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Judging Students for Taking Longer to Complete Schools, Taking Extra Years.

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Judging students for taking longer to complete schools taking extra years. | judging students for taking longer to complete schools, taking extra years. | edupulse magazine
Judging Students for Taking Longer to Complete Schools Taking Extra Years. | Judging Students for Taking Longer to Complete Schools, Taking Extra Years. | EduPulse Magazine

An academic “victory lap” is the phrase used to express the situation where a college or high school student takes an additional year(s) of study beyond the typical four years that undergraduates spend at university.

This action often is met with negative sentiments and students that take additional terms are often seen as having made academic errors that cause them to spend this extra time in school. However, taking a victory lap is a situation unique to everyone’s college experience and can be a result of multiple factors.

Any education is a process unique to everyone who experiences it. All majors are not made equally, and the university is also a time when students must learn how to manage their own lives, individually. Therefore, some students end up taking more than four years to fulfil the requirements of their secondary or university education completely. 

However, those who take additional years of study are constantly faced with scrutiny and negative attitudes, often being discriminately regarded as ‘fifth-years.’ This is due to the influence of the traditional view that college should last four years. Some students end up taking additional years of study after taking a brief break, or ‘gap-semester’. This can be due to a variety of factors whether they are financial, personal or academic.

Also, depending on a student’s major, they may or may not have to fulfil more than four years, or eight semesters of study, from the beginning of their college academic career. Therefore, a student may become a ‘fifth-year’ regardless of their own choices or circumstances.

Taking additional years of study at the university level can bring positive benefits to students, rather than merely costing different amounts of money. Additional terms spent at university provide more opportunities with teacher interaction, campus involvement and part-time work opportunities. If students use an additional term to strengthen their professional connections and improve their GPA by performing well in classes, this extra time can make them better-qualified candidates for whichever career path they intend to take.

When it comes to university education, each student is on their journey within a program of their own choosing. With such a compelling variety of majors offered at various universities, the traditional belief that college should last only four years is no longer relevant or practical. Taking an extra year or more of school does not mean you are a terrible student. If you need to, take time off from school and then come back to it.

Tinashe (Nash) is editor-in-chief and publisher of Edu Pulse Magazine. He brings 8+ years of experience as a journalist, creative writer and digital editor.

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