As said in the title does the end of the long period of school make any real difference on people's lives?
Being a senior this year has made this question pop up in my head.
I am watching my brother everyday , who is in his first year in university , and see that he is the same boring person hanging around the house all day not doing anything.
My aim is to go to a gym, go learn some martial arts and maybe Japanese.Do all seniors make the same thoughts but never try to make them come true?

So my point is to ask people that are already over if anything changed and those who are still in school if they think that something will change in their everyday life.

Thanks for your responses.

Well my attitude change

from sweet girl to a mean girl
-becoz this year is like...its...very busy...im like so freakin busy i don't have much time to spend for myself..so i just cant control it but to scream and shouted and insulted people that i hate *i know its wrong*!!

from stupid to quite genius
- my math is not bad anymore...usually..my math its like!! but now
!! haha but still the marks are like!! not gewd enough for me!!

and i hope this year bless me!!

Well i admit that i had pretty much the same thoughts as you did at the beginning of the 1st yr , but unfortunately none of them became true except from maybe that i got to do more physical exercise...On the other hand i admit that i was never that good in time management and planning .

The truth is that at least in the 1st yr you definetely have more free time than the 2nd or the 3rd (not that you are not going to have some then as well), but its just that things are bit more relaxed in the beginning.
So my advise is to make the best use of your free time and ofcourse do some studying as well. But things are going to get more serious in the 2nd yr so there is no need to push yourself from now.

As for if you really see a great difference from school to uni then my answer would be : " yes , but not as significant as you may think". Also i am studying abroad so it is very different leaving on your own. Friends back home don't seem to have seen any differences. There is still studying , going out , hanging out with friends (new and old) and thats pretty much it.

I think everyone feels that way during their senior year. Afterall, you've been there long enough to consider it your second home. It's also where you spent most of your time at during the last couple of years.

For me, I would say people don't really change. If you were lazy to begin with, you're probably going to stay lazy unless you put some serious effort into changing that habit. From my experience, I found first year of university to be the hardest. Everyone tends to use their study habits from high school and it doesn't work well. That habit would be cramming at the very last night for an exam. Most of the people here seems to have that habit. So yeah, it's tough to get good grades and to change that habit at the same time.

Time, I feel that you have more time now as a university student, but people just have bad time management skills thus it looks like they have no time at all.
To sum it up, I don't think there would be noticable short-term change from students graduating and entering university. it's just too short of a time for that change to occur. Changes are gradual, so maybe 2 years from now, if you compare your friends from then to now, you'll see some changes, but since it's gradual, you won't notice it much unless you actually do compare them with their past self.

LOL I'm also in my first year at university and for the most part, I still hang out around the house. I'm still staying in touch with my friends. I haven't missed high school much, althought I'd really like to meet the teachers again. I wouldn't say I've changed much.

One difference is the fact that the commute to my school a really a tedious, long pain. The school is just as I expected, doing the same things over, go there, take notes, go home and finish your homework.

Another difference is the fact that I know less people there, but I'm slowly starting to make friends, (VERY slowly, though). The teachers, I'd, say, are a major difference.

The teachers at university are mostly not as amusing as high school teachers. Of course, there's a few teachers at my university who's pretty funny, but no where near some of my high school teachers. My high school teachers used to tell jokes for the whole class and get nothing done.

These are the differences I've seen, but as far as how it has affected me, not much. It's all just adapting to the new environment. If you adapt quickly and well, you're not gonna get affected much. Some people might think the huge university campus as overwhelming, but after walking around and learning where everything is, everything is alright.

If anything, I prefer high school over university because I feel younger and it's more fun. The teachers are more fun. The only disadvantage high school has is the fact that the courses are boring. I'm aiming for interactive arts and technology where you get to make video games. You don't do that stuff in high school. But overall, I like high school more than my university, but maybe that'll change after a few years.

I'm in my 4th year of university, though I'm actually working a 9-5, 5 day a week job (Now that was quite a big change).

I thought I'd do lots of new things, which in reality became not doing much at all.
Although I did join a few clubs and various other things, I'd stopped going after only a few weeks with the exception of the anime society, though I stopped going to that after the first year.

That said I think the change of not living at home was a big one, I'm now a lot better at cooking (which was one of my goals), cleaning etc...

I've noticed that most people during the last year of school (in my country at least o.O) seem to change dramatically. They study less and live more. Instead of staying at home doing the same thing they've done for countless years before they start going out and start their new lives as adults. A friend of mine was once a hard-out geek who'd be in bed by 10pm or still studying but she's now more rebellious who refuses to obey the rules, believing that they're just getting in the way of her living a life she wants to live.

The last year of school helps people develop the 'skills' I suppose to survive the real world and University is like a mild form of life but what do I know? I'm not even out of high school yet. >.<

From what you have written here I realized that our education systems are not even close to being the same.

RaineDay

I've noticed that most people during the last year of school (in my country at least o.O) seem to change dramatically. They study less and live more.

That in fact is the exact opposite of what is going on here.We at out last year stay in the house and maybe go out once in 2-3 weeks studying all day and preparing for the final national exams which are very tough.The problem is that if you don't get enough points you don't get in the university and thus lose a whole year of your life,if you want to take it another shot.

