Life After College: Advice From 3 Different Perspectives

Blog Post 05

Just wait until you get into the real world. It feels like I couldn’t escape hearing that while growing up. I heard it in middle school going into high school. I heard it in high school going into college. I’m still hearing it in my final semester of undergrad.

I guess the “real world” is what’s up next for me. So, in preparation for entering the oh so dreaded “real world”, I came up with a set of questions. Questions that I thought would be at the forefront of every twenty-something year old’s minds entering a new chapter of their lives.

I asked the questions to get the perspective from a soon to be grad, a recent grad, and someone well established in their career path. I had two goals in writing this post. Goal number one was to show how someone’s perspective on these questions may change with time as they gain more life experience. Goal number two was to help ease the anxiety felt by so many people about life after college by giving them a better idea of what to expect.

Here’s what they had to say:

Jon – Soon to be graduate

1. Introduction – How old are you? What did you study? Where did you go to school? What are you doing now?

I am 23 years old. I majored in psychology and criminology at Hofstra University. I am in my final semester of undergrad now.

2. What kind of student were you while in college?

I commuted for the entirety of my time in college. I think that helped me stay on top of my classes. I spent a lot of time on campus since I couldn’t just go back to my room in between classes. I definitely prioritized school but also loved doing things with my friends on weekends.

3. What was the most valuable lesson you learned in college?

To be more personable with people. It’s very easy to become so caught up in our own world, problems, and situations that we forget about others. It’s important to remember that everyone around us is their own person with their own individual lived experience. I think college really taught me to take this into consideration when interacting with others.

4. If you could go back in time, knowing how things played out, is there something you would do differently?

I would’ve loved to either study abroad for a semester or spend a year dorming/living closer to campus. I really enjoyed my college experience. There isn’t much I would change about it.

5. Think back to the first six months after you graduated, what did you struggle with most back then while adjusting to life after college?

Even though I’m still in school, something I’ve noticed is that using Linkedin and Handshake can be a bit anxiety inducing. When I first made my accounts, it felt like I was just dropped into the deep end of a pool and told to figure it out. It’s overwhelming seeing others further along than you when you’re just starting out. There's just a perpetual feeling of not matching up to others on there. If you’re experiencing a similar feeling, something that helped me was easing my way into using these platforms. Take one aspect of your profile and work just on that until it’s done. Then repeat that process with another part of your profile.

6. What was the search for your first job out of college like?

Thankfully, I have had a lot of support. People that are older than me have taken time to look over and critique my resume. Being friends with them too has been motivating for me because I want to follow in their footsteps of landing a great job. They have helped teach me how to apply to jobs efficiently. Having their support has meant the world to me because they’ve pushed me to get started on applying to jobs early.

7. What was the first job you accepted after college?

To be determined ¯_(ツ)_/¯

8. What was your first purchase with “big boy money?”

I’ll definitely plan some type of trip. I would love to see Africa. One of my life goals is to set foot on each of the 7 continents at least once in my lifetime. Seeing the pyramids in Egypt and doing an African safari adventure are super high on my bucket list.

9. Do you have any tips for someone’s first job interview?

Dress to impress. We as people make so many assumptions about the world strictly based off appearances. If you look the part, I think your mind will find ways to act the part. Being overdressed never hurt someone. Being underdressed makes you stand out in a way you don’t want to.

10. To succeed in the modern workplace, what skills would you consider essential to develop?

Based off my experience in college, I would say an essential skill to develop would be being able to engage an audience. Your ability to communicate your message across to others effectively is crucial to getting things done. Also, be open to different ways of doing things. A method or strategy that works for you, might not work for someone else. Recognize there can be multiple paths to the same destination.

11. What tips could you offer someone in managing stress?

Remember that you aren’t a robot. There will be days where your productivity is higher and there will be days where your productivity dips. That’s normal. I heard someone once say that your body tells you when you need a break. If you don’t listen to it, your body will likely take a break on its own at a super inconvenient time for you.

