The hamsters ate this big huge post I had written about my reflections on college. :mad: The gist of it is that I’m done. College was something I didn’t think I was capable of, and the whole journey was an uphill battle for me, not so much to learn new skills, but rather to grow as a human being. I have a lot more confidence about trying new things- what seemed scary before seems exciting now. I was disappointed that I did not do as well as I would have liked; I worked twice as hard this semester but my grades didn’t seem to reflect that effort.
Anyway, I’m just wrapping up here. I’m half-expecting the Bursar’s office to throw some surprises my way before my actual ceremony this spring. But whether or not they give me that piece of paper now or later, regardless of if I do or do not qualify for some future job right now, deep down in my own heart, I am done. One more chapter of my life completed.
Hey, congratulations! I just graduated last December, so I guess a year ago, and it’s weird to think back on college now. Do you have any plans? In case you’re worried, I didn’t, and well… I suppose I have plans now, but as to whether or not they work out, we’ll see.
Next semester I’m registering for Open University because being the dumdum I am, it took FOUR YEARS for me to realize “Hey, it might be lots of fun to try out for a school play. So what if I’m not a Theater Major, I’ll give it a shot anyway!”
I auditioned for “The Bacchae” which is showing next April, and got cast in a small part. I was ecstatic, but ironically I wasn’t planning on registering next semester! :eek: Since I have to be a registered student to participate in the play (for insurance reasons) I’m registering for Open University in order to make this as inexpensive as possible for me. I’m really kicking myself I didn’t do it sooner; I wouldn’t care if it took me longer to graduate because I was spending half of each semester rehearsing for plays, and the directors are also really forgiving about school schedules (but NOT work schedules :mad: ) So bottom line it would have been MORE feasable to try it earlier on. But I got cast, and this might be my only opportunity to try something like this before I’m too busy with jobs.
The rehearsal schedule kind of narrowed my work prospects…quite honestly right now its really up in the air. My primary focus is Full Time Job which pays enough to move in with my friend in his apartment and support myself. I am quite honestly not expecting the dream job to come knocking at my door, I’m trying to be very practical about all of this. So no specific jobs lined up yet, but I will certainly start looking.
Just out of curiosity, what was your major? Some majors tend to lend to job-finding a bit more easily than others. Particularly anything in science - almost any researcher is looking for a gopher to foist all the dirty duties on.
Ah well, it was fun! I’m pretty open to different kind of jobs; I don’t want to just narrow my search to things like technical writing or teaching, occupations I had previously thought I wanted to do, but not so sure about now.
Enjoy the play during the spring. 'Cause once you get a job, it’s all down hill. Real life sucks! I was all excited about it when I finished college, but the truth is, it’s a lot more fun to be in college with far fewer responsibilities. I’m enjoying life now, don’t get me wrong, but the first couple years out of school were a major adjustment time. No more running to Mom and Dad to fix all my problems. (Maybe I was just spoiled!) Sorry, I don’t mean to get you down. It does get better, but as I said, the first couple years can be rough. Good luck!
Congrats! Now you can start paying on your school loans.
I looked mine up yesterday (they’re still in deferment). If I began paying the amount every month they want me to pay (which is almost more than my rent!), then I’ll pay them off in 25 years. In 25 years, I’ll be on Social Security. If it wasn’t so laughable, I’d be suicidal at the thought.
I’m just getting started on this crazy thing called college. I just got back from taking my final final of the first semester. After being widely regarded as one of the top students all throughout my life, I’m suddenly a very solidly B student. Ah, but such is college, or so I’m told. Especially one of the highest rated schools for academics. But, hey, I got through the first semester with decent enough grades, and that’s supposed to be the hardest, right?
No? Ah, well, it was worth the try. Anyway, congrats, Incubus. You did what a whole lot of people try and fail to do.
Fortunately, by pooling money with my mom, I was able to co-pay my way through college without having to borrow any money I do have some credit card debt but it is getting paid off right now.
My goal is to have 0 debt when I move. Very soon I will be able to accomplish that goal. And someday in the future I hope to repay my mom for her contribution through a thank-you gift, such as a cruise or similar vacation with her. She really helped out a ton, prodding me into seeing it through.
Heh. A friend of mine said, “First year weeds out the stupid people; second year weeds out the lazy people.” As far as I can tell it’s true, so it’s not over yet…
And congrats, Incubus! Tell us all about the Real World when you get there.
If your friend’s quote was true than I must have passed muster because I always thought of myself as lazy AND stupid :eek: but I guess I’m just too hard on myself.
I know I am going to miss it. I tried not to take school for granted, particularly in the last year I was there. If I were a millionare and didn’t have to work, I’d probably take college classes just for the fun of it (and just my luck I’d wind up getting straight A’s the minute I take classes which don’t involve me worrying about having enough credits/GPA/gobbldeygook to get that degree/certificate/golden widget )
Congratulations. You should be almost as proud and happy about this as you are of your degree. I graduated six months ago, and am just starting to pay my loans off. While I am not in any financial hardship, I hate having debt hanging over my head.
Not if they’ve perfected lazy to an art form! Procrastination is beautiful when done properly.
Good job getting through, Incubus. It’s an accomplishment to be proud of. English major? We’d better not see any grammar or spelling mistakes out of you from now on!
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