If you’re in that confusing and seemingly terrifying stage of your life where you don’t know what you want to do after college, join the club. At 22 years old, I still have no idea of which path I want to take after college. This is a challenge I've been trying to overcome since I was in high school. The first question I'm always asked when I tell someone I'm in school is "What do you want to do after you graduate?" I usually come up with some far-fetched scenario for what I would possibly like to do, but not anymore. I learned that it is totally fine that I don't know what I'm doing post graduation. Every day I would force an idea out of my brain and dance around it for a while until I realize that I only came up with it because I keep thinking that it is not okay to not know what I want to do.
With every class I take in college I learn a little more about myself each and every day. The more friends I make, I discover new interests that I didn't even know I had! Plenty of students go to school and realize they want to change their majors completely or that there is still some thinking to do in terms of what their career plans are. I have changed my major 3 times since I started school and I am still not 100% sure I want to continue pursuing my current major. Even if you don’t know what you want to do after college, you’ll still have earned a college degree, which is a huge accomplishment. I will never let anyone throw my nonexistent college degree in my face!
Even though I don't know where I will end up, I'll know that I worked really hard to get there. Maybe I want to travel after I graduate. Perhaps I don't want to jump into a full-time job right after. Again, that's OK! And contrary to popular belief, there’s no manual anywhere that says that you have to graduate college at “this” time or start a family at “this” time.
Life is a tricky thing. No one has it entirely figured out, which is part of the beauty of it. Each day is a new learning experience, and part of the fun of life is discovering what your passions are and what excites you. You go through life at your own pace. Enjoy every second of it and stress as little as possible. So, pause, take a breath and don't stress. Remember, You’re educated, you’re surviving the crazy ride that is college, and you probably have some awesome stories as well. It may not feel like it, but you have lots of time to figure it out.
