Graduating college is a huge accomplishment in one’s life. After four years of studying and having the time of your life, you’re finally set to move on. But with moving on comes lots of questions, worries, excitement, and anxieties for many. If you’re anything like me, you’ve wondered hundreds of times, “what comes next?” Completely normal by the way. Life after college – it’s the best of times, and yet it’s the worst of times. Everything you’ve known for four years suddenly comes to a halt. You’re technically an adult, but you still feel like a kid who kinda needs their mom. I graduated from college five years ago (still can’t believe it’s been that long), and I still often find myself asking, “what comes next,” or “what do I do?” While I haven’t figured out everything, here are ten things I’ve learned along the way, and the things I wish someone told me as I got ready to pack up my things and move on from the place I called home for four years.

10 Things No One Tells You About Life After College

1. Applying to Jobs is a Job in Itself

Resumes, cover letters, and interviews, oh my! I greatly underestimated how much work it would be to find a job after college. Both of my parents went to college, but neither graduated, and both are very successful. I had this notion in my head that since I had a degree, I would be able to find a job no problem, immediately. Guess what – that doesn’t happen! I will be brutally honest – part of that was a sense of entitlement in my own head. Big mistake. When you graduate, you’re on top of the world, you convince yourself that you’re God’s gift to the world (you’re not), and that any office, firm, school, etc. will be lucky to have you. The reality is that you’re just like a million others across the country, fresh out of college. You’re essentially starting at rock bottom on the totem pole. That being said, I’m not saying that all hope is lost, in fact it’s the opposite. You’re essentially getting ready to “start your life.” You have almost unlimited choices for what comes next.

I can’t stress this enough- apply to jobs before you graduate college. I was someone who tried to keep the college train rolling past college…I moved back home, applied to a couple jobs, and continued my seasonal summer job waitressing at a local restaurant, because I needed money desperately. I fell back into my old habits, was comfortable, and was putting off the next chapter of my life.  Basically, I think I was in denial that I graduated, was scared for the next steps, and overall, felt very overwhelmed. I was scared of getting out of my comfort zone, I didn’t know where I wanted to live, what I wanted to do, etc. You help yourself immensely by preparing for life after college before college is over. Start thinking about all of these things before college is over. If you can get an internship, even better. Spend a couple hours a day applying to jobs, tweaking your resume, and if it helps, get together with a friend and chat about the next chapter.I think it’s important to know what your strengths and weaknesses are and what you have to offer an employer that can set you apart from others. I find that talking through things out loud with someone else helps me to realize what I want, don’t want, etc. You have to be on top of things, if you actually want a job.

2. Moving Back Home is HARD

Think back to college when you could come and go as you pleased, no questions asked, except for maybe those late night check-in texts with roommates to tell each other that you wouldn’t be home that night… Hate to break it to you, but those days are over. When you move back home, your parents want to know what you’re up to, where you’re going, and when you’ll be home. And guess what – as long as you’re living in their home, they have a right to know! I found moving back home to be a huge shock to my system. I was back in an extremely small town in Maine (which I do love by the way, but it was a huge change from being around thousands of others my age in college), the majority of my friends were scattered across the East Coast, almost everything in my home town closes by 9 PM, and the nearest mall was an hour and a half away… It seems petty looking back on it now, but when you’re used to being around your friends constantly for four years straight, being away from that can feel a bit lonely.

At the end of the day, I’m extremely thankful that my parents even let me move back in after college. I know tons of people don’t have that opportunity, let alone rent-free, so I don’t want it to seem like I wasn’t thankful; I was. However, I can’t stress this enough – set a deadline or make plans on when you hope to move out, where you hope to move, save as much money as you can, and apply, apply, apply to jobs. When you move back home with little to no plan, you set yourself up to fail. You start to get too comfortable going with the flow. Have a conversation with your parents before college is out about what the expectations are. Are you allowed to move back in? When do you hope to move out, and where? How are you going to get to the point that you’ve saved up enough money to move out? Having a plan and talking with others about it or writing it down is absolutely a must. If I could go back to that time, I would have created an action plan and been much more of a go-getter.

