FORGET MIDDLE AGE – leaving college can conjure up enough emotional anguish to spur on several life crises before you even reach the age of 30.
After a whirl of graduation balls, internships and night after night of farewell pints as friends head off to greener pastures, recent graduates often find themselves asking: “What do I do now?”
Here are some things they’re just going to have to get used to.
People always asking you what your plan is
“Um, well…I was going to apply for a Masters, or maybe travel? Or like, get an internship.” There is no plan. There is never any plan. BUTT OUT, parents’ friends.
Your social life is now confined to the weekends, and that’s weird
No more Messy Mondays or Toxic Tuesdays? You’re having a laugh.
The “college lifestyle” doesn’t end once you leave university
Pot Noodle and chicken fillet rolls remain staples of your diet, and you still ring Mum and Dad for advice on paying bills. How does the washing machine work again?
The frankly depressing lack of a “recent graduate” discount
You’re just as poor as you were when you were in college (if not poorer), but no one cuts you any slack for it. What’s that all about?
You’ll probably have to work for free for a considerable amount of time
You’re getting paid in experience, and isn’t that enough for you?
You have a degree, and you’re almost 100% sure it’s useless
You don’t have any skills, but you do have something to cover the damp spot on the wall of your flat. Sure look at you. You’ve got it all worked out.
And realising you need to actually start acting like an adult can be terrifying
There’s no set formula to guarantee feeling like a grown up, but we hear setting up a LinkedIn page can help. Good luck.
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