Emilia Gerber
Portland Community College, Portland, Oregon. Emilia Gerber, a junior at Grant High School, has known she wanted to graduate early since freshman year. A self-driven person, Gerber says, one of the main reasons she decided to graduate early is her desire for more autonomy in her decisions. She doesn’t feel that she is missing out on the senior experience by graduating early: “My friend group is primarily just seniors, so I’m able to get involved in all the senior things,” she says. “I feel like I’m really getting a senior year experience without having to wait four years.”
Next year, Gerber will attend Portland Community College (PCC) to collect college credits before applying to a four-year university. Gerber plans to major in business with a concentration in marketing or finance and may minor in economics or Spanish. To Gerber, the hardest part about graduating early is staying motivated and on top of her work. Students interested in graduating early must have 24 credits by the end of their junior year. Gerber has opted to take these credits as her junior electives, although other options include summer school or evening scholars. For most people, colleges look at their high school transcripts to see their grades; however, since Gerber is choosing to take a year at PCC before applying to universities, her high school grades will be less relevant, and her year at community college will be a more accurate representation of how she will perform in a college environment. “If you want to graduate early, you know what, do it,” Gerber says. “It just takes a plan and some motivation.”
Liam Foran
U.S. Coast Guard, Oregon
The decision to graduate early became clear to Liam Foran after he realized he was never really a “big school person.”
When Foran found out he could finish high school a year early, it felt worth it to put in the extra work if it meant moving on to something else sooner. Foran first started seriously thinking about graduating early during his sophomore year, after hearing about a friend who was doing the same to enlist in the Army. Foran says, “I have oth-
er interests outside of school, and I can live with those more than what I’m missing out on in school.”
Foran’s plan for the future is not to attend college right away — rather, he will enlist in the U.S. Coast Guard this summer and serve for four years. For Foran, the main appeal of the U.S. Coast Guard is that he will stay active at all times, doing things like rescue missions along the Oregon coast. “I knew I wanted to do something where I wasn’t going to be doing nothing in peacetime … and I like boats,” Foran says. Although he may attend college later, using the money he earns from his service, Foran’s main focus after graduating is starting his career serving in the U.S. Coast Guard. Liam Foran is graduating early to enlist in the U.S. Coast Guard, inspired by a friend who did the same to enlist in the Army. “I have other interests outside of school, and I can live with those more than what I’m missing out on in school,” he says.
