With only a few weeks left in the semester, it’s time for senior students to start thinking about life after St. Edward’s. As a freshman, I cannot relate to the thought as I’ve spent much of my first year simply struggling to figure out what I like.

But as someone who has no expertise in planning for the future, I want to relay an optimistic outlook. For most, the reality of leaving college is daunting. Let’s face it– being an adult is not nearly as fun as it’s made out to be and for most people, life after college can be a tumultuous time. Think about it like this, graduation is one of the few times where everyone around you will be celebrating the fact that you are on your own for the first time.

I cannot speak for all seniors as I’m sure there are some who already have a job lined up for when they graduate. However, for the majority of college graduates trying to figure out their lives, I want to let you all know: it’s perfectly okay to not have your life figured out.  

As a young person, you should make an effort to live through some interesting experiences and travel as much as possible before “settling down.” It may be expensive but the older you get, the more responsible you are. Worry about your career later. You just survived four years of following syllabus guidelines. You kings and queens deserve to treat yourselves to something unique outside of the corporate world.

To get some perspective on how St. Edward’s prepares students for the real world, I asked a few seniors about how they were feeling about graduating.

Senior Amanda Rodriguez said, “I’m excited about the future. The future is unknown but I feel prepared thanks to all the experiences I’ve had outside of the classrooms. I was involved heavily in SGA, Res Life and Campus Ministry. I feel like I’ve always had a good community here.”

The most unfortunate part of graduating college is the feeling that’s normally more bittersweet than high school. It does seem quite unfair that you have to spend elementary, middle and high school with the same people but you only get four years with your new college friends.

But it’s important to remember there are certain things that can’t be taught in college and although college feels like a big milestone, it really is just the beginning of your journey. It may sound melodramatic but I truly believe the fun has just begun, so congratulate yourselves and remember that it’s perfectly okay to not have your life figured out.

My advice to all seniors: look the future in the eye and make it your own. The world is yours; go conquer it before we all burn alive because of climate change.