With the 2023-24 school year coming to a close, seniors have to make decisions about what they are going to do after highschool, whether it be college or getting a good job. Some seniors had a dream school or a legacy school in mind, which made the decision even more difficult. Throughout their childhood, many seniors have known where they wanted to go to college, but it doesn’t always stay the same because they grow up and have different plans for the future.
“The place I originally wanted to attend was East Carolina University and I’ve always wanted to go there since elementary school, but it changed and I am now going to North Carolina Central University,” senior Ja’Nyia Fryer said.
“The place I wanted to go stayed the same. It was UNCG the whole time, So far I was thinking about other colleges but I didn’t really make a firm decision till UNCG,” senior Jack Smosna said
Students choose their college based on certain criteria. Some reasons to consider are their intended major, location, campus size, potential student life, future career and possible extracurriculars.
“I was definitely sure when I heard it was a cheaper school but it’s still good because like ECU it’s really far, it’s cheap but UNCG is close. It’s cheap but they have lots of programs to help you out for what you want to do,” Smosna said.
“I wanted to go to Chapel Hill since sophomore year so that stayed the same. I knew I wanted to go there because they’re a big sports school, and I really like the color blue. The decision I had to make was pretty easy because it was my dream school,” senior Azahna Williams said.
Seniors choose colleges based on their preferred activity of choice, or to be closer to their family to be able to visit.
“I did not know at first where I wanted to go. I was kind of all over the place, so I was thinking at first maybe out of state, I wasn’t sure yet. I decided to stay somewhere near home because it saves gas, I can go home and visit family and it just seems like a better option because it’s cheaper,” Smosna said.
Family is one of the main motivations for upcoming college students as family can help make the difficult choice.
“I finally made the decision probably when my brother went. That really just helped motivate me to do it. First of all he’ll probably be there and he’ll help me out around the school and he gives me motivation to go. So yeah I was probably stuck basically my whole life,” Smosna said.
It’s not easy to choose a college throughout high school but during the senior year you know where you want to go. There’s a lot of decisions to make but there’s hope for the future. Congratulations to the seniors doing the next big thing in life. Cheers to the future.
