Senior Advice from the Class of 2021

Illustration by Joe Heller.

On behalf of the Pixel Journal, congratulations to the OHS Class of 2021! It was so special to see their growth throughout the years and reach this amazing milestone, and we wish them the best of luck on their next chapters.

Before our seniors departed, Pixel Journal editor-in-chief Rachel Hu (’22) collected some of their advice for surviving and thriving in high school. Here’s what they had to say:

On academics

Emma Dreispiel (University of Pennsylvania): Always try to do things you have genuine interest in, because during the times you’re most stressed with the subject, your interest and passion is the only thing that will keep you going. Also, try to do your best as often as you can, but remember that sometimes it’s best to just hand something in that’s not fully perfect rather than not handing anything in at all. Lastly, get to know yourself as a student: which times are you most productive working, how do you like to study (with friends? with music?), and then develop a system based on that (study 2 hours during your most productive time, organize your homework so you can get all of it done). Don’t be scared to ask for help from teachers and students, and to ask for extensions if you need more time. 

Lokaa Krishna (Columbia University): Challenge yourself, but don’t push yourself to the point where you feel like you aren’t able to cope with everything. I know this balance seems next to impossible to achieve, but it can be through organization and really understanding your own learning process. At the end of sophomore year, I was completely burnt out. However, during junior year, I had a healthy balance of academics with a solid social life and extracurriculars, and even though my courseload was probably more challenging, I was more successful. I challenged myself, but in the right way. It all comes down to understanding what works best for you, and following that, instead of pushing yourself in the wrong direction.

Ryan Lee (Princeton University): Take full advantage of office hours, the Writing Center, and all of the other benefits provided by the school. There is no shame in asking for help when you need it. 

Maddie Ward (Macalester College): I wish I had cultivated a growth mindset a lot earlier… don’t limit yourself to what you’re already good at, and don’t tell yourself you’ve failed if you make a mistake. Focus on finding fulfillment in the work you put in, the understanding you gain, and how much you’ve grown (and will continue to grow)!

Anonymous: Don’t feel obligated to pursue the craziest schedule you’re capable of managing. Even if you’re perfectly able to manage such a schedule, it’s valuable to have some free time, and if you leave some extra room in your schedule, you’ll be able to put more effort into each of your classes, learning more from each of them and producing higher-quality work. Though you’ll always find someone else who is able to juggle more obligations or finish assignments more quickly than you, remember to go at your own pace. Treat academics as a learning process rather than a test of how much you can handle.

Anonymous: Schedule in downtime—at OHS, it’s entirely possible to just do school the entire day.

On the OHS experience

Emma Dreispiel (University of Pennsylvania): Show up to school events, even if you don’t have to. The club leaders spend a large portion of their time preparing fun and interesting events for the student body, and you’ll miss out on that if you don’t take the time to go. Become really invested in 1-2 clubs, and make sure you go consistently. Otherwise, it’ll be hard for you to get a sense of community. 

Lokaa Krishna (Columbia University): As an OHS student, you have so much access to incredible teachers who have such profound insights and are so accessible. Go to office hours. Participate in class. Discuss your ideas with them. Also, OHS places a lot of emphasis on thinking and reflecting, which I personally found to be one of the most defining parts of my education. If it aligns with your interests, really take advantage of courses at OHS (including but not limited to the core) that help you shape your values and gain a much more educated and insightful understanding of the world. 

Anonymous: Stay up to date with what’s happening in the OHS community through email and Skype, and take advantage of OHS’s wealth of resources and the opportunity to learn from those around you.

Anonymous: Talk to people! I never really expected to meet people at an online school but I’ve met some of my best friends here and have met so many fascinating people. If someone steals your point in class, send them a Skype message; introduce yourself.

On friendships and relationships

Emma Dreispiel (University of Pennsylvania): Text people after class if they said something you found interesting, or if you want to compliment them on something. Most people at OHS are really kind and would love to talk to you. Don’t be scared to Skype other people and get to know them better, it's the only way you can create meaningful friendships. Some of my favorite people ever are from OHS, but I had to take the time to find them and reach out. 

