This past Wednesday, I had the pleasure of sitting down with the recent Manhattan College graduate John Tran at Shake Shack for a quick interview. He graduated from the School of Business in Spring 2016 and currently works as a research analyst at BuzzBack, a market research firm, in Midtown Manhattan. When he’s not making sense of excessively long Excel spreadsheets or making sure that he meets his hydration and step goal with his Fitbit Flex, you can find him playing Overwatch, eating or wishing that he could play World of Warcraft.
Before I could start the interview, I figured some demographic information was certainly in order.
Name: John Tran
Major: Marketing
Age: 22
Hometown: The Bronx
Her Campus: What’s it like being a Manhattan College graduate?
John: It’s bittersweet because I miss campus and all the good times I’ve had there, but it also feels amazing to have graduated. I’m really proud of it. I also don’t live too far away, so you’ll find me in An Beal Bocht here and there again.
Her Campus: What’s it like being an adult with a real life job?
John: [Laughs] I always laugh when people say I’m adult because I feel like I’m the same kid still. I’m honestly so grateful for the job I have and for the people I work with. I came from having no little to no options in May – that I was happy with at least -to being in a place that I love and in an industry I never saw myself in. You don’t really realize how hard it is to have something lined up by graduation until you go through it.
Like a lot of times, I just got lucky. I have to give major shout outs to Dad.
Her Campus: What is it like running into fellow Jaspers out and about in the real world?
John: It’s always a good time when you bump into another Jasper. There’s that instant connection you get with that person that’s hard to explain. It’s fun to talk about the things you used to do on campus and have that other person understand exactly what you’re talking about. I actually met one of my very best friends running into a Jasper in the real world [Laughs]. You know who you are!
Her Campus: Do you feel that Manhattan College prepared you for the real world?
John: For sure. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for Manhattan. Every opportunity that I took was thanks to Manhattan, even if I didn’t realize it then.
Her Campus: If you could re-do college, would you and why?
John: Eh, I wouldn’t say I would re-do college. I think I did everything that I could have done. Sure, there are little things here and there I could have done better, but I don’t regret my experience at all. For instance, maybe I should have went abroad or maybe I could have gotten better grades, especially early on, but in all, I loved it.
Her Campus: If you could talk to your freshman self, what words of wisdom would you have for him?
John: Oh, man. Freshman me. I’d probably tell him to lighten up a bit and just breathe. I was always very critical of myself and I was never satisfied with myself, in all aspects of life. I was very serious and also money hungry/conscious that I think I made it hard for myself to enjoy life. I always wanted to work and I stressed about a lot of things that aren’t a big deal anymore. To be honest, I still am like this, but less intense, and I handle things a lot better now.
Her Campus: Is there anything you’re looking forward to this year?
John: Thanksgiving! I just wanna feast and be with my cousins. Actually, any of the upcoming holidays. We had a new addition to my family in August and I’m very excited about it. It’s going to be my nephew’s first holidays/holiday season.
Her Campus: Tell me a weird fun fact about yourself.
John: Hm. I don’t know about weird, but not many people expect it from me, I guess. I love to dance Bachata. It’s probably one of my favorite things to do when I think about it. I’m always down for a song or three.
Her Campus: Can I tell people that you’re secretly a huge K-Pop fan?
John: I mean you could, but then I’d have to kill you – sooner than I thought. The K-Pop world is like a happy place for me. There’s something about the sound, the style, and everything else about it that makes me happy. I wouldn’t say im a HUGE fan, but I used to be a least a few years ago. I check on my favorites still, but I don’t live in it anymore.
Her Campus: Anything else?
John: Find your forever friends: those who are going to stick by you throughout everything – even past your time at Manhattan. I can’t stress that enough. Life after graduation can be tough. A lot has changed after graduation and I owe a lot to those I call my best friends for being there for me. So, that’s my little shout out to them. I got your backs, too. I really didn’t think I was actually going to be on Her Campus. Hi, everyone!