I am curious. I don’t like college much and haven’t been having a good experience (mostly because of all the financial stress-- no parents or real support system + terrible depression). If life after college is worse, I think I am going to opt out.
Anyway, I’d like to hear some experiences about life after graduation. Was the real world like you thought it would be? How did you adjust? All stories welcome.
College and the working world are very different. Just because you don’t like one doesn’t really mean that you won’t like the other.
More importantly, is there any way you can seek counseling? If you are terribly depressed and are thinking about opting out, you truly need to talk with someone. Please at least call 1-800-442-HOPE.
Life after college only sucks if that’s where you peaked. Which is sort of sad. I think a lot of college students go through some depression, a mix of their experience not living up to Hollywood’s depiction of university as a booze-soaked orgy of fun and the looming future and all the crap that supposedly comes with it (finding a job, paying off loans, growing up, settling down). I had fun times in college but not a one had anything to do with the actual schools I went to or my fellow students. I never lived on campus and I never spent more time there than I had to. I’m still young, but it was a blip. I did well, but I’m much happier getting paid for all this stress.
It would depend hugely on factors like your job and your social life and your romantic/family life. There’s no way to make a base prediction without that sort of information.
Depends. In college, I had no money but very little responsibility and virtually no authority. 20-some odd years later, I can afford a few luxuries, but I have tons of responsibility, plenty of authority, and lots of stress to go with it. To a certain extent, college was more fun, but the real world is more comfortable.
On the other hand, I command a lot more respect now than I did as a college kid. Nobody takes college kids seriously. Now, I’m starting to gain a bit of publicity in certain quarters, becoming somewhat known in my field, I’ve established a reputation, and people take me very seriously when I so intend.
It really isn’t as bad as I thought it would be. I’ve been able to find jobs where I don’t have to wear suits or dresses to work and don’t have to sell anything or be any good at schmoozing. The hours are certainly much better- I only work 40 hours a week now, and I worked much more when I was in school (though I admit I may not be typical that way). I have more money now, and that’s nice. It’s not less stressful than being in school now, but it usually is. I’m a better cook than the dining hall was, though it does sometimes suck to have to make dinner every night.
YMMV, of course.
I had a blast in college but there is a LOT of life, i.e., most of it, after college. And most of it a lot more fun than college, frankly.
Although working can be a drag.
Now it could depend on your definition of fun. For me, getting drunk/getting high and partying down began to wear kinda thin within a couple of years after college, although I never stopped dancing. (Well, you know, I don’t do it 24/7 or anything.) But then I also always felt I had to earn my partying–then by studying, later by working.
Nothing was exactly like I thought it would be. Some things better, others worse.
I’m going to say no. I’m in college right now, but I’m a returning student. I went military right after high school for four years and now I’m a full-time student.
I, for one, hate college and I cannot wait until it is over.
I hated college I was broke most of the time and could barely afford food so I never got to pay for things to brighten up a day. My class load sucked and even when I got home at the end of the day I still had homework and studying.
Now I’m working and make good money so I can afford to eat out or buy myself little things. When I get off work I’m on call but carrying a second cell phone isn’t a big imposition so in general I don’t have to think about work when I’m not there. I’m having a lot more fun now then when I was in college and pretty close to when I was in high school.
I’m planning on going back to college though. I don’t like what I do when I’m working and I can only work in places that I don’t like. This time I’m going to have money when I go back I’m planning on about 200k in savings to put me through so I think college will be better. When I think back to being in class for 5 hours a day and doing another 3 hours of homework every day it’s really easier then work in terms of hours. I believe that this time through school it will be better then my current working life but not as good as my future working life.
Think about what you hate about college and try to find a job that removes that from your life. If you hate being a poor student who can’t afford to have fun make sure you get a job that makes money. If you hate the time spend away from class time studying where it feel like school is your entire life pick a job that has defined hours and no work when you’re away from work. Any way you look at it work like is completely different then school whether it’s better or worse depends on what you hate about school and what job you pick.
OK - I loved college, I admit. I personally felt that the peak of hedonism is Sophomore year, when I was no longer a stupid Freshman, but the pain of my debt and need for a job was still out on the horizon.
Eventually I graduated with 10s of thousands of debt, a used car, and no job. I also had no family support.
Once I got that first decent professional job, I found that working could be even better! I had income, my debt was manageable, and I could buy random stuff. Going to a pub was easy, and I could even afford to buy a round or three. There is great freedom once you are picking up a paycheck of your own, based on the educational status you are achieving.
Here is a random thought - head down to the campus career center and see what sorts of jobs might be available to you once your graduate. Go to salary.com (or other sites) and figure out how much you might be making soon after you get your sheepskin. Make that your goal so that you know that all of the debt and hard work has a fiscal goal.
Or don’t - I am not a therapist, nor do I play one on TV.
I went through, I wouldn’t call it depression by any means, but a period of feeling blue after college that had a lot to do with missing my friends and not partying on the weekends anymore, as well as no longer having the positions of authority I did in the various school organizations I was a member of.