Lokaa Krishna (Columbia University): Friendships are so important in high school, ensure that along with all the hectic schoolwork that I’m sure you will have, you maintain a social life and cultivate a support system that will prove to be a vital part of your experience. 

Anonymous: Put in the effort to talk to people outside of classes, and join clubs and circles that you’re interested in. Even if you’re perfectly fine with being alone in your room with minimal social interaction, having friends at OHS will make your experience better. Sometimes you’ll find that you don't really connect with someone, and that’s fine. Within the OHS community, you will be able to find friends you can connect with—whom you can talk to, learn from, and ask for help when you need it.

On the college application process

Emma Dreispiel (University of Pennsylvania): Start early (around July or August) and set deadlines for yourself (when you will hand in each college application). Be honest and authentic; it will save you a lot of time during the selection process after decisions are out. Remember not to take things personally: rejection is a redirection into a better path. College is just a tool for you to get to where you want in life, so although it can be easy to get lost in the details, focus on the bigger picture. It’s more about what you do with the opportunities and resources that are given to you. You are the one who determines what your college experience will be like, no matter where you end up. 

Sarah Jenner (Willamette University): 1. Thoroughly research schools that you’re interested in. Speak to current students, faculty, attend information sessions, read up on the academics, and really understand which colleges share your values, and create your list based on that. During the application process, don’t stress yourself too much (seems unrealistic, I know), but put in all your effort so that after you apply, you know that you did everything you could. 2. You get to choose whose opinion you listen to. Plenty of people, especially your close family and friends, will have their opinion of where you should apply or go to, but there is no way you can please everyone. You absolutely have permission to not take everyone’s advice. Also, take everything with a grain of salt because most of the time their opinions will be informed by personal experiences that don’t reflect on what experience YOU would actually have at that college. It can be hard sometimes (an extended family member of mine literally cried when I did not choose the college she wanted me to go to), but in the end, this is your experience and you’re the one who has to live there for 4 years, not them. 3. Accept the fact that you’re not going to get into reach schools. This can be a tough pill to swallow when you spend so much time working on applications to super prestigious colleges, but they’re reach schools for a reason: it is safe to bet that you won’t get in, and spending time planning that you’ll get in is only setting yourself up for disappointment. This isn’t to be cynical and you should absolutely still try your hardest to get into schools you want to go to, but your time is so much better spent thinking about and researching schools that you are more likely to get into. 4. Don’t compare yourself to others. This is such a uniquely personal journey but at times it feels like a big competition, especially when you bring social media into the picture and you see people going to schools you got rejected from. You could spend so much time asking “why did they get in when I didn’t,” but there are so many factors out of your control and it just isn’t worth it to try to compare yourselves. 5. Know that you can do amazing at any school you go to! I think the thing that we all needed to hear most during the whole process is that everything will be ok. College is what you make of it, and you can find amazing opportunities and work hard at nearly any school. 6. Talk to current students. You need to get a feel for what the “everyday” of the college would be like and you can't really get that from just going to the polished admissions events. Some of the best questions to ask current students are what their least favorite thing about their school is or what they wish would be changed. ALSO, look at student newspapers/websites! You’ll be able to see what the hot campus issues are and get a feel for the school culture. One school seemed perfect until I read an article on the student news site that reported on a huge problem they had of students not being able to enroll in the classes they needed. 7. Think beyond the “now.” It’s easy to think about what college would be the best to choose now based on temporary factors like where your friends/boyfriend/girlfriend are going, which school has the most prestige and would sound the coolest to be able to say you’re going to, etc., but try really hard to consider whether those things will actually matter in the future. Most of the time, they won’t. Ten years from now, nobody will care where you went to college. What matters most is where you will be able to grow the most as a person and narrow down/prepare for what career field you want to go into. Cost can also be a HUGE factor. Is one school really worth tens of thousands of dollars more than another? Is it worth it to put your future self in great debt? Most of the time, probably not. 8. Roll with the punches. Especially in COVID times, the app process is a rollercoaster and things will not go to plan. I had so many unexpected things happen (not getting into safety schools, going through some crazy waitlist processes including one school that gave me 24 hours to decide to enroll or not, ending up at a school that I went from hating to loving, etc.). Everything turned out very differently than I thought it would but that’s okay; it all worked out in the end. + Read more

