Graduation can be daunting, and graduating without any career plans can be exceedingly daunting. After responding to countless questions from well-meaning relatives about career paths, grad school applications and job prospects with a resounding “I’m not sure”, stress about the future tends to mount. However, the notion of entering the workforce right after graduation at the ripe age of usually 21 or 22 is starting to seem outdated. Retirement habits have changed since the 1960s, when the Canadian Pension Plan came into effect and life expectancy was in the early 70s. A Statistics Canada paper discussed that, although the average retirement age in Canada has remained deceptively stable, the number of Canadians over the age of 55 in the workforce has been growing since the 1990s. These extra years in the workforce may allow for more time for young graduates to take unconventional paths to a career.
Gabor Maté, a physician and bestselling author, taught English and literature to high school students for a number of years before returning to school to become an M.D. He ran a private family practice and worked with patients struggling with drug addiction and mental illness, leading him to write several books that delve into the role of childhood trauma on mental health. Arthur C. Brooks, a social scientist, played the French horn professionally for several years before pursuing an education in economics. He is now a Harvard professor, a bestselling author, and a columnist at The Atlantic. Mate’s and Brooks’ stories, and many others like theirs, demonstrate that career paths do not need to be direct.
Rushing into a career simply for the sake of having a plan can be a mistake, while unconventional career paths can allow you to gain skills and discover interests that may prove useful in the future. While many students have concrete plans for after graduation, this more direct route may not necessarily be superior to more unconventional routes, which can take a few twists and turns before landing on a career.
