Gettin’ Real with the “Real World”

With the DOW going down and the unemployment rate rising, being a senior in college, on the verge of graduating, with dreams of fortune and success, seems a tad ominous.

There is a looming pressure to immediately go to graduate school these days or to secure a salary and 60 hour work week before the graduation date arrives.  However, I’ve decided to take a different route.

I don’t mean to imply that I was not a diligent student, but, unlike some of my fellow seniors, I do not feel the need to rush out into the wild working world and become another cog in the machine of capitalism just yet. So, I’ve decided to travel.

Over the course of the last four years, I have found myself in over 19 countries, where I’ve not only discovered more about the world culturally, socially, and politically, but I’ve discovered something else that has been infinitely valuable- myself.

I realize this sounds cliché, but bare with me here. I honestly believe I’ve learned more in six months of traveling abroad, through meeting new, interesting friends, trying exotic foods, and getting myself out of precarious situations, than I have in any classroom. Now, I am by NO MEANS denouncing education because it is the BEST thing you can do for yourself. However, there are various types of education and it is important for young adults to realize that in order to be a competent component of the “real” world, it is important to have a global perspective only made possible through traveling.

On that note, I am going to take a year off beginning in May. I am currently in the midst of planning my trip  and have been eliciting the help and advice of my peers whom have had past experiences with a gap year. One piece of advice really resonated with me was from an older family friend, Jocelyn, so I will go ahead and share it with you:

“Hi Katia,

Welcome to the wonderful world of the twenty-somethings riddled with uncertainty, the painful adjustment to the daily grind and finally accepting the fact that it’s time to woman-up and admit you’re an adult. I found that traveling after college was the best thing I could have done and helped me avert all but the ‘uncertainty’ part; then again, isn’t ‘uncertainty’ in the context of wanderlust just a less sexy word for ‘adventure’? And I digress…

So, first things first: it really helps if you already have some money saved. It makes it that much easier to buffer yourself from unexpected twists of fate (which there most certainly will be). I was lucky that I didn’t have any debt after college and was gifted some money upon graduating. I’m sure that you can expect to receive some funds from the fam which will have you off to a start.

I started off in London and got a temporary work visa out of college on the BUNAC program. It lasted only six months, but I made bank working for Lomax Records, a little independent label, and the Hard Rock Cafe. I flew into London a couple weeks after graduation with a one-way ticket, but through the glories of the internet, a big smile and a well-written resume, was able to land a job, housing and even a group of friends within my first week. If you want to go this route,

I suggest talking to representative at STA travel; you should have an office on campus at school.

I taught English in Japan for over two years; I applied for that job from London, and made more than enough money to travel/live in Southeast Asia/Brazil for just over a year. This included a trip home for Alexis’s wedding. If you are interested in teaching English specifically in Asia, I would definitely recommend Japan over China or Korea; I’ve heard horror stories from teachers in those countries about not getting paid or being co-opted into working longer hours than contracted to work. These days it might be more difficult to secure a position in Japan since several companies have gone bankrupt in the past year (I worked for GEOS which fell in 2010) and also in the wake of the earthquake your parents might be concerned about you. Regardless, a website to check out for Japan is http://www.gaijinpot.com/ which has information about opportunities there. You need to secure a job before traveling to Asia because they sponsor your work visa; also, make sure that they take care of the housing arrangements for you. It’s a pain in the ass.

I did all of my traveling alone, but invariably you meet people along the way. As long as you have an open heart/mind and are willing to approach strangers on a platform of human commonality rather than difference, you’ll be fine. You have to gauge for yourself whether you’d be prepared for this, or if you’d rather go somewhere (like Australia) where you know people, not to mention you also know the language.

Lastly, I didn’t secure a job before returning; in fact, I returned in early 2010 in the midst of the economic crisis with $200 to my name after traveling, but was able to stay with friends in San Francisco until I found a job. Traveling/working/living abroad for so many years inculcated me with the confidence to accept instability, and everything worked itself out.

I will always remember 2006-2010 with fondness. I can’t tell you how many people have told me something to this effect: ‘Jocelyn, you’re just so comfortable in your own skin.’ Yes, yes I am. And it’s mainly due to all of the challenges/thrills I confronted during my time abroad. – Jocelyn”

Every individual has their own idiosyncrasies, passions, and limits. Clearly, mine involve traveling, writing, and gastronomy and Jocelyn’s advice only inspired me to take a gap year and teach English abroad. Regardless of whether you head straight for the workforce, graduate school, or end up traveling, ensure that you have explored every possible option for your future so that you never end up looking back when you’re 35 and regretting any decision you’ve made. One quote that has always resonated with me is, “I would rather do things that I regret than regret things I didn’t do.” So, what would you regret not doing?