3. Men Finally Start to Grow Up

Finally a positive about graduating from college! 😉 Remember all of those men aka boys who couldn’t even commit to replying back to a simple text in college… Yup, you know the ones. If your college experience regarding dating was anything like mine, then you know that dating in college is essentially a joke, or non-existent.

After college you start to see a LOT of Facebook relationship updates. The most uncommitted are suddenly in relationships and moving in with significant others.  I’m convinced that graduating from college does something to your brain, especially men’s (ok duh, you’re smarter after, but bare with me here). It makes you think about the future, some people tend to feel more lonely or isolated, and overall, your priorities shift a bit.

Men are typically much more open to dating after college is over (in my experience and the experiences of my friends). After college, men seem to actually want to go on real dates, not come over and “watch a movie” dates. That being said, I’m not saying that all of your dating problems will go away, but things usually start to get a bit better. Notice I said, they start to grow up 😉 ….

4. Seeing Friends Takes Work & Planning

One of my favorite parts of college was seeing my best friends every single day, or at least having the opportunity to do so if I wanted to. I could either walk to friends’ places or be there within a five minute drive. Some of my best memories are of meeting up for lunch with my friends in between classes. After college, friends are typically scattered across the country. If you’re lucky, you’re within a couple hours drive from each other. The reality is that not everyone is good at making plans. You may have to be that friend that makes the plans. Just because a friend isn’t making plans with you doesn’t mean they’re not interested in getting together.

In my experience, girls’ weekends where you’re going in on a hotel together or doing something where you had to pay money in advance is best because it keeps people from backing out last minute. Even if you all have the craziest schedules, I think it’s important to make time AT LEAST once a year where you all get together!

5. Real Bars Aren’t the Same

Remember that college bar that you went to where you knew all of the bartenders, the bouncers, and almost every single person that was there… You could literally act a fool and the worst that would happen is you would get cut off from having more drinks. Drinks would cost you $6 or if you’re lucky they would have $1 wells from 8-10 PM (what’s up Curva). Bar hopping post college just isn’t the same. There’s something about a college bar that brings out the wildest behavior. The best part is that there’s very little judgment because the girl over there puking in the bar bathroom was your friend last weekend, the guy slurring his words and fighting against his friend putting him in a cab outside will be your other friend in a couple weeks, and the girl doing handstands on the Bear Brew dance floor before it got busy (ok, confession…that was me) is just practicing her cheer moves. But seriously, what is it about college bars that make them way more fun than any other bar? Perhaps it’s knowing everyone there, perhaps it’s that school pride that you all share, or maybe it’s that you can pretty much do whatever you want and no one will care (too much)… I like to think it’s a combination of all of these things.

6. You’ll Call Your Parents a Lot

When I finally moved out of my parents’ house a couple years after graduating, I felt like I was constantly calling my mom… because moms know all, am I right?! Luckily I knew how to cook a decent meal after living in an apartment during college and having to, but you name it, and I would call my mom (or dad) and ask them how to do it. Luckily, today you can ask Google virtually anything and find a fairly reliable response, but there’s something about getting an answer or receiving advice from your parents that just seems like it’s how things should be. Things they should, but don’t teach you in schooling – how to hang a shelf, how to set up your own cable box, how to do your taxes, etc.

7. You Start to Censor Your Social Media Accounts

Remember the days of creating a new photo album on Facebook every month of college with some “witty” Drake lyric as your album title with your digital camera photos… LOL. Yes, I used to do this and so did you. I can still remember being a freshman or sophomore in college when people that were older would tell me about how I would regret some of the things I posted on social media…. Sure enough, YUP. I literally cringe looking at some of the photos I posted on Facebook. Were they bad enough to prevent me from getting a job because of it? Probably not…. But, they were bad enough for me to delete them all my senior year of college… Mostly out of embarrassment. But anyways, as you get a little bit further out of college and start your first job, you have those co-workers that insist on being your friend on Facebook. You’re friendly, but not so friendly that you want them knowing about your weekend bender and you entire life’s story. I very rarely share any photos on Facebook anymore because that’s what the blog is for, but I would definitely be conscious about the types of things you’re posting on social media whether it’s words or photos. You never know what can come back to haunt you, and there’s literally people who have lost college scholarships over photos and things they have posted online.

