With graduation looming (and me having already started the process of getting ready to get out), I realized that, at the moment, I have nothing lined up. My journalism degree is already starting to prove useless, as every job in the field is looking for at least three years experience, and one of them looking for up to 10.
Now, as a soon-to-be graduate, one would think that this lack of prospects would be highly discouraging.
Except it's not. I at least have a plan on where to go. I have a plan on what I can do for money if I really need it. And even if I didn't, maybe taking a few months of relaxing would not be the worst thing in the world. My girlfriend and I have started laying out ideas, and she is supportive of me not being able to find something right from the off.
I am extremely lucky to have someone like that who understands that finding a journalism job can be tough.
In the meantime, there are plenty of things that can be done after the caps go up in the air. If you want to take a little time for yourself to just reset yourself before looking for a job, great. If you want to enjoy the little time you have and travel around the country, or even go international, do it.
If you want to go back home to spend time with your family before starting the next chapter of your life, what is stopping you?
I'm not here to dissuade people from lining up jobs right out of college. Believe me, if my girlfriend didn't do exactly this, I wouldn't be in the boat I am in. And I applaud those people who do find something in their fields of study right out of the gate. But that isn't me. I don't want to be just another fish in a tank at the Georgia Aquarium, just doing the same thing, over and over, knowing exactly where I will be the next day, and the day after that. And the day after that.
But not being able to find a job in your field of study should not be the end-all of whether or not someone will be successful or not. We all have different priorities with what we want to do in life, and for some people, as they take the time to turn off the "I need to do this, this, and this..." mentality, and instead focus on the "I should do this, this, and this while I have the time", they find what they thought they wanted may not necessarily be true anymore.
I mean, I really want to work for a professional baseball team (in this particular case, the Braves or two of their minor league affiliates). But I don't have the experience. I move to the area at the end of May, so there is still time to find something.
In the meantime, I am just as likely to explore the area, get ready to join the Air Guard, get my license, get my bartender's certification, do basic adult things. Then when I am ready to look for something permanent, I will do so. Or, if I am feeling like a kid, I'll mellow out with some fish at the aquarium. Either one.
