College students all over the United States look forward to the breaks that they get throughout the semester, with Thanksgiving break being one of the most recent ones. Whether students celebrate Thanksgiving or not, this still allowed for students to get a break from the chaos of schoolwork and extracurriculars.
Cameron Lee-Parker, a junior majoring in graphic design, was able to spend time with family while on Thanksgiving break.
“I spent my Thanksgiving with my family in Colorado,” Lee-Parker said. “We did what we normally do with our pretty basic traditions, which is making our signature unique dishes. My brother makes mashed potatoes, my mom makes the turkey and I usually make the green bean casserole.”
In a recent study by SmartAsset, 95% of students spend their time with family during this break, but being around family can be very draining for many students.
Lee-Parker stated that his family can be a little bit draining, making him feel like he didn’t get much of a break, which is a testament that many students can agree with.
Princess Hart, a senior majoring in graphic design, felt similar when asked if her break was long enough.
“I spent my Thanksgiving break recovering from my wisdom tooth removal. I was just sore all over and had a fever on top of it, which was not very fun,” Hart said.
Hart feels that she isn’t very well rested for finals because she was very much still recovering from her fever and the mouth pain, and said she could have used another week.
“Even though I was recovering from my wisdom tooth removal surgery, I was still able to participate within our family traditions. We don’t really have any specific traditions but we usually go to my step dad’s family dinner, where everyone brings a different dish,” Hart said. “It is just a giant potluck, which is normally very fun, but I was only able to eat the mashed potatoes that were there.”
Now Drake University has two significant breaks for the fall semester, which is fall break that happens in October, near midterms, which is around two days off. Then we have Thanksgiving break, which gives students three days off, including the weekend, but sometimes the stress is too much for students over break.
“I was very overwhelmed with my classwork during break because most projects tend to overlap with one another. I’ll have four projects going for one class and then five more in different classes. So, it is just a lot to handle during these breaks,” Hart said.
When asked if Drake University should get rid of fall break and make Thanksgiving break into a longer week, such as other universities, she said this.
“I like having multiple breaks across the semester. I think the time length is pretty good for them too and helps to break up the stress that is around the semester,” she said.