12. What does work life balance mean to you?

To me, work life balance means being able to leave work at work. If something that happened during your workday is affecting you later on, off the clock, then I think that’s a problem.

13. Life is filled with so many unexpected twists and turns. How do you manage the moments where uncertainty is the only certainty?

I think it’s important to remember that there is no such thing as a 100% certainty. Unexpected things happen all the time in life. I would say be open to your life developing in ways you weren’t expecting. What might seem like the unknown could be an exciting, new opportunity for you.

14. How do you keep moving forward and avoid getting in a rut?

I think it’s best to just start when you feel stuck. Just do something to make any sort of progress. I think it’s best to take action even if it doesn’t lead directly to your desired outcome. Then you’ll be able to pivot accordingly based on what did and didn’t work. Just keep doing that until it does eventually click.

15. Once the structure and routine of school was removed, what did you do to organize and plan your days?

I love having a routine. It really helps me be productive in different areas of my life. I would grab a pen and paper to plan the 24 hours in my day. Allocate time to the things you want to get done in your days. Whether it’s going to the gym, reading more, studying, whatever it is, set a specific time in your schedule that you’ll do that activity and stick with it.

16. Is there any general advice that you would offer to someone that has gotten you far in life?

Learn to trust your instincts. If you feel you’re being called to do something, you should pay attention to that feeling. It might be starting your own business, making a Youtube channel, learning to play an instrument, whatever it is. If you feel like it’s something you want to pursue, put it into motion and get started. The same also goes for the opposite. If deep down, you feel that something isn't for you, or it just doesn't sit right with you, you should listen to that feeling too.

Kunal Patel – Recent graduate

1. Introduction – How old are you? What did you study? Where did you go to school? What are you doing now? What is your official job position?

I am 24. I studied computer science at Hofstra University. I am a security engineer. I am working at Bank Of NY. BNY Mellon.

2. What kind of student were you while in college?

I was the type of student to slack off a lot. Delay things to the very last minute. But also, the type of student to go to the library right after class and get the homework done. Study little by little but also the type of person who would cram at the very last day.

3. What was the most valuable lesson you learned in college?

I think the most valuable lesson I learned was to ask questions to my peers and professors. I learned that if I didn’t ask questions, I felt like I wasn’t going to learn as much.

4. If you could go back in time, knowing how things played out, is there something you would do differently?

If I had to go back to freshman sophomore year, I definitely would’ve started brainstorming and created projects related to my major and computer science. Whether it was a web application or an iPhone app, just so I could get more experience to put down on my resume.

5. Think back to the first six months after you graduated, what did you struggle with most back then while adjusting to life after college?

The first six months after graduating was still during the pandemic. I was working remotely. I was about two months into my job. I think the biggest hurdle was figuring out how to communicate with others. My whole life, growing up, I always addressed people older than me by their last names. That’s not the case anymore. I wouldn’t address my manager as Mr. Savage. I would address him as Jack. I feel like that was the biggest conversion that was weird. Also communicating with people remotely is not something I’ve ever done in my life. I’ve always been used to in person collaborations like in a classroom.

6. What was the search for your first job out of college like?

The September of my senior year I started applying to as many jobs as I could. It got very unorganized to the point that I started making goals for myself every day. Whether it was applying to 20 or 30 jobs a day. That was my goal every single day. I ended up doing that and definitely ended up applying to over 500 jobs. I interviewed at three companies. Two were based on Long Island. I didn’t get those. I did three rounds of interview during winter break. I got a job offer from the company I work at currently in March. I started working in July.

7. From your first interaction with the company you’re working with today to when you were officially hired, how long did the whole process take?

About 9-10 months. I applied in September of my senior year. I got an immediate interview to do about 30 days later. From there, there was first round interviews in November/December. Followed by three round interviews by their senior engineers in January. In March, they communicated out to me right before Hofstra sent us home, that they wanted to extend a job offer to me. They gave me the offer details. My job was supposed to start in June but because of COVID they pushed it back 30 days later to July.

