It's Been a Year Since I Graduated - Here Is What I've Learned
It’s been (almost exactly) a year since I graduated college and I feel like I’ve learned so much since then about education, the implications of having one and just some general stuff people don’t really tell you (or maybe they just didn’t know to tell you?) For some background, I graduated Arizona State University in 2018 with honors (summa cum laude) with a Bachelors of Science in Political Science, a minor in English Literature and certifications in Human Rights, Ethics, Socio-Legal Studies, International Studies, and Political Thought and Leadership.
Getting a degree for the sake of having one is a waste of time and money. With total transparency I’m currently sitting with over 5 figures of student loan debt and if I would have not been driven with plans of going to Law School I would have dropped out to work. If you’re going to school to party, to please your parents or some other BS we’ve been fed, because you don’t know what else to do - save yourself time and money. Now working in a field totally different than what was my “plan” I can tell you (for the most part) what your degree is in doesn’t matter AT. ALL. Where you get it matters even less. If you want to get a degree, be smart and save money. There are incredible programs at community colleges that are less than half the price of state or private and I promise get you (essentially) the same education.
Your plans will change and you might feel guilty/bad/failed - you shouldn’t. Up until about September of my senior year I really had every intention and plan on attending Law School. Due to burn out, finances and general BS that was going on in my life I ended up not going that direction immediately and felt like the biggest failure of human existence. With not-as-good of LSAT scores as I wanted, I reached out to a friend who was in Law School and her advice probably saved me mentally & financially. She said if you’re not sure, 1 million percent sure, do. not. do. it. I distinctly remember her comparing the price of the education to buying a house and in the middle of campus in front of the Memorial Union I decided that law wasn’t going to be my path after graduation (at least right away). I changed my plans big time but it didn’t mean I was a failure, it just meant I had a different path.
It might take you more or less time than you thought and that’s ok. I graduated early and technically could have completed everything in 3 years but took 3.5. I remember how shocked and proud people were - how smart and whatever I must have been to do it and while yes, I consider myself intelligent, I couldn’t help but think how some of the people I know just as (if not more) intelligent than I am took longer - 4, 5, some even 7 years to graduate from when they started. Granted, there were people I met in school who just dicked around and partied and didn’t give a shit about anything. These are not the people to whom I’m referring. I’m talking about the people who have life happen, programs switch things up, money happens - priorities have to change. If you’re someone who has or will take longer (or less) than 4 years - it’s truly ok. It’s not about how fast you get it done, it’s that you do the damn thing. You are worthy of whatever it is you are seeking & you better never forget that.
Going to community college to save money is worth it almost always. I’m all about being smart and essentially playing the BS systems in place to your advantage. A great example of this is community college. It is way less expensive than most college options and you get comparatively the same education you would get at public or private schools. At ASU it was really common to have people start at one of the community colleges for pre-recs and the boring courses that transferred and then do the important, exciting and specialized stuff after transferring and saving thousands. THAT hustle has and will always impress me. If you are looking at education just remember we don’t have to do this cookie cutter thing like we were told - there are ways to work a system built against all of us to our advantage and to the advantage of our communities we can go on to serve.
You might use everything you learned in school or you might not - thank god for Google. As an emerging entrepreneur I’ve really learned how you can (more or less) learn just about anything anyone has learned in college. There are free videos, webinars, resources, etc. and it takes time (and privilege) to be able to access these things but just because you didn’t learn something in school or major in it or whatever doesn’t mean you’re done for with a career or skill. As someone who has changed fields and never taken a “real” business, marketing, graphic design, photography or related course in my life I’ve learned many of the skills - self taught - and am doing just fine! On top of it all, I can still serve as a resource on politics, various geo-political debates, Constitutional law and more.
A college degree is the new GED. I remember when I was first doing college apps in High School my best friend and I would always joke about how college was just the beginning because a degree basically meant nothing by the time we got into school. Neither of us to date have gotten more than a bachelors but I think we would both still agree the weight a bachelors carries - in job opportunity, salary, lifestyle, etc. - does not carry half the weight it did even 15, 20 years ago. As someone who has worked in HR, I can say from my experience people are not typically willing to pay THAT much more for more than a college degree. If it didn’t cost so much to attain more I would understand but until there begins to be some equity in the cost of education.. well.. maybe rethink going past your bachelors unless you can get it paid for.
