May is the time of celebration as most college students are preparing for graduation. A lot of things change after you take that final walk across campus and graduate into full-time adulthood.
Since graduating from college two years ago, I've learned quite a few things that I wasn't expecting.
1. You learn that moving back home isn’t as exciting as it once seemed.
Moving back home is an adjustment within itself. After being in college for four (or five) years, you are used to living on your own and coming and going as you pleased. Now, you’re back home with your family and you have rules that you have to follow, possible curfews to obey and you might not be able to have your friends over any time you want. For me, this was my challenge, and it caused a lot of arguing because my family and I are all different. And, I was no longer the same person that I was four years prior when I left for college. I was now an adult who had become accustomed to my own way of doing things and living. The biggest advice I have for you is to sit down with your family and discuss how moving back home is going to change the living dynamic for everyone and come up with some compromises so that everyone is living in a peaceful home.
2. Your friends are no longer as close as you're used too.
College is where you meet the friends that last a lifetime. The tough part is having to say goodbye. In college, everyone is only a block or dorm building away, which allows you to hang out whenever you want. Following graduation, things change and your friends are no longer so close. Everyday coffee sessions become Facetime and phone call dates. The advice I have for you is to take advantage of the friends you made that live in new places. This will allow you to travel and see new places while catching up with old friends.
3. You don’t land the big time job you thought you were going too
College is expensive, let's be honest. After surviving four years of stress, we all want that big paying job, right? Well, the reality is, you may not land that big paying job straight out of school, and that's okay. Every person that is in a high position of power has started from the bottom. Whatever your interest is, find an internship or something that will allow you to work, network and gain the experience needed to get you to the top.
4. Coffee is still your best friend
With classes, exams, extracurricular activities and managing a personal life, most college students drink one, if not more, cups of coffee per day to survive. After graduating and getting my first full-time job, I realized that coffee was still my best friend. With working 40 hours a week, juggling a workout schedule and social life, I need coffee in my life more than ever. I would drink one cup in the morning and one in the afternoon. Never give up coffee, it's always there for you when you need it.
5. Things get better
This is the most important thing to remember: College was a chapter in your life where you got to find yourself and experience things that would change your life forever. Don't stress about not having a big time job lined up, moving home with your family or even saying see you later to your best friends. Everything is a process and will fall into place. You will land that perfect job that you want, you will meet new friends and you will eventually move out on your own again...it takes time.
Graduating college is an accomplishment, you made it. To the class of 2017, you should be proud of yourselves. You are now embarking on a new, exciting and somewhat unknown chapter of your life, so live in the moment, take chances, try new things and have fun. You earned it!
Cheers!