Tomorrow, the IU Class of 2015 is graduating. Right now, I look around my ?living room and find my roommates goofing off in their caps and gowns, making clever Harry Potter jokes and contemplating how best to decorate their caps.
I, however, am not graduating this year. I’m a junior. While I’ve got one year left, a large handful of the people I’ve become closest with these past three years will be going off into the real world. And I am devastated.
Don’t get me wrong; I’m so excited for my senior year, and I am proud of my friends. But seeing them graduate, many without jobs in their back pockets, is difficult.
People ask the maddening, age-old question: “So, what do you plan to do with your degree once you graduate?”
I am here to tell you folks: I have no clue. Good thing I’ve got some time to think about it. And yes, journalism is still ?relevant, thank you very much.
But while the prospect of graduating college without a job to show for it probably feels daunting, overwhelming and panic-inducing, ?I don’t think this is such a catastrophic thing.
College students have been burdened with student loans, ghastly amounts of accumulated debt and ?a voice whispering in their ears that these four years are the best times of their lives.
USA Today reported a 84-percent increase in student loans since the 2008 recession. The average debt of IU-Bloomington graduates of 2013 was $27,619, according to the Institute for College Access and Success.
We are conditioned to believe that going to ?college, earning a degree — within four years — and leaving with a job around the corner is the only way to be ?successful.
But we have come so far, stressing ourselves out in the process. I think a mental break is in order first.
Whether you’re graduating this year with a job on the table or without, let yourself revel in how far you’ve come.
If this truly is the best time of our lives — which I contest it is — then this is our chance to live it.
If we do not take some time to ourselves every once in a while, we will ?inevitably burn out.
At the end of each semester, so many IU students get sick from being overstressed and overwhelmed.
I, myself, lost my voice and didn’t spend much time sleeping. When I hear about other students turning to extreme methods to get through finals like taking Adderall to study for 10 hours straight, the odds are not in their favor.
If we don’t learn how to properly take care of ourselves now, how are we possibly going to sustain our energy in a job for the rest of our lives?
When we graduate, we hear so much about this inherent need to become an adult overnight.
No longer do we live in the Bloomington bubble. But not only is this unrealistic, it’s a death sentence to our creativity and mental stability.
If you are graduating this year, all I can say is to appreciate the time you’ve got left here, take care of yourselves and breathe. ?Oh, and congrats.
Last time I checked, the time of our lives is far?from over.
nrowthor@indiana.edu