8. When did you begin applying for jobs?

I started applying for jobs my junior year. In addition to internships before my junior year ended. I continued applying even after I did all these interviews with these companies. I stopped applying for jobs when I accepted a job offer in March.

9. What was the first job you accepted after college?

BNY Mellon.

10. How did you know this was the right offer to accept at the time?

My older sister also works in finance at another bank. From her experience it seemed like the best place to work. I’m more on the technology side, not really on the finance side. It just seemed like people loved interacting with each other. They’re not there just because they are getting paid. It made me feel like they were really part of a team.

11. What was your first purchase with “big boy money?”

A week before I started working, I was given a welcome bonus. I went out and purchased an Audi.

12. What advice would you offer to someone who is looking to get their foot in the door in a career like yours?

Definitely network. Talk to as many people as you can. Not just the people you know but go beyond that. Message people on a professional platform like LinkedIn. It’s a great way to get in front of recruiters, hiring managers, senior people at the company. I think it will open up more opportunities for you.

13. Do you have any tips for someone’s first job interview?

Definitely rehearse answering questions. Mainly in front of a mirror. If you can record yourself. Your head gestures, the way you move your hands, it all really makes an impact on how you do during an interview. Even though you might answer all the questions correctly, if you have different facial expressions or your hands are just moving way too much that sort of annoys the recruiter, they might just go the other way and not recommend you. It’s a very huge thing that gets overlooked a lot.

14. To succeed in the modern workplace, what skills would you consider essential to develop?

Definitely your soft skills. Learning how to communicate with others, dealing with others. At the end of the day, you’re not going to get along with everyone, but you need to know how to work with someone.

15. I can imagine your line of work must come with moments of great stress or pressure. What tips could you offer someone in managing stress from work?

Honestly, take as many breaks as you can and want. At the end of the day, the company is not going to penalize you for going outside and taking a walk to get some fresh air. It’s something you’ve kind of earned and deserve.

16. What does work life balance mean to you?

Work life balances means to me that I would be able to close my computer in case I needed to instantly go take care of something. Whether it might be having to take my pet to a vet or checking up on a family member in an emergency. My team could cover for me, or they wouldn’t mind me stepping out. Also, if I could just bring my laptop with me to the hospital or wherever. It’s about being flexible in my work environment.

17. How do you prevent your professional life interfering with your personal life?

The first thing you want to do when you start working is set boundaries. At 5 PM your work laptop is closed. You don’t check emails on your phone. You don’t respond to messages. Even if they seem urgent, they typically can wait until the next morning. That’s an expectation you have to set for others. Even if you’re at the bottom of the corporate chain, it’s your right to set boundaries.

18. Life is filled with so many unexpected twists and turns. How do you manage the moments where uncertainty is the only certainty?

The way I live my life based on that question is I don’t worry about something unless there is something to start worrying about. There’s no reason to start stressing over something that could be something, but it could also not be something. Don’t stress about it until it actually happens. It’s just not healthy.

19. How do you keep moving forward and avoid getting in a rut?

If you feel stuck or you’re struggling, there is always your team members to lean on. Any job you get into you’re not expected to know everything. You have a team who is there to train you, help you, guide you. You also have mentors like your managers. They’re not there just to make sure you use up a certain amount of vacation days. They’re there to help you achieve your goals. Your team is there to help you. You’re not there solo.

20. Once the structure and routine of school was removed, what did you do to organize and plan your days?

After I graduated I had about two months of free time before I started work. I woke up late. I would have very unstructured days. Some days I would want to get up early to go golfing or play tennis. Other days I would just want to sleep in and watch some tv. When I started working, I brought some of those habits into my routine. I would literally wake up at 8:55 AM and log in 5 minutes later. Then I would bring my laptop downstairs, start making myself breakfast. I didn’t really like that. It just felt weird. So instead, I made a schedule with pen and paper. I said to myself I wanted to start going to the gym. So, I wrote “gym” down on my schedule at 6 AM. Come back an hour later. Make my breakfast, shower, and then get ready for my day. Then afterwards I could plan to just spend time with family, go golfing, see my friends. I think it was my pre morning routine that I needed to fix so the rest of my day just felt organized. It’s important to get momentum going first thing in the morning to win the rest of your day.