But a lot of posters here are correct in that you get over those feelings pretty quick as you make new friends and establish yourself in your career.
If you are depressed, life will always suck, even if your life is objectively awesome. College usually has some free, convenient counseling available, and I encourage you to seek it out. That may not be as readily available after college.
Although I enjoyed college, I was definitely ready to take a big break from it when I was done. I enjoyed just having the real freedom to do what I wanted to in my free time, by moving to a new area where I didn’t really know people and exploring what interested me, not what other people would see as cool. Of course, while doing those things, I coincidentally met people who thought those things were cool.
Also, while life was frugal at the beginning, I was always able to pay my bills and enjoy a slightly higher standard of living than I did in college.
College was fun, but holy shit, I like real life a TON better.
I like being paid for the work I do. I like having a clear end to the workday, no homework, no weekend studying. I like not needing to ask my parents for money, because I am making my own. I like having varied social circles, especially because I’m genuinely friends with people decades older and decades younger than me. I like being free of the rumor mills and constant high drama that college-aged people soak in.
I like who I am much more than I did in college. I’m 34, and it’s amazing how much I’ve grown and forgiven myself for in those intervening 12 years.
Anyway, I have never and will never buy into the notion that the “best years of your life” are the ones where you’re in school. That’s unmitigated bullshit. The best years of your life are the ones where you’re doing what you choose to do, with people you choose to be with, and set goals that are right for you.
The best part of not being in college is no homework! Well, now that I have gotten further along in my field I do need to work on projects nights and weekends sometimes but I enjoy my work - it isn’t like writing a 20 page paper just to fulfil a requirement.
The independance of being in your early to mid 20s, with a job but no major responsabilities is much much more fun than college, in my experience. I’d be 25 again in a heartbeat. Making some money, able to travel and go to events but no one really counting on you to do anything.
Life gets more complicated as you go along, what with mortgages and kids (you can opt out of that stuff though!)
College was fun, but it wasn’t real.
College was a soul-crushing experience for me, and I graduated with virtually no self-confidence, convinced that I would never work in any field related to my degree. Then I got a job. All they wanted was 40 hours a week of my time, and they paid me a decent wage, and within a couple of years, I was living a million miles away from my horrible, horrible college existence.
So, hang in there.
I was depressed as hell as an undergrad (I mean non-functional), took a two-year break, and came back happy. Now I’m in grad school, and it’s like those first couple years of undergrad all over again… except I have the tools necessary to prevent my life from completely falling apart like it did then. Now I’m learning to be happy all over again.
Bottom line is, you have to heal yourself. If you have depression, it’s not going to go away unless you do something about it. (I also had no parents or financial support, so was in a similar boat as you… I know that pain, and it sucks. I felt like a total freak. Sometimes, I still do.)
I’m sure if I hadn’t just finished writing a 36-page paper I would be able to provide some more useful advice, but that’s all I’ve got right now. Just hang on. It can get better. It can get wonderful.
The first couple years out of college were difficult for me. It was a shock to suddenly be away from all the cushy “we care about you” things that students get- the student lounges, computer labs, gyms, recreational activities, etc. In college, you get a lot of positive feedback all the time. In real life, pretty much nobody cares. It was also difficult to get used to not being a “student.” After being a student all your life, it’s hard to imagine life as something else- especially if you have trouble finding a decent job. As a student, you have so many resources at your disposal just to help you reach your full potential. On your own, you are on your own.
But I’ve grown into it, and now I love living in the real world so much that the one thing I’m looking for most in grad schools is good internship opportunities. I like that I’m actually doing the things I used to read about. I like the flexibility- you can quite a job with much few consequences than leaving school. I like being able to travel and not being stuck on a school schedule. And, I’ve managed to still learn every day of my life even though I’m not in school. It’s pretty rad.
I loved college my first year. It started going downhill seriously in sophomore year. By the time I graduated, I was exhausted (working 2-3 jobs at a time probably didn’t help that either…)
The next 2 years after the degree sucked mightily as well.
Then I somehow kicked myself out of depression (and several toxic people exited my life).
I love my working life now, and I plan to return for teaching certification in the fall and I’m terribly excited!
One word: money.
But parts of life suck anyway. Growing up sucks. Being in love sucks. Having a girlfriend/boyfriend sucks. Being married sucks. Having kids sucks. Having grandkids doesn’t suck much, if you can survive that long.
The key qualifier here is not all the time!** Nothing should suck all the time, ideally. So if you’re finding that college universally sucks, don’t count on after college universally making up for it. Go have some fun now. Drink cheap wine with good friends.
College was good. I got to do a lot of things that I wouldn’t have done otherwise and build a foundation for the rest of my life.
When I graduated college I got a job and a cheap apartment, saved up some money, and then asked myself, “What would make me happier than anything in the world?” Then I went and did that and I am incredibly happy pretty much all of the time. I no longer had to do what my parents said or what my professors said! I get to choose exactly what I want to do without answering to anyone else and it is incredible. And I know that if what I do or where I live or whatever stops making me happy I can do something else or go somewhere else. Being an adult is the most awesome thing ever.