Hello Y’all,
What a sunny and bright one this Saturday is!! Its been megaaaaaaaaaaa, yet I’m back on my fav de-stressing place and bustling with ideas. This one came when I sat at work and suddenly realised the date…..
I will call this a reflection on a decision I am yet to feel the reward from. Before I rant on for god knows how long, I would like to say, as much as I’m not sure if it was all worth it just yet, I did meet some amazing people, and the skills I didn’t so much pay for, have got me through some pretty tough spots that prior to uni Charlotte probably would’ve melted in.
Its May 2016.
This time last year I had just finished my Final Major Project and landed a London job. Everything looked bright, for now, and to be honest, I was just bloody grateful I no longer had to lie to myself that watching Netflix was more productive than writing a essay or turning up to a lecture.
Uni got boring, but the prospect of working life seemed daunting yet promising, since all my lectures had promised jobs that paid £30,000 plus and a uni loan that would only steal pence from my pocket a month. I was so excited for the future.
That was until I hated waking at sun rise, becoming a full on commuter for a job that I didn’t all care for, nor gave me the pay cheque I was promised. I stuck at it for 3 months, threw in the towel and looked for a more suited, local job to sink my teeth into.
I was prepared with a degree in one hand and another slightly full of work experience and hard work.
Much to my surprise, I received negativity and rejection; something I wasn’t prepared for. In the end, after just over a month of tears and endless amounts of emails, cover letters and adjusting the CV, I realised it might just be better to take my degree of my CV!
I felt I wasn’t given the time of day for some jobs simply because I was ‘over qualified’. I was gutted and distraught that after 3 years I wasn’t falling into the job I wanted, or even given a chance at jobs that would put me on the way because ‘lack of experience’.
Thankfully I caught a break and landed myself the job I have now. Estate agency really wasn’t what I was looking for, but with a dual role of communications, It has given me the experience that hopefully will get me the £30,000 plus role I had been promised from uni.
In the last 12 months, I have been lucky enough to secure a job I enjoy, with some amazing people. Whilst the money may be minimal and a under half what I was told I could expect, I have achieved some amazing things since my degree.
I mean I got a bloody mortgage for christ sake!!
University is a business, and as much as they’ll say they care for their students, all they care about is the fees are paid and their students stick around to pay stupid amounts to put on a gown and collect a certificate that doesn’t mean as much as you’d hoped in the real world.
Every degree is different, yet I wish I had been told the hard truth that you should also expect the worst. The sleepless nights thinking you’ll never get out of your debt, and crying because you think no one will ever give you a chance.
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