8. Vacation Time is Awesome

Whether you went on spring break in college or not, there’s something about going on your first vacation after graduating college and earning a real salary that’s straight up awesome. And to think there’s so many hard working people who don’t use their vacation time. Why, I will never understand. While I would definitely not recommend taking a vacation in your first month of starting at a new job, once you have worked somewhere for a few months, it’s perfectly acceptable to use your hard earned vacation time. That’s what it’s there for! So instead of resenting your co-worker for having to pick up their slack when they go on vacation, book your own vacation. Not only will you have something to look forward to, but the feeling of booking something that’s decently expensive after working so hard is one of accomplishment. Try to resist the urge to document your entire trip via Instagram and just spend time relaxing (easier said than done, I know). Whether you plan on going with a significant other or your girlfriends, either way, it’ll be just what you need to come back to work refreshed.

9. Life Is a Series of Ups and Downs

If you’re anything like me, you think that life after college is completely an upward line towards success. Not the case. When I first moved to Massachusetts a few years ago, I was the most broke I’ve ever been in my entire life. I had a good amount of money saved, however, it didn’t prepare me for just how expensive things would be here. To top it off, my potential roommate backed out on me at the last minute, just a couple weeks before my job was starting. I thought about finding a roommate on Craigslist, but the thought of doing something like that terrified me. This left me living alone. I was literally paying over 50% of my income in rent, and that didn’t even include additional expenses I had like paying for cable/internet, food, and other bills. There were so many nights I would cry myself to sleep because I didn’t know how I could possibly make this work. I saw my bank account quickly dwindling and it left me stressed beyond belief. Change has always been hard for me, so living in a completely new state, alone, with not many friends was also extremely difficult. I share this not to scare you or make you feel bad for me, but to let you know and prepare you a bit that life after college is not necessarily as easy as we may think it will be. You will struggle at times, but you will also accomplish things beyond what you ever thought you would. It’s completely normal to have ups and downs! Try to enjoy the process and know that it’s just a season in your life.

10. It’s Important to Have Hobbies & Find a Balance

No one was born to work and die, so what will you fill your free time with? Many of you who know me know that I was a gymnast throughout my entire childhood, I cheered in high school, and then I was also a cheerleader for four years at my alma mater, the University of Maine. After graduating college, I had free time for the first time since being five years old. It was the first time that my afternoons weren’t scheduled and planned out for me with practice times, workouts, etc. To some it might seem like a huge relief to finally “get my life back,” however, I felt the complete opposite. It might seem silly, but I think I considered “cheerleader” my identity, even before my own name. I was extremely proud to be on my school’s team, and while it wasn’t completely my “life,” I would say it came pretty close at times. I can’t remember ever crying when I got back home to school and realizing it was all over, but I do remember being in Daytona Beach after my last college cheerleading competition, and crying for hours with my senior teammates. I had been hurt for over a month and because of this, I felt that I wasn’t able to compete to my full potential (when I came home I immediately drove myself to the hospital and found out my leg was broken and had been for over a month). This left me, and honestly still leaves me feeling like I had “unfinished business” and like I finished off my cheerleading career on a bad note.

I share this with you because I have realized in the past few years how important it is to have hobbies. I guess you could say that cheerleading was a hobby of mine, however, true hobbies can continue throughout your whole life. Once my time was done in athletics, I felt that my entire life was gone. To be completely honest, I still get upset and struggle with the fact that I’m no longer on an athletic team, and I think a lot of other former athletes do as well. When something you’ve worked for your entire life is suddenly over, it feels hard to adjust afterwards. I’ve always had teammates to relate to and lean on; an activity to do. I can’t stress enough the importance of having a hobby. Whether it’s cooking, reading, sewing, blogging, crafting, writing, or anything else, it’s all part of the work life balance.You have to have something to look forward to outside of your career and your everyday life.

Luckily, in the past year, I have found blogging, and I do consider it a true hobby. It’s given me a true outlet with a space to write my thoughts and a space to be creative; pushing myself through bettering both my photography and writing. In addition to that, the community of bloggers I’ve met in Boston and beyond is amazing, and has given me a true sense of belonging.

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Did you find the transition to the “real world” to be a challenging one? I would love to start a conversation in the comments!

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