Keep Your Two Cents In Your Pocket (Unless it’s going towards my student loans)

Editor: Katherine Dollison

Thanksgiving is approaching so it’s that time of year where I eat amazing food and dodge my family’s misguided inquiries about my life. No, this isn’t about being pressured into getting married before my baby conveyor belt dies of old age. This is about the career I’m desperately chasing after while my student loan debt chases me.

“Have you found a job, yet?” “So-and-So found a job very quickly. Why haven’t you?” Although friends and family might mean no harm, questions like this favor an outdated perspective that isolates one aspect of a multifaceted situation. Not to mention, it’s rude af. Many people still believe the myth that college is a guaranteed investment, and that is simply not true.

In 2018, I earned my B.A. in Communications with a focus in Film Production. Let me make it clear that I had a great time during my four years of college and I’m grateful for my experience. Fast forward two years post-graduation. I have submitted 200+ applications and I’m making roughly the same amount annually that my mother made during her 20 years in retail (Don’t worry, she’s thrilled about it!). 

Before you start feeling bad for me, I have been able to land a few internships and widen my network with amazing people who’ve helped me along this journey. I acknowledge that post grad tribulations are common, therefore, I salute those who have been able to put themselves through school while juggling life with one hand. At 24 years old, with no kids and a parent that helped put me through school, it’s important to note my privilege. I’ve got my edges and I’m paying my bills. 

I only found out about the harsh realities of post-grad life once I entered it. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in 2019, around 40% of recent college graduates were under-employed. “Under-employed,” meaning that they are working jobs that don’t require a college degree. This rings true to my current situation, given that I’ve spent the last three years working in early childhood education. A similar conversation can be regarded for high school curriculums. A popular opinion is that schools are under-educating students on certain subjects (*coughs* U.S. History) and placing less value on hard skills and life lessons such as financial literacy and sex education. Why aren’t college students more prepared for the highly likely possibility of underemployment? 

In my very loud opinion, we should look at college curriculums through the same lens. College prepared me for the event that I got the jobs I wanted, not the inverse (and more likely) outcome. I graduated college with no experience in trying to make a living, while in debt for $40k. I would suggest that courses be offered to better prepare college students for life after school. How can institutions implement that change? I don’t know. What I do know is that I am doing what I can to share my experience with the people in my life in order to widen the perspective of what pursuing a college education means. 

I spent my whole life under the impression that continuing education was simply the right thing to do. It isn’t a simple decision to make and it isn’t right for everyone. Although this path didn’t lead me where I expected it to, I’m proud of my degree and the work I put into purchasing – I mean earning it.

So, let’s skip to the uplifting part. To the recent grads or anyone who can relate, things might not be going according to your plan. That is normal. Does that stop me from scrolling on Instagram to compare myself to a former classmate who found a job two weeks after graduation? No. The challenge becomes embracing divine timing. I don’t know when, but I will land the job(s) that I want. Being simultaneously motivated and patient is not always achievable. Especially when I’m getting notification emails from Nelnet reminding me to cut off a limb to offer as a form of payment this month. There will continue to be days where I want to try on another person’s hustle and get upset when it doesn’t fit. That is a part of the process and we are all on-time even when it doesn’t feel that way.

I was going to advise that we all stop exposing ourselves to triggers like social media. To avoid stuff like Susie’s 401k plan that – for some reason – she put on her snapchat story…but I’m not going to. I use social media as a pastime so that would be hypocritical of me. Instead, let’s do better at remembering what a massive investment college was for some of us. Time and so much damn money went into my degree. Let’s find it in our hearts to be kind to our friends and family that are going through a post-grad transition. There is no standard time frame to achieve your dreams and goals. Go easy on yourself, and those around you, so that I don’t have to dodge relatives this holiday season.