With the end of the first semester comes the latest GPA calculations, but for freshmen, it’s the first time they will see where they stand in high school.

“I am very stressed about the grades being released,” freshman Medah Krispati said. “Getting good grades in a class is sometimes difficult.”

Many freshmen are enrolled in advanced courses which are designed to be more difficult than on-level ones which may cause more anxiety to keep that grade up.

“With taking almost all advanced classes,” freshman Alanna Chang said, “I feel really stressed to keep all my grades up.”

Additionally, some students must balance extracurriculars with the pressure of getting into college while taking mostly advanced courses. 

“I want to get really good grades and have my weighted and unweighted GPA really high so I can get into good colleges because that is something that many people in high schools discuss themselves and it stresses me out,” freshman Aparajitha Srinivasan said. “I am doing the musical and because of that the rehearsals are not giving me enough time to so do my homework and study and that sometimes reflects on my grades so it is stressing me out.”

Other than just studying, many freshmen set very high expectations for themselves so that their GPA can be good which also leads to anxiety.

“So many people in high schools are competitive about their grades and their expectations,” Srinivasan said. “I set really high expectations for myself and I just want to get to that point.”

To keep up with their grades students find ways to study, for example making flashcards, Quizlets, and reading.

“I have been getting my work done ahead,” freshman Sami Shanthakumar said. “Doing stuff days before so that the knowledge can marinate in my mind so that I can really understand it in depth.” 

“To study I make flashcards and Quizlets for almost all of my classes,” Chang said. “I go through the learn feature on Quizlet to make sure I know everything.”

Other than only studying on their own some students seek help to get better grades.

“To keep my grades up I get extra tutoring and I also go to tutorials almost every day,” Krispati said.

With the stress of grades being released also comes a relief that the semester is over and there is a break from school.

“I think I am excited,” Srinivasan said. “Right now I am doing pretty well and I am excited in terms of my parents will probably be happy and I am happy when they are happy.”