Once upon a time, we were all seniors in high school and the most stressful question any adult could ask was “What colleges are you applying to?” Fast forward four years and now some of us are seniors here at The New School, dreading the question that people are still asking, “What are you doing after you graduate?”
With a college degree comes the expectation and pressure to be successful post graduation. Our parents, and even some of us, have invested thousands of dollars in tuition money to our future, so it is our obligation to do something with our degree. However, taking the first step into adult life can be terrifying. It feels like you’re just thrown into the dark abyss that is the “real world,” without any safety nets. Between finding a job, deciding whether to stay in New York, to figuring out things like insurance, credit and taxes, adulting can be overwhelming. To top if off, there’s the extra weight of student debt.
With the fall semester ending in just a month and a half (and the clock ticking closer to the end of an era for some students), The New School Free Press decided to dissect what life after The New School looks like for different people.
We looked into how Career Services supports us in our transition from student to professionals, and what the recent decision to merge career and academic advising means. We researched how a master’s degree can boost careers and salaries, and we heard from graduates who never left but took on new roles as employees of the school.
When reporting these stories, we felt it was important to hear from you, as students, about your fears and your aspirations post-college. We asked seniors to reflect on their time here and to give advice to freshman on how to make the best of their education. We also asked our older and wiser TNS-ers at the Institute of Retired Professionals to give some advice to those of us graduating, “senior” to senior. Finally, we talked to alumni who gave us hope that success can be achieved shortly after graduating.
In publishing this special issue, the NSFP hopes to ease your mind (as well as our own) about what exists beyond life off of Fifth Avenue. There’s no right or wrong journey for anyone after finishing school, so it’s okay to take a step back and evaluate what you’re going to do, what you want to do, and where you’re going to go. Find inspiration in your peers’ stories, and take time to find inspiration in your own.
Illo: Alex Gilbeaux
Truman is the Editor-in-Chief for The New School Free Press and a senior in the Journalism + Design program at Lang. He has also contributed online content for both Interview Magazine and V Magazine, talking with musicians, directors and a variety of other artists. Born in raised in Oakland, California, he now lives in Bed Stuy with a witchy roommate who is always down to burn some candles with him.
