Disclaimer: The views expressed by our interviewees are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of GradSimple. We only edit these responses for clarity. All opinions remain those of the interviewee.
- Year Of Graduation: 2017
- College/University: Concord University
- Major: Bachelors of Science in Computer Science
What do you do for a living? Do you see yourself continuing in this path, and how does it make you feel?
I’m a customer service agent in a call center because I recently moved back to my hometown and I’m between finding work in my preferred field. Many of the troubleshooting skills from my previous roles in IT helpdesk are transferable and since I’m supporting software, it can at times feel like that role just skewed more towards customer service than the deeply technical side of things. That being said, I don’t wish to continue in this field of work; as I said, it’s something temporary to pay the bills until I can find something else under the umbrella of IT. I would like to continue training my skills and knowledge in the world of IT, but I’m uncertain of which direction I would like to take.
Can you share the most unexpected challenge you faced after graduating? How did you handle it?
The most unexpected challenge to me was how difficult it was to actually get a “big boy” job. Through high school and college, I only worked low skill, part-time jobs. I was also quite stupid in that I was the type of person who expected a college degree to be a job guarantee. I was pretty devastated after my first couple of rejections! However, with time I learned to temper my expectations and applied to (and got hired for!) roles that were more appropriate for my skill set, experience, and level of education.
Why did you choose your major, and looking back, how do you feel about that decision?
When I was young, I was always the guy who was good with computers and other tech. I’ve also always loved video games from a young age too. During my first year or so of college, my major was actually undeclared and I was just taking general credits while I tried to figure out what I wanted to do. My advisor urged me to look into Computer Science given my interests in computer hardware and software, and through my own research I determined that this was a common path for those who go on to develop video games. I thought to myself, “my highest aspiration could have me developing video games like the ones that I love, and if I fall short of that, it’s still an in-demand career path that challenges the part of me that enjoys engaging with problem-solving.” Looking back, I think the choice overall was correct, although I’d maybe skew more towards IT skills nowadays because my classes were predominantly exercises in programming and software development.
If you could speak to your younger self right after graduation, what’s the one piece of advice you’d give?
Study as hard as you can at every level of education!! I was a gifted child and coasted from elementary through high school. I did very little actual studying or putting effort into assignments and still managed to pull straight A’s, or B’s at worst. However, this lack of worth ethic and discipline punished me at the college level when the material was suitably challenging. At first, I didn’t have the skills to manage time for studying material or practicing skills, and I think you really have to come to grips with cultivating those skills in earlier education when the stakes are lower. I did poorly and even failed quite a few of my early college courses just because I was unprepared to deal with that kind of workload and challenge. I think practicing the skill of studying and being disciplined is just as important if not more so than being naturally intelligent.
What’s your biggest fear or insecurity right now? How do you manage it?
My biggest fear right now is that I might never advance past where I am right now in terms of success and stability. Staying competitive and trained in your career is a difficult task, and I constantly feel like I’m falling behind. I try to ground myself by reminding myself of accomplishments, but it can be difficult at times to get past those feelings of insecurity.
If financial stability wasn’t an issue, what dream or passion project would you pursue?
If money were no barrier, I would like to develop my own video or trading card game. It’s an awful big time sink to dedicate to when there’s no guaranteed payoff, but I’ve always been a huge fan of video and card games. If I didn’t have to concern myself with money or how I spend the time, I would like to make something people could enjoy and have fun with.
What’s something about life after college that no one warned you about?
How hard it is to meet new people. We take for granted that for much of our developing lives, education gives us opportunities every day to meet new people and form connections. I’m very fortunate that my hobbies in trading card and tabletop games are naturally social hobbies, otherwise I would never meet new people.
How do you define fulfillment, and do you think you’re on the path toward it?
I think fulfillment to me is when that looming feeling of unease is absent. Sometimes my mind goes to questions that bring on that feeling of unease; do I make enough money to live the life I want to live? Does my job truly make me happy, as in, I don’t feel like I’m just there for a paycheck? Does my personal life make me happy? Do I have any outstanding goals? And the truth is, these boxes are not always ticked across the board; but I try to make decisions that put me on the path to having the most boxes checked off as possible.
What’s one belief or assumption you had about adulthood that turned out to be wrong?
That it would be mundane. I’ve never been foolish enough to think that once you’re an adult your life is over like some who romanticize youth believe, I just thought the career grind and other responsibilities to family and so on would be too much. And sometimes they are, but I’ve often found that the balance between your professional responsibilities and personal time isn’t as constraining as I previously believed. My decisions are my own to make. I still see my friends plenty. I still have time for my partner and our pets. I’m still planning trips and events with friends and family. Every day is still full of life and excitement, when I feared they would blend together in a grayscale cubicle somewhere and that I would be too drained to ever do anything. Adulthood is exciting!
What’s a raw, honest thought you have about where you are in life right now?
I’m not really sure what to say here. I am a mixture of all the things I’ve talked about in this interview; anxious about the future but optimistic nonetheless and grateful for where I’m at. Critical of mistakes I made in the past while trying to manage with what I bring to the table now. It feels to me at this moment that there’s a lot of pressure, like I’m at some pivotal juncture where if I don’t try my hardest, I’ll be doomed to mediocrity; however, I’d do well to remember the pyramids weren’t built in a day. We as people are similar: works in progress with no definite start or finish dates. There are many who didn’t get their lives together until they were in their 30s, their 40s, their 50s, and so on, and they turned out fine. And I will get there too.
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