I may not be graduating for another couple of years, but I certainly can imagine the stress of planning for the “real world.” How do you know what to decide, where to live, or how to get to your dream career? I always wondered who you consult when making these decisions and what’s the best way to go about, so who better to ask these questions to then people going through the process right now?
I interviewed four of Her Campus UCF’s lovely, soon-to-be graduates, and found out what their dreams are, what their plans for after college are, and how they made all their decisions. It was very enlightening to me and even ended up making me rethink how I’m going complete my 2 years, so I hope it does the same for you!
A little background information: Sara Newton, Jara Lipman, and Tiffany Carroll are all majoring in Interpersonal/Organizational Communication, and Kacey Langston is majoring in Advertising/ Public Relations. Sara and Kacey are both interested in the fashion industry (Kacey is interested in the entertainment industry as well), while Tiffany is interested in being a media director and Jara plans on becoming a creative director at a company.
1. What is your plan for after graduation?
Most of them were still working on finalizing their plans, but all of the plans include either school or an internship. Kacey actually isn’t graduating until fall of 2012, but will be leaving UCF after this semester to use up her six internship credits. Her first three will be with an internship with Teen Voguein the fall. She hopes to stay in New York and land another internship there in the fall. Sara is moving home to work at a PR company and figure out where she wants to work in the future.
2. How did you decide upon this? Who or what helped you make your decision?
Parents, friends, and people in their desired industry were mainly who all the girls went to for help with making their decision. In the end, what they felt was best for themselves was what they based their decisions on, and the previously mentioned people graciously lent their support.
Also, all of them mentioned previously made connections as being help in making the decisions or even landing the positions. Knowing people in the industry seemed to be extremely beneficial for all the grads.
3. Was making these plans exciting or nerve-wracking?
They all agreed that it was both exciting and nerve-wracking. Exciting because you’re getting closer to your ultimate goal and because, as Jara said, “The sky’s the limit,” and nerve-wracking, because in many cases you’re going somewhere new and can even be completely unsure of what’s going to happen next after graduation.
4. What advice do you have for those who are in the process of making post-graduation plans?
I really liked all their answers, so I’m going to list the quotes for everyone to read verbatim.
Sara Newton: “BE PATIENT. Stay motivated. Network EVERYWHERE you go. It’s hard, but you want to make sure you take a job that is the best fit for you. I apply for jobs when I wake up and when I go to sleep.”
Tiffany Carroll: “Don’t settle for the first opportunity, unless you are sure it is the right one! Also, make sure you are very resourceful when looking for a job, sometimes the best jobs aren’t always posted online.”
Kacey Langston: “Something I’m trying to constantly tell myself is that whatever is meant to be is meant to be. Don’t rush the process, trust it! Not everything is going to happen all at once and at the end of the day, no matter how hard we try to plan out everything, something could change all of that, which is one of the reasons why I think all of your decisions should be based on what makes you the happiest and what you think is the best for yourself and your future. Stay true to yourself, what works for you, and what you want!”
Jara Lipman: “Do what you think will be best for you, if that means having to wait tables for a few months while you look for what you think will be the right job for you, then do it. Don’t just do something because you think it’s what you’re supposed to do or because it’s comfortable.”
The decisions can be intimidating, and it can be hard with so many people telling you what to do, but ultimately, it’s all about what’s best for you, and though some people you are close to can definitely be a big help, make sure you decide everything for yourself. Only you know whether something will truly make you happy. Also, don’t get discouraged if you don’t work for Vogueor the big shot PR company right after college. In fact, for most people I have read about or spoken to, it tends to take some time to reach your goals, but the ride can be just as valuable as the destination.