Freshman vs. Senior

Well, it has taken long enough, but I am finally a senior in college! I have actually been a senior for a few weeks now, but it’s kind of hard to believe because it still feels the same as it did when I was a freshman, except for now I am getting so anxious to graduate that I think every assignment I have to do is “dumb” and “a complete and utter waste of time” and I have already learned enough to be handed my degree and sent off to the real world (and I know that I won't learn anything new between now and May).

            So, while dragging my feet to class the other day, I got to thinking: how much has changed since my freshman year of college? And then I decided to compose this list. Don’t you feel like it was important to know my thought process? I guess I did because I told you. I could have just plastered a title on this bad boy and given you a bulleted list, but where’s the fun in that? Also, I added pictures, which shouldn’t come as a surprise to any of you.

            Since my freshman year of college, I have become older and wiser. I guess the “older” part could have been omitted because it is implied that it has been at least 4 years (closer to 6), but whatevs.

            I am now old enough to get into bars and drink legally, but I drank WAY more when I wasn’t. In fact, if my freshman self met my senior self at a house party (which would never happen because freshmen bother me - they look like they're 15!), it would probably challenge me to a chug-off, or at least a few rounds of beer pong (as I have NEVER been good at chugging), and severely kick my light-weight ass.

            I now have the power (and experience from so many times of puking in public and on random objects – one being the sink in a friend’s bathroom, where pinkish remnants (I was drinking cranberry juice and Burnett’s vodka out of a pitcher because there were no glasses - which explains the color and the reason why I was throwing up in the first place) were still there when I returned weeks later) to choose between getting smash-hammered-blackout-drunk and having a few cocktails/beers but still having a good time.**

**I sincerely apologize if that double parenthetical sentence (I think I made that term up just now) was too much for you, but there was no other way to explain. Now that I'm looking at it, I'm thinking it's verging on Inception with all of its levels. Sorry, back to what I was saying:

 PS: I don’t usually puke confetti; I was just trying to make this a more pleasant experience for you.

            So that is how I have changed outside of the classroom, now I’ll tell you how things have changed within the classroom (and I’m avoiding my homework right now, so I’ll include a chart for your viewing pleasure – you’re welcome).

 

*FYI: in case you didn’t know, you can click on the pics to enlarge them :)

Here are the main differences:

When I was a freshman, I was free to skip class whenever I wanted to do so for the following reasons:

1.      My classes were all lectures with hundreds of students, so the professors wouldn’t know anyway.

2.      All the professors ever did was show PowerPoints with the words from the book posted verbatim, so I could have (but never did) learned the material on my own.

3.      The only thing that mattered for my grade was my performance on exams and midterms, so basically I just had to skim (not “peruse”, that means something entirely different) through the book the morning of the test and get an A or at least a high B.

As a senior, I am not allowed to skip class whenever I want to do so (even though I am paying a ton of money and I am an adult, so I should be able to choose when I show up and when I don’t – AND, the professors still do the PowerPoint-based-on-the-book thing) because:

1.      There are less than 30 people in my classes, so the professor will totally know (unless she’s really old and doesn’t know anyone’s name anyway – even if they have had a class with her before).

2.      My professors say that each class is important for my future and the job that I will have (even though I have now been taking practically the same class, covering the same material, for three semesters and – I’m not trying to brag or anything, but – I probably know more about the topic than the part-time professor who is teaching it – AND the professor will literally yell at the class if we aren’t taking notes on said topic, as if we are in middle school).

3.      Attendance points are close to, if not the same as, the amount of points I can receive on exams and midterms (which is stupid, because if I can pass the exam that the professor has created without being in class that is not my fault, but the professor’s for creating such a simple test).

There are probably more things, but I now have 30 minutes to finish an essay, so I should probably do that...