Lokaa Krishna (Columbia University): Thoroughly research schools that you’re interested in. Speak to current students, faculty, attend information sessions, read up on the academics, and really understand which colleges share your values, and create your list based on that. During the application process, don’t stress yourself too much (seems unrealistic, I know), but put in all your effort so that after you apply, you know that you did everything you could. 

Maddie Ward (Macalester College): Relax. You know yourself better than anyone else. This is about finding a school you want to be at, and a school that wants you; it’s about finding a good fit. Present yourself as you are to the places you see yourself thriving in, and you will find the right match!

Anonymous: Toward the end of your junior year, start thinking about what you want to get out of your college experience and what your goals are in attending college. Make a balanced list of schools that fit what you’re looking for, which may change as you navigate the college application process and learn more about yourself. Don’t stress too much about getting into any particular institution(s); you’ll have amazing opportunities at many different colleges, and your experience at whatever college you attend (much like your experience at OHS) is what you make of it.

Anonymous: Remember that unfortunately it can be up to random chance—I know a lot of people that should have gotten into places they didn’t. I also know people that didn’t get into mid-level schools and ended up going to an Ivy League. 

On college admissions essays

Emma Dreispiel (University of Pennsylvania): Write from your heart, and write about things you genuinely care about. There is no “right” essay topic, it’s about what you choose to say about yourself and how you accomplish that. Take some time to journal your thoughts, answer some questions about who you are and what you want in life. Admissions essays are much harder when you don’t know yourself, so it’s important to be introspective. 

Sarah Jenner (Willamette University): Definitely use the WTC for help at any stage of the process—brainstorming topics, choosing a prompt, revising, final edits, etc.

Lokaa Krishna (Columbia University): Be 100% honest and authentic to yourself. Write about what truly allows admissions officers to understand who you are and write about what you know best. This way, you can bring forth your own personal perspective that nobody else has, and that’s what will make your essay so special. 

Anonymous: Start writing your essays the summer before your senior year. Since nothing is due yet at that point, the process should be relatively low-stress; it’s just to get you started on thinking about who you are and who you want to be in college and beyond. And throughout the process, whenever you have any new essay ideas or drafts you want feedback on, the college counseling office is a wonderful resource. It can also help to ask for feedback from one or two other people who know you well.

Anonymous: Just tell your story, what makes you ‘you,’ so that when you apply to schools, you’re at peace with the decision because you know that you showed who you really are—I had no regrets about my applications; I never worried about what I should have said or done otherwise because I felt I had truly displayed my character. 

On high school

Emma Dreispiel (University of Pennsylvania): You don’t need to be perfect all the time to succeed. If you need to take a day for yourself and your mental health, schoolwork can wait. As long as you know why you are doing the things you choose to do, you’ll have a great experience. A lot of things just require trying, making an effort, and even if you don’t succeed, you’ll gain a lot of experience just from attempting. Also, try to have fun and adventures throughout high school. Talking to your friends is important as well. Don’t isolate yourself from other people. 

Lokaa Krishna (Columbia University): Learn an instrument. Start baking. Spend time with family and friends. Don’t let the craziness and the workload completely cut you off from the little things that do matter. 

Ryan Lee (Princeton University): High school is a marathon, not a sprint. Make sure you take the time to take care of yourself and your well-being. 

Maddie Ward (Macalester College): Ask for help when you need it. If you need a day off to take care of yourself, do it. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad for knowing what you need. Hustle culture isn’t sustainable, and neither is the weird “I never need help” pride. You’re a human being, not a robot (though that would be cool). 

Anonymous: Take care of your health, do things you enjoy, and treat high school as a period of growth.

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The responses in this article have been edited for clarity and brevity.

The OHS Observer, our sister publication, has published more senior reflections. You can find them here.