2011-12-17, 09:51 PM
Well Dan, after reading through what your situation is (and remembering your occasional life posts in "How was your day?" thread), this is what I have to say.
First off, I think you put way too much on your plate. I mean, you're about to be a 3rd year (junior) student (correct me if I'm wrong), and if you continue to do this, your grades will indeed tank.
Now to answer your question
To be honest with you, I did have a talk with my PolySci advisor recently about whether it was best to head straight to grad school or take a few years off, work, have fun, get life experience, etc, then apply to grad school few years later down the line. (In context, I'm going to be a junior next semester, on track to graduate in 3 years with double major in history and political science, and basically have to start prepping for life's shi'ity challenges earlier than my peers in my year). I would say that if you have to, take a few years off once you graduate! Being burnt out - especially in grad school - will NOT get you anywhere. But having fun, work, get life experience, etc (taking a few years off) might be a great alternative, and I would encourage you to look at that option. (And heck, it might benefit your grad school application, especially if your academics is decent/not the best out there) After I had that serious talk with my great PolySci advisor, I did think about it, and that's one of the options I will seriously consider when the time comes around.
Also, you need to bump up those grades. As I said earlier about "putting too much on your plate", while work experience and extracurricular are great and stuff, you're a student first and those grades will be incredibly important, especially when grad school admission officers are looking at your application. If you must, cut back on your extracurriculars/work just enough so you can focus on your studies but still commit to the remaining extracirriculars/work that you have. You still want to be a well-rounded individual who still keeps his/her academics in constant check. I'm not a grad school advisor or anything of that sorts, but at where you're heading right now, I can say that you're going to have that "despairing college rejection moment during senior year of high school" once more (and you very well know what I mean).
But on a positive side, you have time to make up all of this and still be able to come out strong in the very end. In addition, another big positive to this is that you thought for a moment what's going on in your life, and how great (or horrible) its going at current pace. You didn't wait until it's too late to confront yourself with those life questions. (especially the dreaded "I graduated; now what?/what should I do with my life?")
tl;dr - You still have a fighting chance. You're not done for just yet. Its just you need to rethink what your priorities are and focus on the things that really matter in the end. And hit them hard during your upperclassmen years in college.
Good luck Dan, I know you can do this. You've gone a long way ever since I met you, and I have faith you can pull through this difficult moment in your college career, just like any other difficult moments you've had in the past. Stay strong.
First off, I think you put way too much on your plate. I mean, you're about to be a 3rd year (junior) student (correct me if I'm wrong), and if you continue to do this, your grades will indeed tank.
Now to answer your question
FrozNlite Wrote:Ultimately Southperry, my questions to you are as follows: while I'm not sure 100% what I want to do immediately upon graduation, having both options available of grad school and the work force are more appealing than just working. That being said, would it be a waste of time and money to apply with the grades I'd have then? Should I work for a year or two so when I apply my improved senior year grades factor in, along with a heftier resume thanks to working? Can I even get in to top tier grad programs at this point (Columbia is the dream, with NYU right behind and Northwestern behind that), or would waiting be better? Am I freaking out for nothing, and I do still stand a chance? Or is there something I haven't even thought through or considered?
To be honest with you, I did have a talk with my PolySci advisor recently about whether it was best to head straight to grad school or take a few years off, work, have fun, get life experience, etc, then apply to grad school few years later down the line. (In context, I'm going to be a junior next semester, on track to graduate in 3 years with double major in history and political science, and basically have to start prepping for life's shi'ity challenges earlier than my peers in my year). I would say that if you have to, take a few years off once you graduate! Being burnt out - especially in grad school - will NOT get you anywhere. But having fun, work, get life experience, etc (taking a few years off) might be a great alternative, and I would encourage you to look at that option. (And heck, it might benefit your grad school application, especially if your academics is decent/not the best out there) After I had that serious talk with my great PolySci advisor, I did think about it, and that's one of the options I will seriously consider when the time comes around.
Also, you need to bump up those grades. As I said earlier about "putting too much on your plate", while work experience and extracurricular are great and stuff, you're a student first and those grades will be incredibly important, especially when grad school admission officers are looking at your application. If you must, cut back on your extracurriculars/work just enough so you can focus on your studies but still commit to the remaining extracirriculars/work that you have. You still want to be a well-rounded individual who still keeps his/her academics in constant check. I'm not a grad school advisor or anything of that sorts, but at where you're heading right now, I can say that you're going to have that "despairing college rejection moment during senior year of high school" once more (and you very well know what I mean).
But on a positive side, you have time to make up all of this and still be able to come out strong in the very end. In addition, another big positive to this is that you thought for a moment what's going on in your life, and how great (or horrible) its going at current pace. You didn't wait until it's too late to confront yourself with those life questions. (especially the dreaded "I graduated; now what?/what should I do with my life?")
tl;dr - You still have a fighting chance. You're not done for just yet. Its just you need to rethink what your priorities are and focus on the things that really matter in the end. And hit them hard during your upperclassmen years in college.
Good luck Dan, I know you can do this. You've gone a long way ever since I met you, and I have faith you can pull through this difficult moment in your college career, just like any other difficult moments you've had in the past. Stay strong.