Happy first day of class, Clemson seniors! Can you believe this is it? YOUR FINAL first day as a Clemson student?

Honestly, I’m right there with you. This is my last semester at Clemson too, and I keep having these moments where it hits me that we’re actually graduating. It feels surreal! Just yesterday we were nervous freshmen trying to navigate campus, and now we’re about to walk across that stage in Littlejohn Coliseum in a few short months.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how quickly this final semester is going to fly by, and I wanted to create the ultimate senior checklist for all of us. These are all the things we need to take care of, experience, and remember before we turn our tassels and officially become Clemson alumni. Let’s make sure our final semester is everything we want it to be!

The Absolute Must-Do Academic Tasks

Apply for Graduation If you haven’t yet (guilty of procrastinating?), make it your priority THIS WEEK! Log into iROAR, go to Student Self-Service, select Student Records, and submit your graduation application. The deadline for May 2026 graduation is January 28, 2026, and trust me, none of us want to pay those late fees that start at $75 (plus $5 per day)!

Meet with Your Academic Advisor Schedule this within the first two weeks. I promise it’ll give you peace of mind to confirm you’re actually on track to graduate. The last thing any of us need is a surprise missing credit in April!

Run Your Degree Audit Don’t just assume everything is fine! I’m definitely checking mine this week to verify all my requirements are met. Major requirements, gen eds, minimum credit hours. Better to catch any issues now than panic later.

Order Your Cap and Gown Contact the Clemson University Bookstore to order your regalia. I’m doing this early because the thought of a last-minute rush when everyone realizes graduation is next month sounds stressful!

Set Up Your Tassel Account You’ll get an email from commencement@clemson.edu. This is how they make sure they pronounce our names correctly when we walk across that stage.

The Clemson Bucket List Experiences

Run Down the Hill (If You Haven’t) I don’t know about you, but I’m making this happen somehow before we graduate. It’s THE Clemson tradition!

Touch Howard’s Rock One Last Time Not just a quick touch on your way to class. Really stop, touch that legendary rock, and let it sink in that this is your last semester doing this.

Visit Every Favorite Spot One More Time That study table at Cooper Library. Your favorite bench on Bowman Field. The coffee shop where you spent way too much money. I’m making a list of all my spots and visiting them intentionally before we leave.

Take a Sunrise or Sunset Photo at the Reflection Pond The campus is absolutely gorgeous during golden hour. We need these memories captured! I’m planning to do this on a day when I don’t have an 8am the next morning.

Grab Late-Night Cookout One More Time Because some traditions are too important to skip. Who’s meeting me there at midnight after a study session?

Attend a Basketball Game at Littlejohn The atmosphere is incredible and we only have so many games left! Let’s make the most of our student tickets while we still have them.

Walk Through Campus There’s something magical when you aren’t stressing about classes. The lit-up buildings, the quiet paths. I’ve been doing this for five years and I know I’ll miss it.

The Celebration Planning Tasks

Book Your Senior Portrait Session Okay, I’ll be honest, this one is extra important to me! As a photographer, I’ve spent years capturing other students’ milestones, and now it’s OUR turn. Whether you want classic campus shots at Bowman Field and Tillman Hall or somewhere more personal, we deserve to celebrate this achievement with beautiful portraits. I’m already thinking about my own session and where I want to go. Sessions fill up quickly as we get closer to graduation, so let’s not wait!

Plan Your Graduation Party Are you doing something big or keeping it intimate? I’m still figuring this out myself, but I know I need to give my family advance notice so they can make travel plans.

Order Graduation Announcements We’ll need those senior portraits for these! I’m planning to send mine out about a month before graduation.

Update Your Professional Headshots LinkedIn is calling our names! Whether it’s for job applications or grad school, we need current professional photos. Perfect excuse for that senior portrait session!

The Practical Adulting Checklist

Start Your Job Search (If You Haven’t Already) Real talk, this is intimidating but we’ve got this! Career fairs, networking events, applications. The Career Center is our friend right now.

Apply to Graduate School If you’re continuing your education, make sure everything is submitted. Deadlines are real and they’re coming fast!

Figure Out Your Post-Graduation Housing Where are we even going? Home? New city? Staying local? I’m still working this out too, but we should probably have a plan soon!

Update Your Resume and LinkedIn Let’s get these polished before May so we’re ready when opportunities come up.

Request Letters of Recommendation Ask professors NOW while we’re still fresh in their minds from last semester!

The Memory-Making Moments

Take Photos with Your Best Friends The people who made these four years unforgettable deserve to be in your camera roll forever. I’m planning several friend photoshoots this semester because I know how much I’ll treasure these.

Write Thank You Notes To professors who changed how you think. To staff who always had a smile. To friends who kept you sane during finals week. I’m making myself do this even though I’m terrible at it.

Document the Ordinary Days Take photos of your messy desk during a study session. Your roommate making coffee in the morning. The view from your favorite spot. These ordinary moments are what we’ll miss most.

Join Senior Week Activities The Student Alumni Association hosts events in late April specifically for us! We’ve earned this celebration.

The Things We Might Forget

Know How to Access Your Transcripts Post-Graduation Future us will need these for job applications. Let’s figure out the process now.

Understand Your IT Access Changes Our Clemson email won’t last forever. What do we need to transition?

Plan Your Move-Out Timeline Whether on-campus or off, we need an exit strategy. When’s your lease up? Where’s all your stuff going?

Save Important Documents Download papers you’re proud of, important emails, anything you want to keep before losing access.

Connect with the Alumni Association We’ll always be Clemson Tigers! Let’s stay connected to this family.

The Emotional Prep (Because It’s Real)

Allow Yourself to Feel All the Feelings I’ve already had moments of excitement, panic about the future, nostalgia, and pure joy all in the same day. That’s completely normal! We’re allowed to be thrilled about what’s next while also being sad to leave.

Be Present This is something I’m really trying to focus on. It’s so easy to get caught up worrying about jobs or grad school or what’s next, but we’re still here NOW. Let’s actually be here for it.

Say Yes to Random Adventures That spontaneous road trip? Late-night Waffle House run? Random Tuesday adventure? Say yes! Some of my best Clemson memories came from completely unplanned moments.

Take Mental Snapshots Sometimes the best moments aren’t captured on camera. The feeling of walking across Bowman Field on a perfect day. The sound of your friends laughing. The way campus looks on a foggy morning. Pay attention and really soak it in.

We’ve Got This

I know this list looks overwhelming, but we have an entire semester! We can pick a few priorities each week and work through them together.

This final semester is honestly a gift. We get to celebrate how far we’ve come while getting ready for everything ahead. It’s bittersweet and exciting and nostalgic and hopeful all at once. And we’re all in this together!

So here’s to our last first day. To one more semester of being Clemson students. To making these final months count. To supporting each other through the stress and celebrating every win. To documenting these memories and holding onto them forever.

We worked so hard to get here. Let’s make sure we remember every moment of this final chapter.

As a fellow senior who deeply understands how meaningful this milestone is, I’d love to help capture your final semester at Clemson through beautiful senior portraits. Whether you want classic campus shots or something that tells your unique story, let’s create images that celebrate everything this journey has meant. I’m booking sessions now for my fellow Class of 2026 Tigers. Contact me today so we can make this happen before the semester gets completely crazy!

Congratulations on your final first day, friends. We’ve got this, and I cannot wait to see where we all go next! Go Tigers!