6 Things I Realized After Graduating
By: Ilias Zografos
Tags: Learning, Graduation, Inauguration, Education, Beyourself

The reason why I was not really excited about this inauguration, even though it was online, is because I had actually finished the courses back in September, so at that moment I felt that it was officially over. It was a big chapter of my life, basically a learning journey that took me many steps further as a young adult, but it had nothing more to offer me.

“Now, I’m alone”, I thought.

I can’t deny that University has many things to offer, but now that I completed the first big step I realized a couple of things about myself, the goals that I want to set for my future, and how life will be from now on.

So, here are six brutal truths I have to say to every fresh graduate that feels lost or looser in his 20's:

1. It’s the first age crisis

Who am I? What I’m going to do in my life? Which has to be my next step? Will I ever get a job? How it will be? And so on…

I know many people my age have these and many other questions that turn around their heads every single day. It’s exactly the same for me too! After completing this academic journey, I clashed at the real problems of adult life; and it hurt!

On the one side, I’m ready to conquer the world and make all of my dreams come true, but on the other, I feel zero. Especially this period that the world is a total mess, my fears and uncertainties are increasing day by day, minute by minute.

2. My degree has zero value

If not zero, then its value is not that important. What do I mean by this pessimistic phrase?

During my inauguration, the president of the faculty said: “You have to be proud of what you’ve achieved these four years. When you finally take the degree in your hands, you have to keep it proudly. It’s a degree with not just national but international prestige and most of our graduates have achieved amazing things thanks to their background in this faculty”.

I’d really like to get convinced by these words, but I found them vague and more like wishes than reality. The reality is a little bit different. The job market has almost nothing to do with universities, because the knowledge that someone gets there, is mainly practical, while in universities I had to read tons of useless pages and books.

3. Pressure from everywhere

Family, friends, kinfolk, a random guy walking on the street, bots on social media…literally from everyone! And the truth is that they ask me the same questions that I can’t or I’m not ready yet to answer first to yourself.

The only thing that they achieve by doing this is to make me feel useless, lazy, or unworthy to control my own life. It’s not that they want to see me fail, but the pressure is present in every one of their words.

Given that I don’t want to disappoint them, I started creating stupid fiction stories that I have a project idea about ‘something online’ and I’m going to become a millionaire in a few years. That’s bullshit! Nobody believes me and even I can’t persuade myself.

4. Sorry, you are underqualified…

Trying to come to the fore, I decided to send my CV to any company that exists in the country, continent, solar system, etc. The first CV rejected. Second, rejected. Third, rejected. Do you wanna know the luck of the fourth? I’m sure you guessed right.

Why?

That’s the main question that I have too. In cases that I was lucky enough, some HR managers sent me an email a few days later, saying that I’m underqualified for this job position or maybe I have no prior experience.

Guess what, dear HR manager?! I know it. That’s why I applied for this job; to gain experience. If I was Jeff Bezos, I wouldn’t apply.

5. Next step? Master

Now, that failure is my second name and I’m really struggling in this ‘adult world’, it’s time to do a step further — it’s called Master. At least that’s the path that I took one month after graduating.

Master is not actually a choice in today’s job market — it’s a real demand. I always used to be willing to upskill my career, so I deeply believe that extra education is essential to survive and stand out from thousands of other candidates that have the exact same skills as me.

The main criticism I usually get from many people is that taking a Master is a waste of time and money or that this way I actually avoid getting my hands dirty by starting a job and thus getting hands-on experience for the things that I have learned till now.

I’m not one of those people who believe it, since most Bachelor's degrees offer only theoretical knowledge and when I graduated, I felt completely unarmed to face real-life problems that need solutions in the workplace.

6. Everything will be OK in the end💪

I’ve written a couple of negative things in this article, so I think that the last one has to be a positive message. That’s actually how most of this kind of “why you are completely lost in your 20's” articles end up.

My background in university is just a part of my life — it’s not my whole life. What do I mean by this? The road now is full of new opportunities that will finally lead me exactly where I wish to be.

But there is one requirement!

My positive attitude to change.

Being inflexible or reluctant to see life from a different perspective is for sure the way of stagnation. Don’t choose it.

Difficult roads ALWAYS lead to beautiful destinations

Keep it in mind!