Dear First-Years,
Look at how far you’ve come. It seems like yesterday when you first started meeting new people in orientation week. Now you’re preparing for your finals and you’ve just about finished your first year at the University of Waterloo! Remember when you said you couldn’t make it? The times when you were stressed from head to toe? When you thought your life was falling apart? Well, you’re almost there; just gotta keep swimming until you make it across the finish line. And then you’ll be done your first year at the University of Waterloo. Yippeee!
Time flies fast doesn’t it? It seemed just yesterday you ranked Waterloo in your top three choices for university, then you got an offer, decided to accept it and before you knew it, it was move in day to a new school. Remember the day you waved farewell to your family as they dropped you off for school? That doesn’t seem to long ago, does it? And I’m pretty sure most of us had the most fun during frosh week where we actually had the time for partying. Fun times pass by so quickly so you gotta live in the moment while you can.
We all have dozens of nightmares with a week packed with midterms, back-to-back assignments, jam-packed schedules and essays that weren’t started until the night before. And I’m pretty sure you remember freaking out over them because you had a huge feeling that your brain was gonna explode at that point, that your grades were slipping down the drain, and that your life was over. But you made it. You’re finishing up your 1B term and you have one more round of finals to go before you can chill a bit (let’s go Warriors, let’s go!). I know we’re exhausted, physically and mentally drained, and likely needing a week’s worth of sleep to return to the state we were before the academic year started…but you’re almost there and you just have to keep pushing until you’re past the finish line. Then you can relax…before you have to work.
Either way, I believe in you. I believe that you have enough strength to pull through for the final two weeks. You can do this. We can do it together. #GoWaterlooWarriors!
One more important reminder: if you feel like you’re going through a tough mental health crisis or mental health related issues, please speak to someone you trust. If professional assistance cannot be obtained immediately, talk to a friend, a professor, anyone you trust who is willing to provide help and support. Yes, grades and co-op are important, but they are not the be-all, end-all. You are more important than a class average and as long as you’re alive, you can find a job. Please do not leave the problem until it gets worse, talk to someone, people do care. I care. Your friends care, and your family does too. They would rather see you alive with no job than dead with a 90-average. Trust me. And we’re in this academic struggle together for a brighter future in the end.
Good luck to everyone with their finals!