Congratulations, you graduated college! ... Now what. The default questions, "where do you go to school?" and "what's your major?" have now evolved to the single worst question, "what are you doing after graduation?" I always thought I'd have the perfect, most definitive answer to this question once May rolled around, describing my plans to begin my dream job once college was over. Here I am in June, with no plans to begin a dream job anytime soon, nor any idea of what my dream job even is, but completely owning my alternative answer to that most horrifying question.
I never thought it would seem acceptable to not have a job lined up post-graduation, but as this counter-stereotypical after college timeline became my reality, I've realized it is very acceptable not to have a job after graduation.
First of all, I may never have a summer vacation ever again. There may never be three months to look forward to at the end of a long year of work to decompress, so why not enjoy the last summer vacation I'm actually granted? And in this time off, take advantage of talking to people you'd never usually strike up conversation with because you never know how valuable a connection they might be.
I'm finally 21 years old aka legally allowed to try all of the prestigious/strict bars I've been waiting to experience for so long. There's a world of roof top bars, bottomless brunch spots, and happy hours out there begging for me to enjoy at the young age of 21.
It's time to be a tourist in the city I haven't permanently lived in since I left home for college. A lot has changed at home over the past four years and now's the time for me to see everything I didn't take advantage of while I was living at home before college. When I told people at college that I'm from New York, I was embarrassed to say I hadn't been to half of the places they'd been on their brief visits to NYC. Being off for the summer will allow me to experience my city before it becomes just a part of my daily commute.
In my experience of answering relatives, interviewers, distant friends, and everyone in-between's questions about my future plans, I've learned that not everyone knows or should be expected to know what they want to do with the rest of their life yet. College courses helped me narrow down my interests in the field I was studying, but the real world provides many more options than what I was offered in school. The best advice I've been given after admitting I'm unsure of exactly where my degree is going to take me is that I'm better off exploring my options rather than accepting the first job I'm offered.
To everyone who has found their dream job or even accepted a job offer, congratulations, you're a step ahead of most of us graduates! And for those of you who are in the same boat as I am: own it. Don't be ashamed that you don't know what you're doing yet because there's so much time for us to figure it all out.
