55 Senior Graduation Quotes for 2022

Updated March 26, 2019
Father Adjusting Mortarboard Of Son

A lot of people like to give advice to seniors graduating from high school or college. Many choose to do so by quoting others. Check out some original and popular senior quotes to find the type of quote that's right for you, whether it's for your commencement speech or to write in a card to your son or daughter.

Original Quotes for Graduating Seniors

Coming up with an original quote that you can give to a graduating senior can be a little hard. However, on this special occasion, you don't want to be saying the same thing as everyone else. Instead, check out several original inspirational, funny and future quotes that seniors might enjoy.

Inspirational Graduation Quotes for Seniors

Sometimes future grads need a little push to inspire them toward greatness. Use these quotes to encourage seniors as they leave high school or college.

  • Your passion and career go hand-in-hand.
  • Knowing how to weather a storm is important but so is dancing in the rain.
  • It's only through failure that you can understand success.
  • Desire is the key ingredient that means the difference between success and failure.
  • Success needs happiness to survive.
  • If you're afraid, it's probably a worthwhile adventure.
  • This is only the ending of the first chapter of a grand adventure.
  • What lies behind us are the building blocks to what lies in front of us.

Funny Graduation Quotes

Sometimes the best medicine is a little humor. Explore quotes that show that graduation isn't always serious. They're perfect companions for a funny graduation speech and can spice up a graduation bio too!

  • While your body may grow older, immaturity can last a lifetime.
  • There aren't any regrets in life, unless you misspelled your name on your college application then you might need to worry.
  • Graduating is a scam that you got pressured into by society.
  • As a small fish in a big pond, it's important to swim fast.
  • It'd be nice if there was an elevator to your future but sometimes it feels like you're on an escalator going the wrong way. If in doubt, take the stairs.

Senior Graduation Quotes About the Future

The future can be scary with all the different changes that are going to take place for seniors. Find some comfort in these unique quotes. Some would also make good class mottos.

  • Nothing in life is impossible as long as you take that first step.
  • Don't assume the answer is no before you ask the question.
  • Don't live someone else's dream, find your own.
  • Futures don't make themselves, you have to create them.
  • Your future is only as good as the work you put into it.
  • Graduation is the first step of the next chapter of your life.
  • Yesterday is what brought you to today.
Fresh graduate walking away in street

Graduation Quotes for Dreams

For seniors, graduation is the close of a very long chapter of their lives that provided the foundation to their dreams. Get inspired on how to achieve your dreams through these original quotes.

  • If you dream big, falling short doesn't hurt so bad.
  • Achieving your dreams is equal parts ambition, drive and happiness.
  • Through belief in your abilities, education and confidence all dreams are possible.
  • Enjoy the journey as much as the dream.
  • Your dream is precious, cultivate it well.
  • Dreams are like sailing, sometimes the water gets choppy, but you need to keep moving forward.
  • Dreams are what push us to move forward.
  • Are dreams reached without sacrifices really dreams at all?

Famous Graduation Quotes for Seniors

You can't go wrong with quotes that have been around for centuries or even those by famous actors. Try some of these famous sayings on for size.

Famous Quotes for Seniors About Education

It's all about building your future through your education. Explore some quotes from the greats.

  • The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet. - Aristotle
  • An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest. - Benjamin Franklin
  • Graduation is only a concept. In real life every day you graduate. Graduation is a process that goes on until the last day of your life. If you can grasp that, you'll make a difference. - Arie Pencovici
  • Your education is a dress rehearsal for a life that is yours to lead. - Nora Ephron
  • When you leave here, don't forget why you came. - Adlai Stevenson
  • If someone is going down the wrong road, he doesn't need motivation to speed him up. What he needs is education to turn him around. - Jim Rohn
  • A human being is not attaining his full heights until he is educated. - Horace Mann

Senior Graduation Quotes to Inspire

Looking to inspire a future doctor or business guru, check out these quotes meant to inspire the masses.

  • The fireworks begin today. Each diploma is a lighted match. Each one of you is a fuse. - Edward Koch
  • Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. - Steve Jobs
  • Fortune does favor the bold, and I promise that you will never know what you're capable of unless you try. - Sheryl Sandberg
  • To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe. - Anatole France
  • I found that nothing in life is worthwhile unless you take risks. - Denzel Washington
  • Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value. - Albert Einstein
  • Do not follow where the path may lead. Go, instead, where there is no path and leave a trail. - Ralph Waldo Emerson
  • Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm. - Winston Churchill

Quotes for Graduating Seniors on Looking Ahead

Graduation is only one small moment in the journey of our lives. Use these inspirational quotes to push graduates toward the future.

  • Graduation is not the end; it's the beginning. - Orrin Hatch
  • Life is an improvisation. You have no idea what's going to happen next and you are mostly just making things up as you go along. - Stephen Colbert
  • The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. -Eleanor Roosevelt
  • Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other. - John F. Kennedy
  • You cannot but learn more of the world's heft, as you take it now into your hands. - John Updike
  • Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. - Mark Twain
  • Doors will slam in your face. You must pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and knock again; it's the only way to achieve your goals in life. - Michael Uslan
Smiling graduate holding diploma

Humorous Senior Graduation Quotes

Humorous celebrities from Dr. Seuss to Roosevelt offer quick witted quotes that can make any senior smile. Give one of these zingers a try.

  • A graduation ceremony is an event where the commencement speaker tells thousands of students dressed in identical caps and gowns that 'individuality' is the key to success. - Robert Orben
  • Your families are extremely proud of you. You can't imagine the sense of relief they are experiencing. This would be a most opportune time to ask for money. - Gary Bolding
  • You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. - Dr. Seuss
  • I learned law so well, the day I graduated I sued the college, won the case, and got my tuition back. - Fred Allen
  • A man who has never gone to school may steal from a freight car; but if he has a university education, he may steal the whole railroad. - Theodore Roosevelt

Using Graduation Quotes for Seniors

Having quotes is great, but what can you do with them? There are several ways that seniors, family. friends, and proud parents can use these quotes to their advantage. They could be used as graduation slogans, but other suggestions include:

  • Add a quote to your graduation announcement.
  • Use a quote as part of your graduation speech.
  • Print a quote on a graduation gift.
  • Write a quote in a graduation card.
  • Insert the quote into your yearbook.
  • Post the quotes around school as graduation approaches.
  • Chant quotes to stressed seniors to push them forward toward graduation.
  • Use it as a senior class motto.

Additional Sources of Senior Quotes

Not seeing the quote you're looking for? Try some others sources for inspiration, such as movies, song lyrics, or even advertisements. You could also try writing your own graduation saying or message from the heart. Also, check out Time's list of top 10 commencement speeches. Just be sure to credit the authors of the speeches if you decide to use any of the quotes.

55 Senior Graduation Quotes for 2022