The next chapter is always a daunting prospect. Despite parents, friends, siblings and professors all trying to have their say, no one really knows what the future holds. For those at UConn who are lucky enough to graduate in a fortnight, there should be an ocean of possibility that awaits. However, as rates of student debt climb and the job market becomes far more difficult, the pool of choices they face become more difficult.
As the glowing prospect of summer approaches, many graduates will quickly find that they have fewer options after college than they thought. Friends who are graduating have spoken at length about how the days of agonizing over the right job are over. Now many students agonize over whether they can find a job at all. The threshold from semi-independence at college, where many still regularly return to the home comforts of their parents, and the stark weight of working life is a lot to put on the shoulders of young men and women.
This has not curbed graduates’ ambitions to do something meaningful in their lives after college. The fork in the road that students now face has three paths, each with their own virtues and flaws. Though there is no ‘right path’ after college, many students feel making the wrong choice will continue to hurt them years later.
The first and most sought-after path — for those who manage to get it — is employment. The vast majority of seniors have spent the past year chasing this goal. Every rejection or lack of response on an application can feel like a major setback. The good news is that the University of Connecticut has a strong record of students finding graduate jobs, with over 90% of students finding a starting role after graduating.
On average, this sees students taking a comfortable salary of $60,000 – $65,000/year, with some specialised disciplines, such as Engineering and Computer Science, earning upwards of $75,000 in starting pay. For many this can feel like compensation for many late nights sobbing in labs or behind laptop screens. However, the attainment-driven mindset that companies have when it comes to taking on graduates can quickly lead to overworking and burnout. The market is tough, but it should not mean sacrificing your wellbeing.
The second path, for many, can feel like more effort than the first. This route — again. relatively popular among recent graduates — centres on returning to school for higher education, in hopes of becoming unique in a competitive job market. It also means more stuffy lecture halls, more crippling student debt and more interminable nights of study.
Law, Medicine, Liberal Arts Engineering, Journalism and Business are some of the most popular majors for UConn graduates. Many students see these as natural progressions to a graduate degree. This is not the case. The average undergraduate UConn student spends 15-18 hours a week studying outside of classes. By contrast, graduate students spend around 40 hours a week on specialised study. This is the equivalent of a full work week on study alone, stripping away free time for socialising, extracurriculars and travel excursions that are integral parts of college life.
In spite of all this, around 30% of students at UConn look to a graduate degree as the answer after they finish undergraduate study. Clearly at Storrs, there is Stockholm syndrome for studying, as some students opt to literally become ‘Huskies Forever.’
The third path, by contrast, can seem a lot more attractive to graduates who are less organized. On the surface this is full of travel, white sand beaches, blue waters, music on cue and lots of alcohol. The gap year, for many UConn graduates, is a final year to escape responsibility before the realities of the job market fully set in.
The problem is that many gap year students suffer from either a lack of a structure or a lack of proper financial planning, which can leave them more unsettled about their prospects after university than when they started. Far-flung destinations of Chile, New Zealand and Costa Rica are sought after for language teaching and volunteering programs. While this is admirable and rewarding work, the strained foreign relations under the current president’s second term may make these less places attractive for long-term stays.
All this to say, UConn students should be clear-headed and purposeful when embarking on the path to next chapter of their lives. Though everyone will take different directions, prioritizing fulfilment whilst make sure you are not living beyond your means is a must. Though the job market will be tough for the of the class of 2025 who now find themselves at an unmarked crossroads, the right path is still there. You just have to look hard enough.
An apt snd well-done summary of the ways anxiety can manifest after geaduation. Unfortunately, the fourth (and hopefully temporary) path is unemployment. When you didn’t secure a job, don’t plan to get a master’s degree, and are too neurotic to relax, then agonizing days spent applying for jobs and “relaxing” under the guise of academic burnout turns into unfruitful weeks and months. Meanwhile, you’re bombarded with LinkedIn posts of people who (infuritatingly) already have jobs and make up stories about the job market that they don’t even have to deal with anymore.
It’s an employer’s market and we’re expected to do the roles of 4 different employees at suboptimal wages, never mind the full time job that job hunting in and of itself becomes.
I hope you and other graduating senior readers can find solace in whatever struggles face you.