In light of 2025’s winter semester, I have heard a million complaints. It’s too cold, and many students feel the drag from the holidays, making it one of the most unpopular times of the year for a college student. I, for one, certainly disagree with this mentality. I believe the winter semester provides a fresh start to the new year for all students, and maybe can even bring us some good luck.

I think the winter semester is the superior semester for many reasons, one being that it falls at the start of the year. I believe the beginning of the year brings good luck and symbolizes a clean slate or a fresh start from the last semester. The beginning of the winter semester falls in January, and gives us the opportunity to come up with new academic goals and plans to achieve them. It’s a new year and a new you– you can always be a better student. Adding a few academic goals to your New Year’s resolutions is a great idea and could get you motivated for a new semester’s worth of classes.

Another reason why I believe the winter semester is the star semester is due to smaller class sizes. Due to general burnout and the effect of the winter holidays, some students drop classes or take on smaller class loads. The smaller class sizes give me and other students a more personalized learning experience. Students could have better opportunities to participate in class now that it’s not packed with students. I also find smaller classes beneficial because they can be less intimidating for students with social anxiety or those with a fear of doing presentations in front of large groups.

Additionally, while many students face burnout in the winter, it’s actually the fall semester that causes it. Facing burnout can make completing assignments more difficult, but the winter semester is arguably the quickest. You blink and it’s over. However, with a fall semester, the workload and class routine can be overwhelming after summer break. The longer break can completely throw off any routine you had set before leaving, making the fall semester more difficult. 

All of this is to say, I think there are many ways that winter semester tops the fall. I find that going into the winter semester with a positive attitude makes things a bit easier. Knowing the fall semester is behind me is one of the notions that makes me feel better.