10 things you wish you could tell your pre-graduate self

10 things you wish you could tell your pre-graduate self by Michael Cheary It’s an unavoidable fact that life will sometimes struggle to meet your expectations…Take life after university, for example. You go from three years of halls, hangovers and hard work (delete as appropriate), to suddenly having to work out what you actually want to do with your life.The loan’s all gone. There are no more nights out. And, worst of all, you actually have to start paying full-price for your clothes. Ok, reality…you win this round.But if you could go back, would you do it all any differently? Here are 10 words of wisdom you might wish you could tell your pre-graduate self, just in case…You will still do stupid, irresponsible thingsLet’s make this clear: no-one is asking you to grow up.You’ve still got plenty of time to left to get a mortgage, have kids, learn what an ISA is, and all that fun stuff. Until then, you‘ll continue to make the stupid mistakes, safe in the knowledge that you can work this adulthood thing out later.Don†™t think of graduation as your last ride in the shopping trolley. Just think of it as visiting a different supermarket.Your degree doesn’t have to define youSo you’ve finally figured out that Advanced Latin-American Studies isn’t really your thing. Who knew?The fact it took you three years of your life, a diet consisting entirely of Cuppa Soup and a perennially empty wallet to work it out is irrelevant. The big secret is that no matter what you studied, your degree isn’t the be-all-and-end-all. There are plenty of graduate positions out there which don’t even take the topic into account. So stop panicking.And hey, it still sounds better than a degree in Harry Potter Studies (definitely a real thing)…You’ve learnt more than you thinkTwo words, my friend. Transferable. Skills.Sitting in the library until midnight finishing your assignment? Hello managing deadlines. The time you handed student council flyers for your friend between lectures? Multitasking. And remember whe n you fell asleep during fresher’s week and spent the entire next day’s classes with something obscene scrawled across your forehead? Ok, they won’t always work.But when they do work, they’ll really work. And it will be glorious.Nobody really knows what they’re doingSo you’re literally the only one of your friends quietly freaking out about their life? Seems legit.The truth is, no matter how together you think all of your friends are, at least 90% of them are just as scared as you. And just because they’re not sitting silently crying in the quiet area of the library every night, it doesn’t mean they’re not having all the same feels. It’s the other 10% you’ve really got to worry about.Enjoy your ignorance while you can, you robots.Your part time job is not the oneFor some of us, working alongside our studies is non-negotiable.But although it will help supplement your social life, you might not be making the most of your time out, especially during the summer. If you can, try sacrificing a few weeks of solid income and find some work experience that actually lies within your field of interest.You’ll look good, your CV will look good…it’s pretty much win-win.Never turn down an opportunityRemember that night you almost joined a social society, but accidently ended up staying up all night watching Netflix and not doing any work instead? #LivingTheDreamStop procrastinating, and actually be open to opportunities. Even if you end up having a terrible time, chalk it up to life experience and move on. Hey, you might even enjoy it. Did the orienteering society teach you nothing?YOLO. FOMO. TTFN (and various other terrible acronyms).You don’t need to put everything you do on social mediaSure, uploading every embarrassing memory you’ve ever had to social media seems like a good idea at the time.But after you graduate, you’d be surprised how many times they can come back to haunt you. All it takes is your future employer to see one profanit y-laden tweet or that picture of you with the strategically-placed traffic cone, and you’ve ruined your chances of finding your perfect job.Or, you know, you could just set your profile to private. That too.Stop worrying about your student loanRemember when you used to get free money? Good times.The fact that you have to pay that money back eventually doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy it. It’s basically not even real debt. The amount you pay back a month will be negligible, and you might not even earn enough to start paying it back right away anyway.The reality is, no-one who’s just graduated is lying awake at night, worrying about their student loan. Learn to accept the debt, and you’ll feel better for it.Don’t rush into a career if you don’t have toJust because you’re about to graduate, you don’t have to get your career started right away.If you do, you’ll probably just end up with job-envy, ironically liking all your friend’s life events whilst you’re sat stu ck in a job you can’t stand. And no-one wants to be that guy.Don’t settle. Build up your experience, and take your time choosing what you really want to do.Things won’t actually change that muchFinally, no matter how scary it seems to graduate, the simple truth is nothing much will change.You might nap a little less. You might never set foot in a library again. But your days of random nights out, meeting new people and binge-watching box sets is not suddenly about to come crashing to an end.Remember: you’re the same person. Just a little bit better.Still searching for your perfect graduate position? Have a look at all of our current vacancies now