A few short months ago, the only song I had stuck in my head was a classic one: “Schooooooooool’s out!” Despite Alice Cooper’s iconic allegation that the doldrums of classrooms are done forever, here I am facing my final semester of grad school course work. Luckily, I have a few songs I can use for that transition, too.

I swore up and down and sideways that I was done with academic navel gazing, but somehow I ended up enrolled in a two-year master’s program in Missouri. If I thought my final semester at UT last year was weighted with the anticipation of freedom, this is 10 times worse.

So I put together a list of tunes that are equal parts commiserating-the-end-of-summer blasts and pumping-you-up-to-boss-your-way-through-the-next-few-months anthems.

These songs are for anyone, school-bound or not, that needs to ease into the harsh realities of fall. And no, there’s no White Stripes’ “We Are Going to Be Friends.” Trust me, I ain’t here to make friends.

This article appears in August 15 • 2014.

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