Cat Quips: Spring Break vs. Shorter Semester?

Since last year, MSU students (well, really only the seniors) have seen what it’s like to have both a spring break and a longer semester, as well as a shorter semester and no spring break. I checked in with MSU students who have severely divergent opinions on this year’s return of spring break.

PRO: Lucy Fajt (Senior — Art): 

“I think that having a spring break is really important because there’s a lot of students who have a rough time in the winter, especially being further north. Having less hours of daylight can affect a person, especially with a heavy workload and midterms being so close. Spring break is really helpful for mental health, especially among students. I’m actually going to the beach! I’m getting an Airbnb and my friend and I are going to sit and walk on the beach like old ladies and it’s gonna be great. My other friends are going out on a little road trip, and my other friend is going to go stay at that weird hotel or Airbnb that’s shaped like a potato. It’s super important to get that burst of fun mid semester.”

CON: Sam Bryson (Junior — Psychology and English writing): 

“I think spring break is stupid. I think that people who need it are just weaker than the rest. We all love a break, who doesn’t? However, having spring break means that it takes that much longer for us to finish the semester. By the end of April, students and faculty want to be cut loose from the chains that the school establishment binds us in. I had this incredible opportunity to work with chimpanzees at a zoo in Africa, but the internship starts at the beginning of May like all things do. I think seasonal depression at our school is a real problem and without that week off, students don’t have time to get re-centered to catch up on work. But when you feel that you’re missing out on things that your other friends have already been doing since many schools end earlier, that is problematic for your mental health too. For example, my boyfriend, who goes to CU Boulder, is done in April, and he and I could be spending two weeks together, rather than me having to be at school until May 12.”