Life after University

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I like to call the time after University or education 'limbo land'. For many of us it's a time when we feel lost, anxious and more stressed than ever before. Now, society has filled our generation with so many lies and empty promises (don't even get me started on prince charming!) the biggest one being 'if you want a good job you must go to university'. This may have been true decades ago but right now, getting any job after Uni is a struggle let alone a 'good' job. I just wanted to write this post to not only rant about how I'm feeling but to let you know that we all are going through the same.

I'm completely aware this photo has nothing to do with this post, but I really could do with a cake right about now. 

Like many of my friends and people my age, I'm working in the same job I worked at whilst at university. Which is not where I thought I'd be after Uni. I remember when I was younger and being twenty-something meant you were a proper adult and sounded so mature. Now that I am twenty-something and so are my friends, I find we're all just fumbling around, bumping into each other trying to find out where the free food is. Maybe that's the problem? Maybe we focus too much on age and time. Especially as women I feel society puts age limits on everything such as being married by a certain age and having kids by another age. It can be very overwhelming and probably the reason anxiety issues are on the up for women in their 20's. I'm someone who's always been a little anxious but feel that recently its been getting worse. So let's all take a nice deep breath *EXHALE*. I feel like I went off on a tangent there, but what I want to say is, try not to panic or stress about what the future holds. Most of us are not in the place we thought we'd be after graduating. Maybe take the time to relax a little bit as this is probably the first time in ages where you don't have to worry about exams and assignments. I panic too much, and I feel that only makes me make irrational decisions. I have to remind myself to stop and just breathe every now and again.

If I could go back to a younger me, and give some advice this would be it.

  • Stop comparing yourself to others. So what if your not the person who has a graduate job straight after uni. Take some time for you and figure out what you want. In the age we live in now, where its so much easier to keep in contact with others, thanks to social media. Its so easy to compare yourself to what others are doing or achieving. Try and stop that, it won't benefit anyone. 
  • There will be many tears, heartbreak and frustration along the way and that's OK because you can learn from it. If it was a terrible interview just try and think of ways you can improve next time. I had a very awkward encounter with a door at one interview and now I know, when it reads pull you have to pull! However hard you push!
  • Most importantly when you hear the response "we're going to go with someone with more experience" or "you don't have enough experience" and you didn't completely lose your shit there and then. Give yourself a cookie because we all know how tempting it is to scream down the phone "where am I supposed to get experience if no-one will give me experience!!!"

Ultimately I don't know what the future holds for us all in generation Y. We seem to be forgotten. I won't end by typing 'you will get there eventually'. As I know how patronising that sounds, and whenever I hear that I want to scream "HOW?! how can you possibly know!?" But when in doubt lets all just watch Frozen and sing about building a snowman.

I will link this fabulous article by The Guardian which I love, and THIS blog howtobejobless.wordpress.com. This blog I think we should all read and need to read no matter what our age or career.

I'd love to hear some of your experiences or advice in the comments.

2 comments:

  1. This sums up just how I feel right now. I am about to finish uni and feel like there are no real options. Lecturers telling me I'd be a perfect masters student and I have to keep telling them there is no way I can afford it however much I'd like to do it. Other options also cost money or don't pay anything and the options that do pay, like you said, are not the kind of things I pictured doing after uni. It feels like there are no ways in to anything! I am also a panicky person and just this week I let all of this get on top of me and had a few depressed days, which I'm sure will happen again. I keep saying to myself that I'll just see where life takes me, but it isn't comforting me so much anymore!

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    1. Lecturers told me the same thing. When I told them I wasn't 100% sure what to do they told me to stay in education. Universities really need better careers advice! I feel exactly how you feel, and the rejection emails are so disheartening. I'm also quite panicky and get depressed quickly but I've found that going outside really helps, even if its just for a quick walk to clear the cobwebs. Try to use this time to do all the things you couldn't do before, such as read the books you didn't have time to read. Or watch films you've missed. Do stuff for you and things that make you happy. :)

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