Five Things I’ve Learned Post-College Graduation
The way I envisioned my life as a college graduate did not include all the uncertainties that are currently present as I graduate this summer with my Bachelor’s in Psychology. Not only in regards to COVID-19 and the lack of a formal graduation ceremony but also my plans for my future. Throughout high school, I thought I was certain about what I wanted to do with my life, but as it turns out, the more you learn about the reality of certain careers, the more inclined you are to have no idea what you actually want to pursue.
1. It’s not uncommon for your goals to change.
It’s more common than you think to graduate without a solid plan for the future. I’ve been graduated from university for not even one month, and I don’t have the clean-cut post-grad plans I thought I would have. Being a psychology major, I had always planned on going to graduate school and getting my Ph.D. However, that plan was a perfect example of thinking you know what you want without understanding the reality of it all. While I don’t want to completely take getting my Ph.D. off the table, I learned that the profession I originally wanted to pursue isn’t what I thought it would be.
As a result, I’ve played around with many ideas, like having an office day job while I work to cultivate a writing and blogging career on the side, or getting my Master’s and becoming a college advisor (something I have a knack for — my friends have told me I was more helpful with planning out their classes than their own advisors!). But truthfully, I don’t have any strong inclination towards any one career path over another, and the battle I’ve fought with trying not to feel like a failure about it has been rough. But the reality is that when you formulate goals early on, as is common with the culture of college, there’s a good chance you’ll change your mind as you get more information.
2. A lack of a plan or job offer lined up does not make you a failure.
What has helped me cope with this problem is learning that I am NOT alone in this. After spending an afternoon watching many post-college grad life videos on YouTube, I quickly learned that many other graduates were in the same position as me. Many of them had second thoughts about the major they chose and are now lacking direction on where to go next. But up until that point, many of these students were ambitious and driven people that excelled in school. And if that’s the type of person you’ve always been, there’s no reason to think that hitting a roadblock after graduation means you’re going nowhere in life.
3. I dread the inevitability of my upcoming job hunt with every fiber of my being — but there are perks.
It’s like, where do I even start? I currently work in one industry while I majored in another. Should I play it safe and attempt to further expand my experience in my current industry? Or should I settle for more unpaid internships in the field I studied while applying for paid positions in that field that I know I won’t get with my poor little Bachelor’s degree? It’s not a dilemma I like occupying much of my mental space with.
But on the upside, graduation is a more practical time than ever to experiment with different fields. It was difficult to do so while in college, without any degree and with such little free time. The only accurate way to gauge whether or not a profession is right for you is by experiencing it first-hand, rather than just studying what it’s all about in theory.
4. And with that said, there will be people who seem to be instantly successful.
I know you’ve probably been comparing all your peers’ LinkedIn profiles and feeling a hit to your ego each time you see that someone got mysteriously hired at some fancy-schmancy Fortune 500 company right out of college. But really, is that the end all be all? As difficult as it is not to compare, falling into the trap of comparison won’t be productive in achieving your own goals. And just because someone’s new career sounds amazing on paper doesn’t mean that person is happy with what they do. There may be negative factors about it that you just don’t get to see. Furthermore, maybe the position they have that you envy wouldn’t be the right fit for you personally.
5. Take risks
As I said earlier about now being a better time than ever to experiment, this really can be the case. Depending on your financial situation and needs, you likely have more room for risk-taking now than you would later on with kids and a mortgage. This article in Time Magazine brings up a great point, that post-graduation is the perfect time to do the unconventional, like going abroad for a year while living like a minimalist, or starting an out of the box business idea. And so what if it fails? You’re only 22 and have the rest of your life to play it safe, and the experience you’ve gained from experimenting will benefit your knowledge of the world going forward.