I was disappointed to hear that nothing really changes though.I want to feel like a grown up take responsibilities , like open my own bank account.Plus , I want to do stuff I've never done before and above all change my bad habits for new and healthier ones.

Right now, I'm already done with my undergrad work, but now the real test begins, and that's actually finding a job. I go to one job site, then another, then another, then another, until I look at my watch and see that I have spent 18-ish hours on the computer posting my resume to every particular employer relevant to my field. On occasions I will check out a real estate site or two, juxtaposed with an article on the recent passings of a former celebrity, juxtaposed with e-mailing my connections on new developments.

Since the Spring semester is beginning next week at my university, I am looking at this period as a crossroads, transitional type of months. For me, the memories of being a student are too strong to forget. I sometimes talk with people who are in the very first year at my university, and I indoctrinate them in some of the traditions the university has, before we go our own separate ways. I remember when I was in their shoes, a while back.

But those memories of my last semester at my university are strong. They are perhaps more stronger than my last year at my high school or my junior college. It's those types of memories that make you appreciate life more.

I realized I grown a beard the moment I went out of school. because I wanted to be an artist.
Then I realized I am more mature, so I shaved off the beard and grown a mustache, then later, I realized I am better off without either, so I went for the cool guy look and shaved both the mustache and my head.

I lived without hair ever since, and shave my head every 2 weeks, that was until I realized I had my second girlfriend, and she said I looked ugly with no hair.
Then I grown some back, before realizing I broke up with her before we even started going deeper.
So I realized, life changed so rapidly that I decided to go "Oh whatever"
and from here on, I went for my Hospitality diploma, and never looked back since.
Thanks to a few friends, I realized life is not all about hair and looking good, it is about living it with honor and living it through as a journey that is worth every single moment of your time.

and I know I am on the right track.

Everything changes out of school. You realize that when it comes down to it, none of it matters. Your friends will lose touch, they won't be your "life" anymore. Your enemy's as well. You won't see these people on a daily, weekly, or perhaps even monthly basis. You may have a boyfriend or girlfriend, and that will serve it's purpose of being your primary contact. Your new friends will be the people you work with. Make sure your work folks are good people, as that will make a huge difference. Go to lunch with a few once or twice a week, not to the in-house cafe, but out, to a nice restaurant. You'll have fun, and come to realize, that what happened in school doesn't matter anymore in the least.

I'm 24 years old, and work in an office. My best friend is 40 years old. He sits about 10 feet from me in the next office. After that is a woman about 50ft from me, down the hall a bit. Then there are a bit scattered about the floor, and even through-out the building, and in some cases, the country. What I learned in school, while providing a good base, has not really offered me any real assistance in the real world. Neither has my social events from school, friends, non-friends, dances, clubs, etc. At work, I work. Sometimes I socialize. Lunch around 11:45 at the cafe in the basement. In the summers Thursday is golf day. Allow yourself to be immersed in these activities, with older and more mature people. It will help you grow, and give you a good basis for comparison.

Unity

Everything changes out of school. You realize that when it comes down to it, none of it matters. Your friends will lose touch, they won't be your "life" anymore. Your enemy's as well. You won't see these people on a daily, weekly, or perhaps even monthly basis. You may have a boyfriend or girlfriend, and that will serve it's purpose of being your primary contact. Your new friends will be the people you work with.

This is exactly what happened to me. I was aware of the change though and I wasn't very close with my "friends" in high school so it didn't affect me great deal. I graduated 5 years ago, at a real young age and then thought "what now?" I tried to go to college but at that age, none of the careers I knew about were suited for me, or rather, I didn't know what I wanted to do for the rest of my life, so I just started working non-stop and that's my life now. My friends and the people I hang out with are older than me, too. They teach me things, help me figure out my problems and it feels more like a friendship than the obligation to be around those people because you go to school with them.

Well i think when your fresh out of school your still too young and well dumb to really be making permanent plans for the future or any plans that don't allow for growth. since i left high school and started in the college world i've changed my mind about work and career at least three times and still unsure of the present course that im on. I think the important thing to remember is that if your thinking about furthering your education and getting some sort of degree from a college then get right into it or else other things will always pop up and keep you from further school work. I guess i should answer the question posed at the top now so yes people change once they get out of high school. its no an immediate change, but a very gradual change that comes from gaining life experiences, either at work or by traveling to different parts of the country and getting out of the box that you've been kept in for the past 18 years of your life and formulating your own opinions and beliefs.

For me, I knew that I was just entering another period of school after high school. I went from high school straight to university.

In that sense, I didn't really change at all. I was just the same old, boring person I've ever been, going to school each day. Although, it's kind of nice because I have a lot more freedom to do everything - classes are staggered throughout the week, I'm a lot more mobile, and I have my own money to spend.

There are social differences too. I mean, I know hardly anyone at university compared to my high school. Since my highschool was small (350+ people), I knew pretty much everyone. Here, my school is 10, 000 people strong, so I'm like AHH!

Only thing that changes is that you're friends are most likely moving away and splitting up. Everyone got their own shit to do. Myself, I'm doing like your brother. Just hanging around the house all day doing nothing.