Four years later, and the dream is practically dead. I'm in my "last" year of college, attaining a Professional Communications degree. What am I going to do with it? I'm not sure. I teased my best friend for ages over her indecisiveness. Now I wish I had been indecisive until it came time to pick a major. Maybe I would have gone into another field.
Sailing the Caribbean with my husband is sounding better and better all the time.
I don't like to write anymore. Not just because I get slammed by my professor over edits. I'm okay with the fact that I tried something new, and it didn't go well. Fine. But I put it off, like dishes, or homework. That's what writing is to me now: homework. Work. At home. But not as fun. I'm starting to realize that there was a time in my life that writing was like breathing, and weirdly, blogging still feels the same way. It's free form, I don't mind editing myself, but it doesn't matter if something is wrong because these are my thoughts, on my page, on my blog, damn it. I'll be wrong if I want to be (though in all seriousness, if I post an incorrect fact, I expect someone to let me know).
And while I enjoyed teaching those middle schoolers last Fall, I know that I can't do it again. Sure, college kids are different, but. . . are they really? Looking at myself, and those in my advanced writing class, I'm not too sure. If they were much different, they might have been able to prepare me for the decimation of my writing I just got back from my professor.
So, what else do I enjoy doing? Well, there's video editing. But I would literally need another bachelor's degree, or at least a long term internship (99% of which are unpaid). I'm sick of school. In fact, it's turning into loathing. Don't get me wrong, I love learning. I'm just tired of paying thousands of dollars to do so. Why can't I learn on the job? Psh, such an idealist.
I wanted to be one of the fortunate few who gets paid to do what they love. But when I cringe at the thought of getting my Masters in Creative Writing...something's gotta change.
To make this post more than just a diary-blog, I'm going to bring in the New York Times: Millenials are being faced, more and more, with unpaid internships that lead to absolutely no where. Interns are the new free-workers of the world. Why hire someone for a base level job when you can get someone to do it for free?
“It’s an institutionalized form of wage theft,” said Eric Glatt, 44, one of the plaintiffs who has since helped form an Occupy-inspired group called Intern Labor Rights"
The only jobs that pay these days are the ones that require at least 3-5 years of previous experience. At most I have a year and a half with my video production job.
"Call them members of the permanent intern underclass: educated members of the millennial generation who are locked out of the traditional career ladder and are having to settle for two, three and sometimes more internships after graduating college, all with no end in sight.
Like an army of worker ants, they are a subculture with a distinct identity, banding together in Occupy Wall Street-inspired groups and, lately, creating their own blogs, YouTube channels, networking groups and even a magazine that captures life inside the so-called Intern Nation."
And then there's this:
But the poor job market is not the only reason that recent graduates feel stuck in internships. Millennials, it is often said, want more than just a paycheck; they crave meaningful and fulfilling careers, maybe even a chance to change the world.
Darn Millennials, wanting to make the world a better place and enjoy doing it too.
Why couldn't I be a numbers girl? Science and math fields are begging for applicants.
I feel like I should be taking notes for my nieces. By the time they hit middle school, they'll have to be in all the clubs and sports they can get their hands on, not to mention be running for class president, ect. By high school they should be interning somewhere, and when they hit their first year of college, that's when the real fight begins. The next generation is going to have to decide what they 'want to be when they grow up' at the age of 12 so they can begin to prepare.
I'm not saying I'm against a competitive job market. But the current trend is depressing and discouraging. I'm going to start looking for a sailboat. Travel blogs can get sponsored, right?
