Have you ever heard someone say Junior year is your hardest year of high school? Well, they aren’t wrong. Junior year is proven to be the hardest year of high school because of the difficult tests juniors have to take. This year juniors really start to get serious about life. Juniors begin to study for the SAT and ACT, they look at what colleges are best for them, and they truly start worrying about maintaining a good GPA, yet they have to keep a positive attitude. Juniors are funny because they aren’t quite seniors, but they still have “senioritis”. Juniors have been in high school for two years and they are tired of it, yet they still have one more year left. By the time junior year rolls around they are unmotivated, not determined, and genuinely ready to get out.

Erin Clinard, junior at Cass High School, mentions her struggles this year, “This year has been so stressful for me, and I am trying to do well in all my academic classes especially when they’re all fast-paced and difficult. It’s hard to study for a specific subject when all my other classes have lots of work I still need to turn in as well.” Erin states how hard the classes are in general, she goes on to say, “I feel overwhelmed with trying to keep good grades and a high GPA. I’m also stressed out about applying for colleges and scholarships and making sure that I have all the classes I need. Junior year has been filled with stress in so many ways.” 

High School students in general struggle with mental health. Looking specifically at juniors, 11th grade is typically filled with hard tests, college prep, and preparing for their future. Teens feel a high level of stress at this time mostly caused by academic challenges. There is so much pressure to do good in your classes and extracurricular activities, this can lead to burnout. Burnouts are identified by emotional and physical exhaustion, poor academic performance, and feelings of separation and detachment. Studies recommend teens get 8-10 hours of sleep each night but students in their junior year experience sleep deprivation due to staying up late studying or completing work

Junior Ava Harris says “This year is my junior year and has been very hard already. My classes are difficult, the clubs are stressful, and I work a part-time job.” She also states, “It’s a lot of work at once and I am often unmotivated.” Juniors often feel overwhelmed because there is so much going on. They struggle with a lack of motivation because of the longing to have fun and spend time with friends. Social activities and free time are major distractions for juniors struggling with maintaining their academics.

A word of advice to any upcoming juniors or current juniors; focus on your classes, start looking at colleges, and balance your social and academic life. Balancing your social life, academics, extra-curricular activities, and even part-time jobs is very important, but it can be tricky. As a junior, this is the time of your life when you finally start to be independent. You and most of your friends can drive, your curfew gets later because you are older, and there are more things to do on the weekends. You must make your grades and academics a priority. Your grades are extremely important, especially during junior year. Achieving good grades is essential for colleges to see your ability to handle difficult classes. This is about when you start making decisions about college and what you want to do for your future career. You need to consider whether you want to go far or stay close to home, how much it costs, or even the climate you’d want to live in. Even though junior year is difficult and stressful, don’t forget you are still a teenager so live your high school life. Have fun and do not stress, everything will be alright!