Senior Advice from the Class of 2017
Contributor and Social Media Editor, Isabella Samutin, asked some seniors for their tips on surviving OHS; the question everyone wants answered!
Maya Hsu (University of Washington): “I barely survived. My soul did not.”
Dev Rangarajan (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute): “Think about which things will matter in 5 years. Great way to deal with stress.”
Shannon Madden (University of Pittsburgh): “School’s important, but it isn’t everything so don’t let it define you. Also, make sure you have ways to make friends outside of OHS.”
Miranda Nover (Carnegie Mellon): “Remember that it’s okay to ask for help or to admit that you dropped the ball on something, one of the hardest things about OHS for me was the pressure that comes with an academic setting like this”
Gabby Asuncion (Brown University): “Avoid comparing yourself to others as much as possible (be that by blocking College Confidential or not talking about it with your friends) and focus your energy on painting the best picture of yourself you possible can. Also, don’t edit essays to oblivion. Oftentimes your first draft is the most inspired and the most “you” so try not to overthink it.”
Quinn Barry (Stanford University): “Don’t drop your extracurricular activities and ask for extensions whenever you need them.”
Katie Stujenske (United States Naval Academy): “Best advice I ever got was don’t forget to eat. And ask people who have already taken the class for help, especially in humanities.”
Elena Gonzalez (Massachusetts Institute of Technology): “Sleep is great, do it more than you have time for, get to know the teachers you enjoy in class. It doesn’t hurt to get to know the ones whose classes you don’t love because if you like the teacher as a person it makes the class more bearable. If you have to choose between working on an assignment and calling with friends you haven’t talked to in a while, the latter isn't going to kill you. Mental health is important, de-stressing is part of keeping yourself motivated.”