Having a full-time job is the hallmark of post-college life, but getting used to a job is just one of many big adjustments new grads must face. Leaving friends, losing freedom, gaining responsibility'all are part of the bittersweet and formative course that starts with a flip of the mortarboard's tassel from right to left.
For a lot of recent graduates, the biggest shock is adjusting to new demands on their time. Ryan Feit, a 2005 UW-Madison graduate now working as an investment banking analyst at Lehman Brothers in New York, said there have been many weeks he just worked and slept.
'You can't expect to sit around and play 'Madden' or watch episodes of '24' or go out five nights a week,' Feit said. 'You also don't just have the snooze button that you can always hit if you really want to.'
Lauren Hodes, a 2005 UW-Madison graduate who majored in Spanish, worked as a substitute teacher in Illinois last fall. She said she sometimes did not answer the phone offering her sub work in the morning because she was not used to getting up early.
According to Steve Schroeder, director of the UW-Madison School of Business Career Center, adjusting to working 8 to 12 hours per day is an obvious challenge for new graduates accustomed to four hours of class.
Robyn Kaplan, a 2005 UW-Madison graduate now working for a public relations firm in Chicago, said another difference between college and the working world is the level of responsbility. '[In college] your only responsibility is showing up in the classroom and getting decent enough grades that you really don't get thrown out,' said Kaplan.
Feit shoulders a lot of responsibility at Lehman Brothers, but thinks being responsible yields rewards.
'The positives are you're going to come home at the end of the night and feel a sense of accomplishment,' he said. Schroeder thinks adjusting to the multi- generational nature of the workplace is another big challenge, since new graduates are accustomed to associating mainly with peers. Feit said he felt welcomed by his older colleagues, but that working with older people meant he had to act 'a lot more professional' than in college.
Kara Moore, a 2005 UW-Madison graduate who works at the Humane Society in Madison, said that adjusting to her job has been a challenge because 'you don't see people your own age as much, so it's hard to still feel connected to your age group.'
Being younger than her colleagues also put Moore in a double bind.
'[Colleagues] think of you as being really young and not being able to handle the job or they think of you as you're in that position, you should automatically know everything that's going on.' Moore said, adding, 'Both sides create pressure.'
Now nearly a year out of school, these grads had advice for the next wave of newbies.
According to Feit, students can make the transition to the work world easier if they find a job they really enjoy doing.
'It is definitely one of the biggest steps you're going to take in your life, so it's important to take your time with the decision.'
He also said it helps to surround yourself with friends who are going through the same adjustment process.
Hodes suggested that students 'be on top of things''by using the career centers on campus and other resources. She did admit she procrastinated in her post-graduation planning out of avoidance. Kaplan warned students not to be picky in job hunting'she said they should take an internship, if necessary, rather than wait too long for an entry-level position.
Moore suggested that students go to graduate school'since master's level training is the new ante for many professions.
Some new grads, like Hodes, are still wistful about the world they left behind.
'It's hard for me to see myself as an adult because I still feel very much like I just graduated undergrad,' she said.
'I have some friends who are really excited to get out of undergrad, but I definitely know a lot of people who really miss it,' Hodes added. She said that leaving her friends from undergrad was the most difficult aspect of moving into the working world.
Kaplan was perhaps the most philosophical: 'I came out and definitely my first words, especially over the summer, were, 'God, I wish I was back in Madison.' But, you know, you adjust. No one said real life is fun.'