You might become uninteresting to your family after college but like who cares. Most recently at this years (2019) Thanksgiving I really noticed how uninterested most of my family was in what I do now. In college it’s like they were so proud and like bragged about me thinking about being a lawyer. Now that I freelance (to them this is not a “real” job) they’re not interested at all in what I’m doing unless it has to do with getting interviews at “real” jobs. If you can relate to this - I’m sorry. I feel you and I promise what you’re doing is worthy!
Running away from your talents and passions is dumb. If there is an interest, hobby, passion, etc. you keep coming back to, notice you’re missing it in your life - whatever it is - make it a priority! Even if it has to stay a hobby for a while, consider making it your job. If it is something you can make a job out of & you’re willing to put in the work I promise it will probably be worth it! There is something about people who do what they love & live & breathe their passion. Those people are typically successful, don’t get brunt out and really inspire folks to do the same. If you LOVE something but it isn’t profitable, what your parents want or something similar at least start b making it a hobby or past time - YOU deserve that. We were not made to make money and die.
Don’t chase a career - chase your purpose. Similar to my last point - don’t chase something you think is profitable or what you were told to do. Make sure what you chase is your passion. Maybe that’s helping people, creating something, mentoring someone and so on. Chase those things! Opportunities that afford you to live your passions and be with them often. I can’t tell you enough how in breaking down a career it typically comes down to titles. Titles change, mean something different everywhere and don’t always equate to having the experiences you would have hoped. Passion brings you experiences and those are what will give you fuel to keep going!
Keep your resume updated. Even if you’re super happy with what you’re doing, keep your resume updated! Add the experiences, projects, roles - everything - as you do it! Keep tracks of stats, dates, and everything in between! This will help you in the future when you are looking to make a change or just want to really see how far you’ve come and all the things you’ve done! With hard data, recommendations and even more data on deliverables being incredibly important now days on resumes this will keep you sane during your next job search or interest in a raise!
You will be poor for a while (or a long time). In another bout of transparency I can say how I am financially right now is about as uncertain as I’ve been in my whole life. While I had a great deal of stability in my first job - after having to move & technically only consistently working part time - paying the bills has been hard. I’m not always sure how I’ll pay rent, buy groceries or do the things I feel I should be. I know I’m not alone in this but I also know (hopefully) this will someday change. While it sucks, I try to stay positive and am working on manifestations to make it into the next season of stability.
Ask for help & accept help. One thing I’ve learned getting older is that it truly takes a village and doing it all yourself is not brave or courageous. It is an undue burden that can be helped and filled with the help and support of others. Not sure how to do something? Ask for advice! Need a little help completing something? Ask for help AND accept it graciously. There is not weakness is seeking and accepting help and don’t let anyone (or yourself) make you think differently.
Take care of yourself like a “real adult” not a college student. I still am learning how to do this BUT this is SO important. Get some freaking sleep, take showers more than you think you need to, wash your face, brush your teeth AT LEAST twice a day and eat something with veggies. every. damn. day. When I was in college I ate pretty well but I drank so much and more or less ran on 3 - 5 hours of sleep for 3 years. By the end I was exhausted and was notorious for using holiday breaks to only sleep so I could “save up” for the next semester. This (for SURE) cut out some years on my life and I’m trying to be better now by (trying) to get to bed at the same-ish time & waking around the same time every day. I know there are a million jokes in college about how you can trash your body because its not [fill in the blank] until you graduate but seriously, if I could go back and cut that shit out I would.
Moving home does not make you a failure. While I haven’t had to do this (yet) I know a lot of friends who have and there is NO shame in the free rent game. In fact, I lived in a frat house for six months to help save money so - do what you gotta do! (P.S. If you are interested in hearing more on this let me know - I’ve contemplated writing on it). A lot of us grew up being told that we would go to college, get jobs and make bank and at the end of the day a lot of aspects of the global economy, geopolitical issues and more aren’t really allowing that to be a thing and all we can do is make the most of some sour lemons.