Is Graduating Early Worth It?
By Donal Buckley
It’s grad season! Seniors across the university are donning their caps and gowns, getting their sashes embroidered, and figuring out how many family members they can reasonably fit into a room at the USC Hotel. It’s a stressful but gratifying time; those graduating are looking back at bittersweet memories before being thrust into the real world. Most students will have a solid four years of USC to look back on. But what happens when you only have three or three-and-a-half years to reminisce? With the right amount of AP credits, units covered, and luck navigating WebReg, some people are able to graduate a semester or even a whole year ahead of their cohort.
Anthony Guerrise and Avery Girouard are two good friends of mine, and also two friends I’ll unfortunately be losing soon due to early graduation. As juniors, we’d typically have one year left at USC. But Anthony’s graduating this spring, and Avery’s graduating in the fall. I had them tell me about the pros and cons of their unique experience.
Anthony and Avery both expressed that one of the more obvious reasons to graduate early is to save money. It’s no secret that USC is an extremely expensive college. With tuition rising every year, some people find it smart to take on extra work so they don’t have to pay for more semesters. Both also agreed that, with less time on campus, they’re forced to think more critically on what they’re really passionate about. With less than four years to kickstart a career, your time becomes even more valuable for your future than it already is.
Similarly, Anthony said that one of the positives of graduating early is that he gets a head start on figuring out his post grad life. Graduating a year ahead of other students gives him a professional advantage. After all, the sooner you can enter the workforce, the sooner you can start to build your professional portfolio. So, he gains a year on the rest of his classmates.
Avery, on the other hand, took a more holistic approach. She said that, once you graduate, you have your whole life ahead of you. You’re able to do whatever you want after college. You’re not confined by a class schedule or a degree program, instead, your day-to-day life is truly in your hands. For people who feel trapped by school, this feels almost like a release.
Even though graduating early has its benefits, it’s not without its drawbacks. Anthony and Avery both agreed that it’s generally much more stressful and scary to leave school earlier than their peers. After all, for most people, college is intended to be a four-year program. This is supposed to give you enough time to figure out what you want to do after. This already feels like such a short amount of time, so having even less time than that is bound to be anxiety-inducing. Both also agreed that you get less time with your friends. College isn’t just an academic experience, it’s a unique social experience that you really only get once in your life. It’s reasonable that people who graduate early might feel snubbed of a full college experience, especially for their senior year. I know I’ll miss them in my senior year.
Avery also highlighted that, even though it forces you to be more serious about your post grad plans, it’s also hard to have less time to figure them out. Other people have the cushion of one more year or semester that they don’t have. Having less time can also mean you’re less sure of what you actually want to do. What if you’re jumping into a career or some other plan too soon?
Anthony had a similar take. He said that, with a year off, he loses the opportunity to discover a new school subject that he may have otherwise if he stayed for the full four years. Seniors who finish their requirements early, or have only a few left, have the freedom to take fun electives and explore new classes they weren’t able to in previous years. Although it’s extra money, it can also bookend your college experience nicely.
At the end of the day, graduating early just depends on the person. Many people don’t have the option, but those that do need to heavily weigh the pros and cons. Is it worth staying to explore something new, or would you rather save money and sacrifice your last year? Selfishly, I wish my friends were staying for their senior year, but I support them in their endeavors. So to all seniors graduating this spring — early, late, or in between — I wish you all luck!
