u/KirstinWilcoxHPRC

Lots of people graduate without job or grad school plans lined up. If you're among them, here's some unsolicited advice for coping with the uncertainty.

1. Acknowledge your success. You've graduated from a prestigious institution and have a BA or BS in hand. That's a solid foundation to build on.
2. Lock in. The search for that first post-graduate job is grueling and often takes longer than anyone would like. The rejection you will experience doesn't mean you are failing -- the job search is just like that.
3. Stay grounded. You are not your job search. Make time every day for the things that define you: family/friends, hobbies, exercise, pets, faith organizations, music, sports, volunteering. If your college grind left you with little mental space for these other parts of your life, make reconnecting with them a priority -- they are key to your mental health during the job search.
4. Recognize the time commitment. The job search can take as much time as having a job, particularly if you are searching widely and strategically, customizing your application materials for specific roles, and working on building professional relationships as well as searching job boards.
5. Make a plan and work the plan. It's a process. Whatever your search strategy, give yourself specific goals and timelines. If you struggle with accountability, find someone to check in with regularly.
6. Talk to people. People certainly get jobs by finding posted job openings and applying for them, but that should not be your only job search strategy. If the word "networking" makes you queasy, think of it as "information-gathering," "mutual aid," or "building professional relationships." Good networking involves all of these things.
7. Accept the complexity of your life. "Getting a job" often means a lot of things: making a living, contributing your skills to the world, having a meaningful impact, doing work you find interesting, proving yourself to your family, becoming an independent adult. The path to a "career" that ticks all of those boxes is often winding and probably involves a lot of things you don't yet know about the world or yourself. It's okay to simultaneously apply for "pay the bills" kinds of jobs AND explore pathways to meaning. It's okay to take a job that doesn't require your BS/BA in order to get a start in a field where your degree will be relevant down the road. It's okay to ask a lot of questions. It's okay to take your own values and priorities seriously and pursue work that matters to you.
8. Get help. You don't have to do this alone.

• The Career Center is hosting an online weekly summer meet-up designed to support and empower you as you transition from college to the workforce. 
• Check with career services for your college. LAS Career Services works with LAS alumni for up to a year after graduation -- others offer similar services.
• The State of Illinois offers free career counseling to people interested in pursuing jobs with the state of Illinois: Career Counseling Services - Work.Illinois.Gov
• For US citizens who are first-generation or low-income graduates in the metro areas of New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, and the Bay Area, the COOP career accelerator program may be helpful: COOP Careers: Unlocking Opportunities to Elevate Your Career
• Many local libraries have an abundance of information and resources on entrepreneurship.

The window for Gies ICT applications is now open (it closes May 20). A month or so later, this subreddit will fill up with failed applicants asking for advice about their next steps.

If you're preparing a Gies ICT application, use it as an opportunity to think more about what YOU want, beyond specific majors.

• What impact do you want to make on the world?
• What problems do you want to be solving?
• How will you be measuring your success?

Taking these questions seriously can help you (a) write a more authentic and compelling application and (b) prepare a backup plan.

The people who administer the Gies ICT process administer a fair process that winnows the number of applicants down to the number they can accept. They don't determine your worth. Your value exists outside these frameworks of academic gatekeeping, along with your potential. Your story, whatever it is, will be bigger than Gies/not Gies.

Keep your focus on your goals, so you can be prepared to move forward towards them whichever way the ICT decision goes.