2008 Woodie Awards
May is here and I don't know what to do!
Sarah Grafton
Issue date: 5/9/08 Section: Opinion
osed to bring May flowers. If that is true, what do May flowers bring? Yes, the traditional joke is pilgrims, but for a third- year college student what does May really reveal?
Stomach knots, stress, fear, confusion, and planning seem to fill the days of my final month of school. My time at Pacific University is coming to an end. I am more than half way done with my undergraduate education. This seems like a relief, until I really think about what that means.
Being this close to the end of school and having no clue where I want to go with my life after college is a very terrifying feeling. In talking to people around campus, I've learned that I am not alone in this fear. A good friend of mine is going into her fourth year at Pacific and now wishes she would have chosen a different major but has decided it is too late to switch. Technically by the second year of school we should have all declared a major. But that really doesn't mean a whole lot. Many of the people who have declared a major still have yet to switch it once or twice… or three times.
As spring air floats into Forest Grove it is just a subtle reminder that we have all finished yet another academic year and we are that much closer to graduation. Pacific does offer help in deciding a future in the career world. They offer job fairs and information on different careers and, of course, most advisors are helpful in shining a light on opportunities that we students might not see.
But part of the problem in choosing a career is there are so many social norms that can sometimes bog down a future 9-5er. My heart might tell me to write for a non-profit organization and support a cause but my mind tells me non-profit won't pay off the debt I've built up at Pacific.
Call me crazy, but shouldn't the career that is going to absorb much of my life be something I'm passionate about? It is scary to not know what I will be doing in just a year or two, but the scariest thing is that I can't figure out what I care enough about to do every day. It seems that so many people are worried about making money and being a big shot that career choices don't depend much on passion.
I'd like to spend the next 40 years of my life doing something I enjoy. Maybe some people do have a passion for being at the top of a corporate office. But for those people who don't dream of headaches and long nights at the office, I hope they can breathe in the spring air that's coming and take the time to realize their passion.
I will, in time, figure out a career that can make me happy and comfortable with my choice. Until that day comes, I hope that I can let spring turn into summer and summer into the new school year without stressing over what will happen in a year from now.
Stomach knots, stress, fear, confusion, and planning seem to fill the days of my final month of school. My time at Pacific University is coming to an end. I am more than half way done with my undergraduate education. This seems like a relief, until I really think about what that means.
Being this close to the end of school and having no clue where I want to go with my life after college is a very terrifying feeling. In talking to people around campus, I've learned that I am not alone in this fear. A good friend of mine is going into her fourth year at Pacific and now wishes she would have chosen a different major but has decided it is too late to switch. Technically by the second year of school we should have all declared a major. But that really doesn't mean a whole lot. Many of the people who have declared a major still have yet to switch it once or twice… or three times.
As spring air floats into Forest Grove it is just a subtle reminder that we have all finished yet another academic year and we are that much closer to graduation. Pacific does offer help in deciding a future in the career world. They offer job fairs and information on different careers and, of course, most advisors are helpful in shining a light on opportunities that we students might not see.
But part of the problem in choosing a career is there are so many social norms that can sometimes bog down a future 9-5er. My heart might tell me to write for a non-profit organization and support a cause but my mind tells me non-profit won't pay off the debt I've built up at Pacific.
Call me crazy, but shouldn't the career that is going to absorb much of my life be something I'm passionate about? It is scary to not know what I will be doing in just a year or two, but the scariest thing is that I can't figure out what I care enough about to do every day. It seems that so many people are worried about making money and being a big shot that career choices don't depend much on passion.
I'd like to spend the next 40 years of my life doing something I enjoy. Maybe some people do have a passion for being at the top of a corporate office. But for those people who don't dream of headaches and long nights at the office, I hope they can breathe in the spring air that's coming and take the time to realize their passion.
I will, in time, figure out a career that can make me happy and comfortable with my choice. Until that day comes, I hope that I can let spring turn into summer and summer into the new school year without stressing over what will happen in a year from now.
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