4 Tips for Staying Calm During Decision Season
A lot can happen between the day you press “submit” on your Barnard application to the day you receive your long-awaited email from Admissions. You might start hearing back from other colleges. You might begin to experience the oh-so-notorious “senioritis.” You might come to the realization that in not so long, you will be moving away and starting your independent life as a college student. That’s huge!
For these reasons, tensions and anxieties can run high. And thus, this is a time in which self-care is essential. Therefore, I have developed four tips to take care of yourself during this exciting (but often stressful) time:
Spend time with the people you love. This is always a good piece of advice, but it is especially important as you await your college decisions. Many of your friends will go off to different schools, maybe in different parts of the country or the world. Once you go off to college, you will (probably) no longer get to come home to your family every night. Therefore, take the time to surround yourself with the people you love, who will be there to support you through your admissions decisions, and long after, even as you head off to college.
Know that you are enough. Don’t let a college define your worth. Take time to build some confidence, and know that you will end up in the place you’re supposed to be. I know this is easier said than done, but it is crucial that you go into college decisions season with self-love. In the meantime, work on building that confidence. Perhaps you can start journaling, or just take a little bit of time every day to celebrate how far you’ve come during your high school years. You’re so close to great things, so take this time to know that you made it and you are enough.
Be present. When you are a second-semester senior, it can be so easy to start imagining what your life will be like as a college student. Although those dreams are wonderful, this is also a very deep rabbit hole to fall into. Instead, work on being present in the aspects of your life right now. Spend time enjoying your high school classes and extracurricular activities. Play tourist in your hometown. Simply work on being present during this fleeting time in your life.
Have an open mind. Back when I was applying to college, I had no doubt in my mind that Barnard was the place for me. Perhaps you have a dream school as well. While the feeling of getting into your dream school is amazing, I also encourage you to go into decisions season with an open mind. Decision season is different for everyone, but it will inevitably come with some highs and lows. Therefore, know that in the end, you will have some great options, and you will ultimately end up in the place you are supposed to be.
Wishing you the best of luck in the months to come!