I'm graduating from Iowa State this weekend and just thought I'd get some thoughts from people on here that have graduated from ISU previously. What was your mindset when you graduated? Honestly for me, I'm pretty depressed. I love it here and I don't want it to be over yet. I feel like it went way too fast and I'm not ready to give it all up yet. That being said I have a job lined up so at least I know what I'm doing. I obviously won't miss the homework and tests, but to me that's only a small part of the whole college experience. I see some people that are just dying to get out of here and can't really understand why. Thoughts?
Graduation
- Thread starter Cydog
- Start date
I could not WAIT to leave, I hated college. Maybe it was that my major was pretty tough. It was one of the happiest days of my life. Of course I did not have a job lined up, but I had a good job doing programming for a now defunct ames based company (EAI), and was making like $9.50 an hour, so I thought I was rolling in the cash. Once I got that degree I thought I would start looking for fulltime work, and took a job a month later for $17 an hour, wow, I had hit the big time then!
Boy how times change...
Getting out of college is nice, you have free time, no more tests, no more studying. Life is just easier, plus you have a nice steady income coming in, that is so nice.
Boy how times change...
Getting out of college is nice, you have free time, no more tests, no more studying. Life is just easier, plus you have a nice steady income coming in, that is so nice.
I didn't want to leave either. Of course I had fallen really hard for a girl who was graduating at the same time, and neither of us had jobs lined up.
The first couple of years after graduation sucked. We both worked really crappy jobs and traded off driving to see each other on the weekends (I lived in Sioux City and she lived in Omaha).
Six years later, we're married and living back in Ames, and she's working for the university in the same department that we both graduated from and I'm doing fine at my job. Things worked out, and we love living in Ames!
The first couple of years after graduation sucked. We both worked really crappy jobs and traded off driving to see each other on the weekends (I lived in Sioux City and she lived in Omaha).
Six years later, we're married and living back in Ames, and she's working for the university in the same department that we both graduated from and I'm doing fine at my job. Things worked out, and we love living in Ames!
I was SCARED! I loved college and going to the "real world" was kind of sad. All my friends were moving to different places. I was depressed for like a year. My first job was with a bunch of ladies older than 50 (well, maybe 2 or 3 in their 40s) at the Federal Reserve south of the airport in DSM. I lasted there 1 day less than a year.
Even though it wasn't at ISU, I was not ready to leave college. 4 great years of playing football and touring Europe with the choir wasn't enough. Within 4 weeks I graduated, found a job and got married and get together with my college friends at least once a month and will see some of them again this weekend after being with a different group last weekend. Its true what they say, you grow up with your high school friends and grow old with your college friends.
I was drunk...I drank sooo much that week that I probably looked like hell. I stayed around Ames for 3 more weeks to finish out "college life" plus my lease wasnt up til August. If you get a good group at work in the real world, it can be like the best part of college...the social life, but without the tests or homework
I'm in the same boat, it's bittersweet for me. Four years has gone by way too fast and its sad to leave a place I love. Luckily I have a job lined up and it is close enough to get back for football games in the fall and of course see the significant other, but far enough that I'm still a bit nervous.
Post college is definitely better than college. Don't get me wrong, I have great, great memories of my days at ISU, but I was ready to move on and life has been rewarding for the most part post-grad.
I had way more free time in college. Only part time work, no kid, although not going to class definitely helped increase that time. I miss aspects of college, but as a whole I'm much happier where I am now. I married a sugar momma who was already graduated and working so I was never "poor", but it's nice being able to do what you want, when you want now.
High school was fun, college was fun, lots of great memories of both. BUT I would not turn back the clock to either one. Much more rewarding beyond that life. I keep in contact with people from both levels of schooling, but my friends now are ones I live near and ones I work with. High school and college is really only a snapshot of your life in the (hopefully) full life you live. Lots of life to live after college, I guess that makes me old.
I've been graduated for a year now, had a job lined up when I left, and moved pretty far away, but it's been great so far. I don't miss homework, projects, and finals ... especially since many of my friends are still in school and they complain all the time. It's nice to have a steady income and live a bit more freely, and take on more responsibility at the same time. I miss all my friends from school but I'm quite happy I made the decision to come down here.
On Saturday afternoon after graduation and a family meal, I felt that I was being left behind -- by those who would return to campus in the fall. Odd huh? I knew I'd be getting married in a little over a month, so my future was set. But it didn't stop me from feeling lonely and nearly alone. It was like everybody else I knew would still be together, and I wouldn't.
Give yourself time to get accustomed to your new world. And then come back to campus, this board and athletic events, knowing you'd do it all over again in a heartbeat!
Give yourself time to get accustomed to your new world. And then come back to campus, this board and athletic events, knowing you'd do it all over again in a heartbeat!
I had a friend that worked for EAI/UGS/EDI/etc ... He jokes that he worked for 5 different companies without ever changing (work) phone numbers.
It's bittersweet, but I'm really amped to get out of here. Part of the reason I can't wait is that the last two weeks have been simply brutal. I had something due pretty much every day Dead Week, and a Final every single day this week, last one at 7:30 this morning. After two straight weeks of nothing but 2-3 hours of sleep per night, I don't feel like I've got anything left in the tank.
I've just got so much to look forward to once I get out of here. Early next week I'm going to get the first pictures of my house...they poured the foundation on Thursday. I get to spend more than one month with my fiancee for the first time since 2004. First real vacation since that time, as well.
I imagine I'm really going to feel the twang eventually, probably right around August 28...
I've just got so much to look forward to once I get out of here. Early next week I'm going to get the first pictures of my house...they poured the foundation on Thursday. I get to spend more than one month with my fiancee for the first time since 2004. First real vacation since that time, as well.
I imagine I'm really going to feel the twang eventually, probably right around August 28...
Many mixed emotions for me. I had a job ready to go in Dallas and then they had a scandal and my position with many others was gone. I still moved anyway and took a low paying job for a year while I got my feet in some good doors. I still miss having that much fun while working that hard. Nothing can come close to that experience of the college life.
More advice, take a month off before you start work, this is the last chance you get to just relax before you die.