Current high school students have had to learn to adapt quickly to changes, with the pandemic being the largest contributor.

Adding to the list, the senior exit interview now includes a presentation this year. Seniors will be required to create an electronic presentation that is 4-5 minutes long.

With this presentation, each senior will explain their post-high school graduation plans to a committee.

To prepare for this presentation, seniors will reflect on their YouScience aptitude results and create a plan. YouScience is an online career aptitude test based on a series of brain games.

The options for a plan are attending a 4-year college or a 2-year college, entering the workforce full time or joining the military.

After selecting one of these four options, seniors will have to complete the corresponding checklist provided. Seniors will also need to complete a resume to include in the presentation.

They will be expected to have a confident plan and to be professional during the presentation.

Seniors appear to have mixed feelings about the change.

Senior Demarco Hopkins said that people are making it seem like a bigger deal than it really is. In regards to YouScience, Hopkins said “it was a good idea, but the execution was off.”

Senior Charlotte Webster said that they shouldn’t have made the decision to change the senior exit interview process. Webster said that she prefers the old way because a traditional interview “feels more official.”

“It was well intentioned, but the details [of the process] don’t make sense,” said Webster.

Webster has wanted to be a librarian since the 2nd grade and currently works at a library, but YouScience said that her aptitudes are congruent with science based careers.

Due to this disagreement, Webster may find herself struggling to justify her choices.

“Why do you have to convince people that you know what you’re doing with the rest of your life?” she said.

Pam Hirn, the college and career readiness coach, said that this process will better prepare students for their next steps after graduation.

There are a multitude of career options, many of which students haven’t heard of.

“My goal is that this new senior exit process will educate students on all of these options that are available to them,” Hirn said.

“[YouScience] provides a wealth of information about why you excel in certain areas.”

Hirn acknowledges that YouScience has its downsides.

“I believe that YouScience falls short by not offering the assessment in different languages.”

This lack of accessibility to all students may cause discrepancies in their results.

Seniors are still currently in the process of creating their presentations and deciding their plans. The interviews will take place during the second semester, with the times and dates to be determined.

Whether a senior knows their life plan yet or not, this new process will likely force them to put some thought into it.

Since this is a brand new change for Boone, steps and ideas may be subject to change.

The advantages of this new interview may be displayed once seniors take off their caps and gowns and take a first step toward their futures.