11 Ways

STUDENT LIFE

11 WAYS TO PREPARE FOR POSTGRAD LIFE

ANNIKA TOMLIN • COLLEGE TIMES

Graduation is coming up. Are you ready to start your adult life? Or are you running around like a mad person trying to make sure everything is in order? It isn’t necessary to stress out incessantly about postgrad life. Here are 11 ways to breeze through it.

#11 PLAN FOR GRADUATION TRIP Those who plan on taking a gap month—or even year—should start planning now. Flight prices increase the closer you get to your departure date. Hotels may book up, too. Save up by putting aside a small amount from each paycheck. Keep in mind that it never works to plan a trip at the last minute—especially if it’s a long-term trip. Do your research and fi nd a trip that won’t break the bank before you have to start paying back student loans.

#10 CHOOSE YOUR FRIENDS WISELY That sad reality is friendships go out the door after graduation. You’ll probably stay friends on socials but choose your companions wisely. Maintain those important friendships by spending the day with them, when schedules allow. Keep friends who will support you in good times and give you a shoulder to cry on when you’re down. How many people in your life would you consider your ride or dies? Those are the people who you need to focus on staying in constant contact with.

#9 CLEAN UP YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA We live in a digital age where anything you say and put online can and will come back to haunt you. Think about all of the subtweets, the raunchy photos or any inappropriate comment you posted online. Now think about a future employer reading and looking at that and judging you before even meeting you. That is the reality of today’s job-hunting process. Take a minute and Google yourself. If you don’t like what you see, change it now. Take a weekend to go through all of your past posts and delete anything and everything that you think that can come back and ruin your possibility of getting a job. It will take time, but the long-term impact is worth it.

#7 INVEST IN A PROFESSIONAL WARDROBE “Dress to impress” is something to live by as an adult. You will not be taken seriously in a crop top and cut-out jeans or a basketball jersey and baggy pants. A professional wardrobe shows you took the time to impress employers. You don’t need to buy the most high-end items. There are several secondhand stores or off-brand labels that will do the trick. Purchase four to six outfi ts that range from business casual to business formal. Look for items that go with something you already own and simply make them more professional looking. These outfi ts will help you make a great fi rst impression when you are doing job interviews and beyond. Don’t forget to buy shoes as well. The tattered Vans that you’ve had since high school won’t cut it in the real world.

#8 FIGURE OUT LOAN PAYMENTS Loan payments don’t start until six months after graduation, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t think about them now. Add up the loans you took during college. Brace yourself: it may be shocking. After that, look into repayment options.

#6 FOCUS ON YOUR MENTAL HEALTH

Planning for your life outside

of school is going to be one of the hardest things you will go through at this stage of your life. Do not let that stress overwhelm you. It’s OK to take a mental health day away from all of the planning, budgeting and organizing. Overstressing just makes it worse. Take a deep breath, consider talking to someone about your stress and fi nd a way to relieve your worries so you can get back to planning an awesome future for yourself. You’re going to have a few meltdowns when you think the whole world is against you. It isn’t— and you’ll live to see another day. Take it one day at a time and get things done at your own pace, not others’ pace. of school is going to be one of the hardest things you will go through at this stage of your life. Do not let that stress overwhelm you. It’s OK to take a mental health day away from all of the planning, budgeting and organizing. Overstressing just makes it worse. Take a deep breath, consider talking to someone about your stress and fi nd a way to relieve your worries so you can get back to planning an awesome future for yourself. You’re going to have a few meltdowns when you think the whole world is against you. It isn’t— and you’ll live to see another day. Take it one day at a time and get things done at your own pace, not others’

#5 BUDGET LIVING COSTS It takes time to plan a budget for living on your own. Make sure your place is somewhat close to work and a grocery store. Sit down and write out what you pay for monthly—rent, gas, food (groceries and eating out), drinks, entertainment (movies, concerts, etc.) and other subscriptions or anything else that you pay for. List every single item out. Then add it up. Don’t forget to include any amount you would like to put into savings or your rainy-day funds. You need to make sure all of your needs are being paid for. When you are job hunting be conscious of your budget and make sure that your income is exceeding your monthly expense amount and not just breaking even. There might be something you will need to cut down on to compensate for another cost. This is the time to figure that out. If you don’t absolutely need it, get rid of it and save your money for something else. BUDGET LIVING COSTS

#4 BUILD YOUR NETWORK This goes hand-in-hand with choosing your friends wisely. Network with classmates who are on a similar career path. You don’t need to be the best of friends with these people, but you should value their opinion. Network with your professors, co-workers and even the alumni from your college. Talk to people who are already in the industry and see how they got to where they are now and see what advice they have for you. Networking is all about advice and having connections to get you the career that you want.

#3 PRACTICE INTERVIEWING You’re going to mess up an interview. Prevent that by practicing with a roommate, your parents or a mentor. Plan your responses to questions you suspect will be asked, including: Tell me about yourself. What are your greatest weaknesses and strengths? Why do you want this job? Do not answer any of these with a one-sentence response. Plan a full-page response and then reword it to make it about a paragraph or two. Practice with someone who is in your field. They may offer other questions that could be asked. Practice several times before you go in for an interview and consider bringing notecards. Last tip: make sure you prepare questions for the person who’s interviewing you. They will ask you if you have any final questions or remarks and it doesn’t look good if you say you have nothing.

#2 DECIDE ABOUT GRAD SCHOOL You’re preparing to graduate and considering postgrad. If you do plan on going to grad school, research options well in advance and start looking into admissions. Most graduate schools require you to pass an entrance exam like the GRE. Those types of exams are designed to be diffi cult to pass. You need time to study to ensure you have the best chance of getting a good score. Another thing to consider is the hefty price for taking the tests. Be patient. If grad school isn’t for you, don’t worry.

#1 VISIT YOUR CAMPUS CAREER CENTER Every college campus has a career center. Go and use it. The employees will help ensure you have a successful future. They’ll teach you how to network, interview and write a resume. If you’re questioning your professional future, the employees will offer sage advice. Take advantage of all the things that your campus career center has to offer. Go to their workshops and job fairs. Utilize them as much as you can. The best part about the campus career center is that it’s available to you even after you graduate. There is really no reason you shouldn’t at least check them out to see how they can help you. CT