Scarlett speaks: No map for the afterlife (of college)

For almost two decades, our identities as individuals have been defined by education.

In elementary school, it was defined by which classroom teacher we had. In middle school we had more autonomy. We joined various clubs and sports, and in high school our identity was tied to the colleges we were applying to or whether or not we were in AP classes. 

Once we got to college, this sense of identity and belonging shifted once again. We entered college and basically became toddlers, learning how to handle this new version of independence. We found people in our majors to become our friends, found organizations or clubs to nurture our interests and learned what it meant to no longer be defined only by education. 

In college, we have a softer version of adulthood. We have the ability to test-run what it will be like to be responsible for ourselves, our work, hobbies, relationships and responsibilities. By the end of the four years, we actually get pretty good at being adults in a toddler-proofed environment. 

We remember to feed ourselves and get pretty good at grocery shopping; we learn how to take ownership of projects and thrive in our fields; we transition into adult relationships that do not revolve around high school activities and eventually we become something that closely resembles a functioning adult. 

Then, it becomes time to prepare for life after college, and it feels like you once again go from knowing everything to knowing nothing. We start looking for jobs and applying to every open position that remotely resembles our major. Our resumes are revised more times than most people are willing to admit. This is all while simultaneously questioning if we actually did enough resume-building activities to make us hireable. 

It is finally our turn to become the real adults that run the world and shape the future generations, and we are walking into a fire with nothing but courage and the rose-colored glasses we have grasped onto since we were children. It is both discouraging and exciting, all in the same breath. 

We make jokes on social media about recession indicators and pray we see a housing crash comparable to 2008 so we can afford to buy a house before we retire. This is scarier than any haunted house I have been to, but then again, I refuse to go to haunted houses. 

The reality is we are scared of the next steps. We are afraid of the identity outside of our education. We are concerned about the world we are being propelled into in just a few months. Most importantly, we are apprehensive about what comes next. 

We have been who we are now since we were five years old. Now we are told to be ourselves and find a career in a world that challenges individuality. 

This is far more horrifying than any scary movie, and for many of us, reality is the scary movie.  Many of us are facing this fear, including myself, and we can only prepare for what comes next. We are prepared with skills for the real world; we have become educated; we have learned to thrive in unfamiliar environments, and yet most of us express that these next steps horrify us. 

So, let it scare you worse than any Halloween horror. Do not be afraid to be afraid. The most tell-tale sign of growth is discomfort. If you feel unprepared after taking all the appropriate steps, you are doing the right thing. The torments and miseries that come with college coming to an end just mean that you have enjoyed this chapter of your life exactly as you were supposed to. 

Before we have to go out and be the real adults of the world, enjoy being a college student just a little longer. The horrors will persist, but so will we.