What Should I Do Between Now and Grad School?

[Dewey_Finn]

@IvoryTowerDenizen

Don’t think it has to be six months of travel- go for a few weeks or month if that’s all you can do. Just a great time of life when it’s possible. And yes, I’d help pay for part of my child’s opportunity to travel (and have). Travel is a worthy experience in and of itself.

In particular, if you pay attention to travel deals and are able to make plans quickly, you may find a cheap trip to someplace interesting becomes available in the eight months.

Edited to add, and if you haven’t traveled much in the past, virtually any place will be interesting, particularly if it’s outside your home country.

[monstro]

@IvoryTowerDenizen

I don’t know the field well enough to say with such certainty that not having an office job before grad school is such a resume killer. It’s just not that uncommon for students to go directly from undergrad to grad, that his resume would look so deficient, in my experience.

I think anyone with a “vague” communications degree is going to have difficulty getting a career in communications unless he/she can demonstrate that they have some communications-related experience. 2ManyTacos is learning that lesson right now.

On the hiring panels that I’ve served on, we have granted interviews to candidates fresh out of graduate school. But they always have relevant work experience that is independent of their school work. Those who don’t have experience simply do not get interviews, even for entry-level position. Is it a resume killer? I don’t know. But I’ve never seen candidates get points for their travel adventures.

The OP had plenty of time to go traveling while on spring and summer break. He/she can also travel after they graduate from grad school, when hopefully they’ve got a job lined up. Perhaps I’m just being hardnosed, but it seems to me that eight months is plenty of time have some fun AND work. I think people who are encouraging only fun (not saying that’s you) seem to glossing over the fact that most people can’t afford this. They especially can’t afford this if they’ve got student loans.

[amarinth]

@monstro

I gotta ask the folks recommending world travel: If one of your adult children was in the OP’s situation, would you fund such an endeavor? Or would you expect them to pick up the tab themselves? I can’t imagine my parents eagerly funding a six-month travel excursion after already helping me obtain a “vague” undergraduate degree for four years. Is this something middle-class parents really do? It is almost like “Go travel!” has become the default advice for anyone who is momentarily aimless, regardless of whether they even want to go traveling.

I’m not a parent. But travel for 6 months in cheap-to-travel countries would end up costing less than renting a small place and working for minimum wage/barter in this region.

Also, part of it is that world travel is something I now wish I had done at a younger (the OP’s) age. I was always told that travel was expensive, inaccessible, and difficult (that it was something for “rich people”) so I never really looked into the idea. I found out much later that it was cheaper than I knew, easier than I knew, and something that I definitely could have done and would have really enjoyed if I’d tried.

leavesoflight have you gone to your school’s counseling/career office? (That’s another thing that I didn’t take advantage of at the time - that now I wish I had.) It is their job to have ideas about what their graduates can/should do next.

[kambuckta]

@amarinth

I’m not a parent. But travel for 6 months in cheap-to-travel countries would end up costing less than renting a small place and working for minimum wage/barter in this region.

I was always told that travel was expensive, inaccessible, and difficult (that it was something for “rich people”) so I never really looked into the idea. I found out much later that it was cheaper than I knew, easier than I knew, and something that I definitely could have done and would have really enjoyed if I’d tried.

International travel has never been cheaper than it is now. Twenty-five years ago, a budget airfare from Aus to London return was around $1500AUD. It’s still the same.

Travel. Just do it if you possibly can. You can live very comfortably in most parts of SE Asia for $20-$30US per day, accom included. And as suggested above, you might well be able to pick up some work teaching English to supplement your dollars.

Good luck!

[China_Guy]

Buy a round trip open ended ticket, go to Asia and teach Engrish for a few months, save your money, hit the budget traveler circuit to see a bit of Asia, and come back from school. I’m sure there are plenty of websites that explain how to do this, figure out very cheap hostels to live in, how to get a job (maybe able to do this in advance as there English teacher turnover is pretty high), and worst comes to worst, use your return ticket.

I did that in 1982, and look at the success I am now. Seriously, it completely broadened my life, and I’,m prolly much more successful than if I had stayed in California. Certainly I had a lot more fun and memories than University roommates that ended up in the same Global 100 company 35 years later.

[Twoflower]

Even 6 months of “real world” experience will give you valuable insights and perspective to enhance the value of grad school. Is there a local radio station or newspaper that’s not 45 minutes away? That may not have realized they needed an intern, but could use a volunteer?

[Dereknocue67]

Make financial plans for old age and hope there’s enough time left to achieve it.