As this school year comes to an end, some seniors are deciding where they want to go to college, and some are trying to decide if college is even the right choice for them. These decisions are hard in a normal setting, but have become more difficult during this pandemic.

For some seniors the transition from high school to college will be easy. For others, however, it is going to be a big change. Senior Noah Pelletier, who will be attending Southwestern Assemblies of God University this fall, feels that transitioning from being a senior to a freshman will be challenging.

“It’s definitely going to be weird to transition from being the oldest on campus to being the youngest again,” Pelletier said. “However, I have a couple of friends that will be going with me and a few that are already there at the school to talk to and to walk to class or the chapel with.”

While some seniors are continuing their education at college, others are taking a different route for their future. Senior Harrison Mainard, who will be joining the Marine Corps, looks forward to all the lessons he will learn.

“A friend of mine that was joining the marine corps took me up to the office one day and I instantly fell in love with the career path,” Mainard said. “I think it will be a great challenge and I am really looking forward to all the fun experiences and life lessons that I’m going to gain from the military.”

Moving out of home and into a new atmosphere can be hard for some. Senior Kaylee Berry will be going to Stephen F. Austin on an Equestrian scholarship. Berry feels she is ready for college life despite knowing she will miss her home.

“I am a little nervous because I don’t really know a lot of people who are attending Stephen F. Austin and college is so different from high school, but I think taking AP classes at school helped me a lot,” Berry said. “However I am definitely going to miss my family and hanging out with my friends because I am always having a good time around them and I’m always laughing.”

Some seniors don’t only have to worry about the transition from high school to college, but also the changes that are going to be made due to this pandemic.

“This pandemic has already affected my college experience. My orientation has moved to online and they are talking about starting this upcoming semester later,” Berry said.

Some schools are changing the way students will learn next semester. Senior Warren Davis, who will be attending Texas Tech University, has already seen changes being made to the college he will be attending.

“This pandemic has most definitely affected this next semester, Texas Tech has said that they are going to have some online classes and some face-to-face classes,” Davis said. “ Also, everything will be more regulated and will not allow students to just live freely on campus.”

Despite the disappointments of the disrupted end-of-semester rituals due to this pandemic, seniors are still excited and ready for their new lives in the military or college to begin.