College can be the best years of someone’s life. We share and take away memories with new and old friends throughout the time we spend as students. By the time you reach senior year, you figure it will be a stress-free year.
Some students at Cabrini College choose to make a sacrifice and take a heavy load so they can graduate on time and go off into the real world.
Seniors Dymond Gleaves and Rachael Layden have chosen to take the challenge of the credit overload so they will graduate with their class on time.
“At first I felt overwhelmed because I did not think I would be able to do it but at this point I feel like a pro,'” Gleaves said.
Gleaves is taking 18 credits because she wants to share this once in a lifetime experience with the same class she entered with.
“I have scholarships, and they run out after 4 years, that’s one reason why I took 18 credits this semester,” Layden said. “I don’t see it as cramming, because my one class is a 3 credit capstone class.”
Gleaves agreed. She said, “I don’t see it as cramming, I just see it as finishing my undergraduate degree in four years so that I can move on to the next thing in the fall.”
For Layden, taking 18 credits isn’t that bad, it just gets time-consuming sometimes.
Many students do not make it to their fourth year of school, so making it to senior year is a great accomplishment. “Walking across the stage is not just for my satisfaction,” Gleaves said. “I want my mother to feel a sense of accomplishment also because without her I wouldn’t be getting my degree.”
Taking a lot of credits isn’t always looked at as a negative approach. Gleaves enjoys being in class because it gives her more opportunities to study in her major instead of just doing the minimum.
Layden feels the same way. It does not faze her at all. It was all about sacrifice and came down to taking a full course load or not graduating on time.
Taking 18 credits or more is a different experience for each student. Some do great and breeze through while others don’t do as well. Wherever you fall, at least you know you will still graduate.
School takes up a lot of time and could affect your social life if you don’t use good time management.
“Many of my friends are just as busy as I am, so whenever we have free time we go out, have a movie night or just sit and catch up,” Gleaves said.
