.jpg "Randi Lucius")
Guest blogger Randi Lucius graduated in May 2008 with a BA in Communications from Westfield (MA) State College and joined Pongo as an online marketing specialist in August. Now, with a year of the real world behind her, she shares her thoughts on the disparity she and her friends have found between where they are and where they thought they'd be one year out of college.
____________________________
One year ago this month, my entire life changed. I suddenly found myself without money, without my own apartment, without my friends, and, worst of all, without a stream of cheap alcohol at my constant disposal. The horrific event that changed my oh-so-sweet way of life? College graduation.
This month, thousands of students will find themselves transformed from carefree party-animal college students to buried-under-debt "adults." They'll have to don suits, prepare resumes, and sell themselves to potential employers so they can pay off all the student loans and credit card bills they racked up from years of four 30-packs a week and shopping sprees at the mall.
Welcome to the real world, my friends!
While I was thinking how my life has changed (or hasn't) in the year since graduation, I wondered if I was the only one among my group of friends with elaborate ideas of what my new life as a college graduate would be like. I had grand plans of living my life à la Sex and the City, with my own chic apartment in the city, a great job, mingling with celebs and the elite on weekends, sipping cosmos with my gal pals at some adorable bistro in downtown Boston, and dating Jacoby Ellsbury.
Oh, how wrong I was! Today, I'm working two jobs, spending 75% of my paycheck on bills, still living with my parents (did I just admit that?) and (GASP!) only going to the bar once a month.
But that's not to say I'm not happy. I do have two great jobs, great friends, a great guy, great parents who don't mind that their 20-something daughter is STILL living in the basement, and enough spare cash to do the things I enjoy. Granted, my life isn't as fabulous as I once pictured, but I'm very content.
I decided to do a quick survey of my friends (i.e., I messaged them on Facebook) to see what their expectations of post-college life had been, compared to where they found themselves now. Were they disappointed? Happy? Indifferent? These were the things I needed to know!
Apparently, I wasn't the only one who was a little disappointed with how things turned out. While my friends hadn't expected to be the next Carrie Bradshaw like I had, they did expect to be living slightly more adult lives:
- Most had been hoping to be on their own, have a modestly paying job, and work in a field that related directly to their degree.
- Some were happy that, despite not reaching the goals they'd planned out last year, they were still working and making good money and able to establish new goals.
- Others were disappointed they were still living the life of a college student; the only difference was they went to work instead of class.
- Almost everyone had expected to make more money than they were, even if it wasn't much more. Only one friend was making more than he expected.
.jpg "What awaits the Class of 2009?")
What about the people graduating this year? If I was surprised by my '08 graduate friends' answers, I was floored by those who are graduating in '09. Maybe it's because of the economy, maybe they're just "glass half empty" types, but these new grads have no delusions—they expect to take months to find jobs and not make much money when they do.
One of my friends even went so far as to say that he saw himself "living in a cardboard box" in a year. Ouch.
If I had to give any advice to these soon-to-be graduates, it's that it's OK. It's OK to live with your parents. It's OK if you have to work part-time at McDonald's. It's OK to date Jacoby Ellsbury, decide you're not that into him, and give him my e-mail address.
Good economy or bad, looking for a job and finding your way in life is difficult. You'll have good times, bad times, easy times, and hard times. That's just how life is. But if you work hard at reaching your goals, you will make them. Even if it takes till your five-year reunion.
If the Class of '09 (or anyone else) has any questions, feel free to post them below. Or, just leave a comment!
RELATED LINKS
Prepare for Life after College with These Tips
Hey Grads! No Experience? No Problem! (Sort of)
Should I Put My GPA on My Resume?
Transitioning from Student to Professional: What They Don't Teach You in School
What? The real world? What happened to my daily naps? Where's the dining hall in the real world? And why are these loans companies asking that I start paying them back suddenly? Maybe I should have failed that final exam and stuck around another year...
I think most grads, including me, have delusions of doing super amazing things right after college. After living in a college bubble for 4 years, this shouldn't come as a surprise. Personally, I planned on jumping to the top of the corporate ladder, making my millions in 3-5 years, and retiring. Either that or get hired by Lonely Planet and travel the world on someone else's dime. Neither of those really worked out... whatever, retirement at 27 would have gotten pretty boring anyways.
All in all, I figure if you are in a place you like and with good people around you, then that's all you can really ask for. I feel like I'm moving in the right direction in life, wherever it might lead.
Gabe- It's definitely a shock going from college to the real world. The hardest thing I had to deal with? Having my friends around 24/7. Now I'm lucky to see my college friends once a month.
But you're right. As long as you're happy, and work hard, you will end up in a great place, even if it's not a multimillionaire.
am in a fix myself as to how life after school will be like. i have always wanted to complete school and find a nice and befitting job to do.but the question i keep asking myself is who is going to employ an inexperienced graduate.all these employers are asking for work experience and how are we going to gain the needed experience if no one is willing to employ us.i will be graduating in June and i pray that i get a job which will give me the needed skills i need and to practice what i have i learnt in school
Anzie- Getting you're first job out of college is going to be incredibly difficult. Employers want to know that you have experience, but more often than not, recent grads only have the experiences from the classroom. So what should you do? Well, for my resume post college, besides putting any work experience in there, I also talked about what I had learned in school and how that would prepare me for my first job. Internships are also great to put on your resume as well. I also had a portfolio that I put various class projects so that I could show potential employers that I actually had some experience, even if it wasn't at a job. During interviews, build upon any experiences you had at school, whether it was being a part of the Student Government or being the leader of a huge group project. Tell them anything that might show them that even though you might need some training, you'll still become a valued member of their company.
I have a number of younger friends now leaving university that have a very bleak short-term outlook. Saddled with large debts (in UK typically £20-40k, don't know about you guys stateside) in an environment where many of the usual large-scale graduate recruiters just aren't hiring.
I know things will get better for them, but it's hard for them going from the fun protected environment of university into a job market whwre they may end up taking any job that pays the rent. They expected a rude awakening going out into the workplace, but to have the planned career path just whipped away is tough.