With seemingly endless essays to write and coursework deadlines fast-approaching, merely thinking about life after university seems impossible. Yes, the main goal is to graduate— but what comes after graduation? A high-powered job, along with a nice house? Unfortunately, life is not so simple.

 

Prior to this module, I did not take my post-graduation options seriously. I naively believed that my degree was the missing piece of the puzzle that would complete my life. However, after the first two sessions of this module, it became evident that my post-graduation options could potentially be limited by the amount of relevant work experience I had rather than whether I had a degree or not. Therefore, I began to look at several job descriptions of potential post-graduate career paths that interested me, such as an editorial or marketing assistant and discovered that industry experience was required for most roles.

 

After succumbing to the realisation that I needed more work experience, I began to investigate the different opportunities available. One of the main ways of gaining work experience advocated in seminars was the option of taking a ‘sandwich’ or ‘vacation’ placement before entering the final year of your course. As Done and Mulvey (2016: 211) claim, both options “increase your job prospects because they demonstrate what you can do… and that you are purposeful in choosing how to spend your time”. Nevertheless, while completing a placement appears to be an effective way to secure a post-graduate job, the application process is much more rigorous in comparison to other options, such as volunteering (Done and Mulvey 2016: 207-211).

 

Despite this, as the sessions continued, the option of doing a placement year became more and more favourable to me. Most notably, in week five, a third-year student who had just completed a year in industry came into the seminar as a guest speaker and discussed how difficult the application process is. Although this initially demotivated me to search for placements, hearing how rewarding and useful her year in industry was, encouraged me to be enthusiastic about finding a placement—even though it is a tedious and enduring process. In addition to this, I also learned to not be defeated by intimidating job titles when applying for roles. When I began to investigate what each job title entailed, I found some extremely interesting vacancies, such as a communications assistant, that fitted my interests and skills (e.g. business acumen, creativity and interpersonal skills), perhaps, even more so than job titles that initially attracted me.

 

Moreover, I also became aware that through doing a placement “[I] can gain an insight into a company… and review [my] career options” (Trought 2017: 109). This is important because as an extremely indecisive individual, searching for placements has forced me to be proactive and make important decisions regarding my future now rather than leaving them until later and creating more stress for myself as I have done before in the past. As a result, I feel much more confident about my post-graduation options.

 

Another post-graduation option that I would be interested in pursuing is completing a master’s degree because, as Shulsinger (2017) claims, “in today’s increasingly competitive job market, the benefits of a master’s degree can help you differentiate yourself and remain a valuable employee”.  Nevertheless, in week nine, several guest speakers discussed the intensity of undertaking a master’s degree compared to a bachelor’s degree. While I would like to continue my studies, I am unsure as to whether I will be motivated enough to take on an additional year of academic study. Furthermore, many of the career paths that I wish to explore do not necessarily require a master’s degree. Thus, while it would be enjoyable and intellectually stimulating to extend my studies, I do not feel that pursuing a master’s degree will currently help me to achieve my post-graduate ambitions.

 

So, what’s next?

Though I have been somewhat active in my search for a placement since attending these sessions, I must admit that I have become rather demotivated as the term has progressed. Therefore, my next step will be to make a conscious effort to dedicating my time to securing a placement. However, one of the main reasons why I have been so inactive in my search is because I have not yet been successful in securing an interview, which in turn has decreased my motivation. Hence, I believe that it would also be useful to seek further one-on-one guidance from a careers adviser at the university to help me plan my next steps and figure out why I have not yet been successful in getting a placement. Furthermore, a careers adviser could also help me weigh out the benefits of doing a master’s degree, because I am still unsure as to whether it will be useful path or not. My final next step is to attend more networking events and careers fairs in order to explore my opportunities; increase my confidence and help me to decide my future career path.

 

So, to answer my question… Post-graduation will only be as stressful as you make it. If you put in the hard work now, life after graduation will run much more smoothly.

 

References

 

Done, J. and Mulvey, R. (2016) Brilliant Graduate Career Handbook. Harlow: Pearson

Shulsinger, T. (2017) The Benefits of a Master’s Degree in Today’s Job Market. [online]

available from < https://www.northeastern.edu/graduate/blog/masters-degree-benefits/>

[23 November 2019]

Trought, F. (2017) Brilliant Employability Skills: How to stand out from the crowd in the graduate job market. Harlow: Pearson