By: Jacob Hales

Let’s face it, we’ve all gotten livid after getting a horrible grade on a test, threatened to drop out, and decided maybe that’s not the greatest decision. So, are there any other options? Early graduation? But isn’t that for smart kids who got accepted into Harvard a year early?Well…it can be, but not typically. So what exactly is early graduation?

Early graduation is an opportunity a select few schools offer (including Heritage High) that allows students with enough credits to graduate either a semester or full year early. In the 2019 school year alone, 50 students at Heritage have signed up for the program.

Early graduation is for anyone with at least a 2.8 weighted GPA and a valid reason for graduating early. Whether that reason is going to community college, joining the armed forces, or even starting your career, it does not matter. However, early graduation isn’t for everyone. You will miss out on up to a year’s worth of activities, or a semester for mid-year graduates. You’ll be thrown out into the real world a year early so you definitely need to keep in mind the tough transition between that and high school.

There are many pros to graduating early, including forgetting about senioritis. Because, after 11 years of sitting at a desk, guzzling the same garbage and then regurgitating it like a robin with the avian flu, we are pretty all done and can’t imagine enduring yet another year of torment. However, most students are rather acquiesce on the matter and decide to brave their senior year in its entirety.

Some bonuses to graduating early is being able to attend college early and getting a head start on your career. Whether that means going to Wake Tech to get your Associates in Welding or getting a job at Burger King, it doesn’t matter!

You may be reading this and asking yourself: “Why should I listen to what you have to say? How do I know if I can trust you?” Well, I’m one of those 50 students graduating on January 24th, I plan on going to Wake Tech and then transferring to a 4-year university. I hope to pursue a degree in Linguistics and work for a company like National Geographic.

I hope this article gave those who are interested in this opportunity some insight on what early graduation is all about.