone by surprisingly fast and the number of e-mails we all receive regarding caps and gowns and graduation tickets is overwhelming, to say the least.

But it’s fine, because this isn’t real anyway.

2. Senioritis

Okay, so we graduate in a month. Do I really need to write this paper? Nah. I’ll let it sit on my desk for the next two weeks until the night before it’s due, then I’ll panic and wonder why I waited so long.

Senioritis is scary, especially since grades still matter. But do we really care at this point? Not really. That’s exactly why this is probably my least favorite stage. If I could just gather the motivation to read the textbook and study for at least one final, that’d be great.

3. Depression

Then, it hits you. You’re leaving college. No more late nights partying with your friends, no more walking anywhere you need to go. No more obnoxiously loud parties right outside your window to complain about to your roommates. Oh, and no more roommates.

Why did I decide to graduate again?

4. Excitement

But then again, I get to graduate!  We’ve all been looking forward to that part since we started our college careers. The big auditorium, your friends and family sitting in uncomfortable chairs waiting for you to walk across a stage for a fake diploma, that terrible, polyester robe and square hat that will never be in fashion that you get to don with pride.

I guess it won’t be so bad now, will it?

5. Anxiety

Wait, but then I need to get a job. Everyone says that’s the hardest part of graduating, right? What if I can’t find one and I have to live with my parents for the rest of my life? Oh god, they’re going to make another “Failure to Launch,” and it’ll be based on my life.

Maybe I can just stick around here for another few years …

6. Nostalgia

But remember that late night I got to stay up talking with my roommate? We bonded over food and “Cops.” If you ask me, that’s the start of a lifelong friendship right there.

And then there’s that movie we always watch together, and those dinners we cooked together and ate at the table instead of the couch (which, granted, only happened like two or three times). I wish I could go back and start it all over; growing up sucks.

7. Confusion

Wait a minute, what am I even going to do with this degree? I spent the past few years worrying about a test I didn’t want to take, or a paper I didn’t want to write, when I should have been worrying about what I want to do when I don’t have to take tests or write papers anymore.

Maybe I’ll just work at McDonald’s. I hear they have great benefits, right? Crap.

8. Boredom

Forget it. Maybe the job will find me. And hey, maybe that paper will write itself. I’m just so bored of doing the same thing all the time. No professor, I don’t want to read anything by Shakespeare anymore. Oh, and “Paradise Lost” is awful. I can’t wait to get into the real world and start doing things I actually care about doing.

Like … getting coffee for my boss. I’m moving up in the world people.

9. Exhaustion

I don’t even have the energy to look forward to getting out of here. I’ve been going to school now for too long. Honestly, at this point, I’m not even sure I have the energy to drag my over-worked body across the stage like a worm.

Have them ship my diploma to my house, I’ll be in bed for the next few weeks catching up on sleep I didn’t seem to think was important the last few years, for some ungodly reason.

10. Acceptance

You know what, I’m graduating. I worked hard for my degree, and I’m just days away from getting it. I’m proud of myself for everything I’ve done, and while I’m definitely going to miss this place, I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for me.

I did it!

The bottom line: graduation is right around the corner, and I think I speak for everyone when I say: Hallelujah!

Congratulations class of 2015! You earned it.

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