Why It's OK to be Excited to Go Back to School

It's not nerdy, it's excitement of potential.

Originally published on August 8, 2016

It’s that time of year when people fall into two camps: they’re either starting to bemoan the inevitable end of summer or they're seeing the school supplies creep up in stores and can barely contain their excitement. I’m in that second camp, the camp of “I literally can’t wait to get back to school”. And if you’re anything like me, and voice your opinion of, “yeah, I’m excited to get back to school”, you get shot down immediately. “Ew. Why? Nerd.” And I say, ignore the haters! Here’s why it’s okay to be excited to go back to school.

The first thing people think about with back to school is “new beginnings”, but I think that is an overused theme and that is not why I get excited. I prefer to think about potential, the potential that anything could happen. If your last school year was awful, this one could be better. Maybe this is the year you get a 4.0. Maybe this is the year you get the perfect job opportunity. Maybe this is the year your soulmate transfers to your school. Everyone has things that are important to them and things that motivate them. It’s not a new beginning, because you are continuing your education. It’s a continuation that is full of potential.

Potential can be found everywhere. For one thing, school supplies. Packs of looseleaf, never used pencils, empty notebooks; everything is new and fresh, ready to be filled with new information. New professors, new classrooms, new students to meet, a new schedule, new subjects. A whole new class will enter your school and bring something new to your department. New challenges, new projects, (in my case) new music, and new players in ensembles. A new school year is full of so much potential to be amazing or awful, depending on what you make of it.

There are other reasons to be excited to go back. Being with your friends, for one thing. I know I have barely seen anyone all summer. Being able to be back at a place I enjoy while learning things I care about and doing things I love with people who are like-minded is so refreshing (and different from summer and summer work). I am a person who loves to learn. I have always enjoyed school for this reason, and high school and, even more so, college were full of classes and extracurriculars that expanded and built upon previous knowledge as well as taught me new things. (Perhaps that is what makes me a nerd?) Another thing I like about school is the scheduled aspect, the fact that every day is pretty predictable but also a little bit different.

All in all, there are many reasons to be excited to be going back to school. For those of us who are unapologetically excited about continuing their education, getting back with friends, and being faced with new challenges, the wait is almost over! (You might even have a countdown, like me!) For those who are not, enjoy the last bit of summer and don’t rain on our parades as we collect our supplies and make our plans for the coming year.