21. Is there any general advice that you would offer to someone that has gotten you far in life?

Always be kind to everyone. You never know when someone could open a door for you.

Alex Colato - Someone well established in their career

1. Introduction – How old are you? What did you study? Where did you go to school? What are you doing now? What is your official job position?

I am 32 years old. I have a major in accounting and a minor in psychology from St. John’s University. I work for a real estate company. I am the Vice President of Finance. I do a lot of their financial reporting, payroll, pretty much anything related financially to the company, and occasionally help recruit agents.

2. What kind of student were you while in college?

I commuted. I didn’t dorm. I would say I was there for my education. I did a few extracurricular things. I worked. A lot. I’m not sure what kind of student that makes me. But I tried to get a good experience out of it.

3. What was the most valuable lesson you learned in college?

I went to a very diverse school. So, I think dealing with different personalities, different backgrounds, different cultures. I think it helped me talk to pretty much anyone I needed to talk to. I work at a big company now, so I have people from all over the place. So, I think communication was one of them. I remember I took a psych course and one of the things that came up was “what makes you happy?” as an assignment. It came down to three things. I liked helping other people. I liked maintaining my relationships. Whether it was with my family, you, my brother, my friends. The third one was just doing the things that I liked. Making time to go outside, go exercise, go hiking. I think those two really stuck with me.

4. If you could go back in time, knowing how things played out, is there something you would do differently?

I don’t think so. Maybe a little more time for studying. There were definitely times where I took a test, and I could’ve prepared for it a little bit better. I’m pretty happy with my experience and how everything turned out.

5. Think back to the first six months after you graduated, what did you struggle with most back then while adjusting to life after college?

The work schedule. Having to be somewhere that often. That consecutively. I was used to working part time, going to school, hanging out with my friends. My time was very chopped up. But then having to be at the same place five days in a row. My friends were going through the same thing too. They had different schedules. Trying to coordinate time to hang out with them and see them.

6. What was the search for your first job out of college like?

I was working at the company I’m at now. Before I graduated, I had to take a summer course. They let me walk in the spring, but I had to take a summer course. I told my boss “Hey I have to take this summer course, I’m graduating. I’m gonna probably look for a different job. So, I just want you to be prepared. I’m kinda giving you more than two weeks notice.” I gave him a few months notice and that I would help train a new person. He was telling me that he would create a position for me in the company because he didn’t want me to leave. He needed an accounting department. He wanted to build an accounting department where I was working. Back then the company was much smaller. I had no idea what it was going to turn into. I figured I try it for a year or two. Get my feet wet. Get some experience and then reevaluate from there. But I’m still there.

7. What were you doing before they created that position for you?

I was working front desk. Working part time, answering phones, setting appointments.

8. Were you doing anything related to your major while working part time?

Sort of. I was helping them with pay roll a little bit. I did help them pay the agents every week. I wouldn’t do the actual accounting part, but I would prepare the file and get it ready for accounting.

9. How did you know this was the right offer to accept at the time?

I liked what I was doing. I was comfortable working there. I knew the personalities. I knew the staff. They were willing to work with me to get me to what I wanted to do. They weren’t just telling me that this was all we could offer. They were willing to work with me. I saw it as an opportunity at the time and it was.

10. What was your first purchase with “big boy money?”

I always liked to travel. I think I booked a vacation. It was a cruise out of New York to the Bahamas and back. That was one of the bigger purchases I made.

11. What advice would you offer to someone who is looking to get their foot in the door in a career like yours?

Sharpen your communication skills. Everything. Written, verbal, non-verbal, body language. Learn how to read the room if you can. Be patient. Sometimes when you’re young you get impatient. You want things now. Don’t compare yourself to others. Definitely know your worth too. Know what you’re willing to accept and not willing to accept. Take it from there.

