When I was a junior worrying about my GPA, taking the SAT (or maybe the ACT?) exam, and trying repeatedly to pass my driver's test, senior year beckoned as a sort of heavenly reward for all my struggles.

Now I'm here, and it turns out the reality of being a senior is quite different from that illusion.

Students often get giddy and eager when they think of life as a 12th-grader: Driving your own car, leaving school mid-day to grab lunch from the deli, and staying out until 2 a.m. every Saturday.

But given my own personal experience, along with some investigating among the Fox Lane High School senior student body, let me paint a clearer picture of senior life.

Yes, seniors are blessed with many privileges not granted to the underclassmen.  But it's not all relaxation and revelry. The notion that seniors don't have to do any schoolwork is a complete myth. Perhaps the intensity lessens when you get accepted to college(s), but for many that doesn't happen until the third or even fourth marking period. Not to mention the fact that colleges want to see the grades you get the first quarter—and often the second—of senior year.

Academically, the pressure is definitely on.

The idea of having your own car and essentially doing whatever you want is romanticized. Few seniors are lucky enough to have their parents buy them a car. Even fewer can afford their own car. Most split a car with their parents or siblings, resulting in horribly inconvenient car availability. Also, gas is expensive! And driving to and from school (and buying all those deli sandwiches) adds up. Most seniors pay for their own gas—most seniors don't have deep pockets. So it's only a matter of time before wallets are strained and seniors curb their car use.

Suddenly, mom's lunches don't seem so bad.

The looming college admission process really does impact every facet of a senior's school year—even leaving school mid-day. At Fox Lane High School, the off-campus policy is that a senior must have back-to-back free periods in order to legally leave school grounds. But who wants to send prospective colleges a senior year schedule revealing all that free time? That doesn't "look good."

It's difficult having fun and doing what you want, while somehow appearing serious and hard-working.

Let's talk about weekends. Parties are thrown, and we seniors do have fun, but there's still a lot competing with our weekend festivities. The college essay is a monumental undertaking. A topic must be chosen, drafts written, edits made, English experts conferred with—it's endless. Completing the rest of the application requirements is no quickie either, and regular coursework requires hours each weekend. And beware: parents are particularly uptight come college application season.

When you stay out until three o'clock in the morning hanging with your friends, you don't think about how exhausted you'll be when you wake up at two in the afternoon the next day, with five hours of homework staring you in the face. But there it is waiting for you when you finally roll out of bed. Mom's chiding, "have you worked on your essay yet today?" only makes things worse.

So heads-up you underclassmen: senior year isn't all partying, good times, and skipping out on schoolwork. We don't actually drive all over the county in our cars on free gas. Most likely, you'll find us in class, or in the cafeteria eating mom's sandwiches.