I’m done with school…now what?
I’m approaching my last semester of undergrad and honestly, I didn’t think I would get this far. Through every trial and tribulation, I thought I would have given up by my second year. But here we are, almost at the finish line.
Everyone is so excited for me. Being the first person in the family to obtain a bachelor’s degree is a big deal. As we reach closer and closer to May 2021, I get excited too…but I also get more nervous.
Don’t get me wrong. I believe it’s a great accomplishment that I will be graduating and I don’t want to downplay any of my achievements. I am just scared of the unknown.
What is life like outside of school? I mean I’ve been in school every year since I was 5 years old. Now I’m going to be an actual adult with high expectations to be a working part of society.
How will I handle my transition? I don’t know how easy (or hard) it will be. I won’t be used to seeing my friends all the time as everyone will go back to their home states and going back home may seem like a setback.
Am I going to find a job? That’s the big deal breaker. We go to school to hopefully get a promising job, but it’s not as easy as you think. I don’t want to find myself having a difficult time getting into my major.
These are the questions I stress myself with all of the time. Although everyone says it’s going to be okay, I think about what if it’s not going to be okay.
I found a blog on Medium that related to a lot of what I was worried about and I thought that it was a good and helpful read. The author, Rachel Hardy, tells you about the life nobody told you about after graduation.
Unsurprisingly, a lot of what I predict to happen is what she said she felt. She also took a turn of events and ended her blog off with inspiration. Although you may feel doubt and hardships, you will eventually learn how to adapt to being a life long learner and not just a student.
Her blog, which can be found here: https://medium.com/the-post-grad-survival-guide/what-no-one-tells-you-about-life-after-graduation-11d99ff3b57b not only made me feel better about my transition, it also made me realize that it’s only as great as you make it out to be.
So for every first-gen or any student fighting uncertainty towards, graduation, take a deep breath. It’s okay. You’re closing one door and opening another one full of more opportunities.