12. Do you have any tips for someone’s first job interview?

Dress for it. You can never be overdressed in my opinion. First impressions matter a lot. Be on time. Do your homework and research the company. Don’t go in there expecting them to just ask you questions. If you can turn an interview into a conversation, that’s a good sign. If it’s a job you want, tell them why they should pick you, and why you want to be there.

13. To succeed in the modern workplace, what skills would you consider essential to develop?

Definitely the ability to learn. The world we live in now is always changing. You need to be able to adapt. I remember graduating from school and thinking I had it all figured out. Then my first year out of college I’m thinking this is just the tip of the iceberg. There’s so much to learn so much to do.

14. I can imagine your line of work must come with moments of great stress or pressure. What tips could you offer someone in managing stress from work?

Know when to take breaks. You can get burnt out easily and that’s not good. I’m not saying take a nap. Do something that helps your mind destress. Go for a walk, bike ride, a hike, walk the dog. I would do something like that. Some people like to exercise. Some people like to listen to music.

15. What does work life balance mean to you?

A lot of people like to say thank God it’s Friday. I think if you say thank God its Monday, you’re on to something. Some people live for the weekend and then are just trying to get through the week. If you’re happy its Monday and you’re excited about what you’re about to do and take on and the projects you’re working on. I think that’s work life balance. You should also be happy about the weekend too. It’s your free time. You should definitely like what you do and that makes work life balance easier.

16. How do you prevent your professional life interfering with your personal life?

Set boundaries. The same way you might make an appointment or must meet a deadline, make time for yourself. Whether it’s hanging out with your friends, making time for your friends, going on a date, going on a vacation. The same way you would schedule all that out definitely schedule out your personal time. Obviously, it’s not going to be as rigid as a work schedule but make time for it.

17. What was the biggest shock to you when you first started working?

Sometimes how much adult don’t know. Things that you would think somebody should know sometimes I would have to teach them and educate them on financial things, keeping records, setting goals. Stuff like that. I thought the adults would know more.

18. Life is filled with so many unexpected twists and turns. How do you manage the moments where uncertainty is the only certainty?

Definitely rely on friends, colleagues to bounce off ideas. Covid is a good example of that. Where I work, we work with other vendors. It’s a good team that’s been put together. Being able to rely on your team and bounce off ideas definitely helps. You’re all going through it together sometimes.

19. How do you keep moving forward and avoid getting in a rut?

It depends on what it is. Definitely research it. Sometimes I see what people in my industry are doing in other states or other countries to see what some of the trends are. If I’m struggling with something I would probably run it by my boss and see what he thinks. Usually he points me in the right direction or consult with a professional if I need to.

20. Once the structure and routine of school was removed, what did you do to organize and plan your days?

I used Google Calendar to block out time. Whether its work hours, going to the gym, making time for your friends. I think I figured out what I wanted to do and then figured out when I could do it and then I took it from there. Some people argue when’s the best time to exercise. Should you go in the morning? Should you go at night after work? Go when you can actually go and do the things you want to do.

21. Was there a time period in your life when you had to figure out what worked best for you?

Oh yeah. It’s always changing. You’re not a robot. Life has different phases. Take your time with it and you’ll figure it out.

22. Is there any general advice that you would offer to someone that has gotten you far in life?

Invest in yourself. Whether it’s your health, your looks, your education. You are your own asset. You are the one who has to put your best self out there. Prioritize and write down your goals.

Well there you have it. After reading what everyone had to say, I hope the "real world" doesn't seem so daunting anymore. Hearing from people who have already experienced life after college and the changes that come with it, made me see things in a different light. I hope this post can be a small remedy to any anxious thoughts you may have about life after college.

Think back to your first day of college and how intimidating it all seemed. We were able to adapt back then. We will be able to adapt now. We've got experience now. Something we didn't have back on our first day of college. Embrace that things in your life may be changing but that doesn't have to be a bad thing.

So here's to us. The Class of 2023.

What may seem like the end is often just the beginning.

-JC