When COVID-19 Upends your Senior Year: Being a Member of the Class of 2020
The past couple of weeks have turned the world upside down. This pandemic has impacted everyone in some way. As a college senior, it took away all of my lasts. I had no idea when it was the last time that I went to class, walked through campus, or laughed with my best friends in our common room. It wasn’t supposed to end so abruptly. I was supposed to experience the last two months of my college experience with my best friends: doing all of the senior week activities, taking graduation pictures, and crying as we reluctantly packed up our apartment. Meanwhile, we are all hundreds of miles apart and finishing our college experience remotely.
At first, Boston University sent the email that we would be moving to online learning for just a month. I was optimistic that I could get through the month at home as if it were winter break. A couple of days later, BU sent another email that said we would be online for the entirety of the semester. That was when I realized I wouldn’t get any of my lasts, and I wouldn’t get to make any more college memories. I wanted to take a weekend road trip, get ready with my friends for another night out, watch one more sunset from my apartment windows, and I even wanted to have another late-night study session. The last time for us to get to be students had been taken away from us, and I had to try and make sense of this whole situation.
Getting through this time is not going to be easy, but it has been helpful for me to remember what I have to look forward to. I’ve been thinking about my college graduation for months now. I want that special moment where I walk across the stage in a cap and gown, and my parents and grandparents cheer joyously. I am still looking forward to this moment, even though I don’t know when it will be. I know it may happen a few months later than it was supposed to, and it may even happen on a makeshift stage in my backyard. Regardless, it will happen somehow.
I am also looking forward to reuniting with my friends. We have been group face timing to reminisce about funny stories and to keep each other company. We have also been sending hundreds of pictures and videos in our group chats, reminding each other of all our good times. I know that there are many good times ahead for all of us together, even if they are not as college students.
Even though this is not the ideal end to my college experience, I am embracing what being at home has to offer because I can only sit and mope for so long. I have been able to enjoy nature, put extra time into my online classes, and spend quality time with my family. Although I am not getting all my college lasts, I am thankful for all the times that I did have. I am thankful for my health, my family and friends, my education, and regardless of the sudden end, I am forever grateful for my college experience.
Anna Miller is a former intern at the O’Connor Professional Group (OPG) and is in her senior year at Boston University where she majors in Psychology and Marketing.
