# Anyone else experience Post College Depression?



## uncreative_name (Sep 24, 2010)

If so, how did you overcome it? I'm pretty sure I have it right now and it's only been getting worse. My Plan A (which wasn't even specific or demanding)for after graduation last summer fell through. Then anytime I develop a new plan it doesn't work out. I'm unemployed, living at home, and back at a job that I started in high school. A lot of days I honestly feel like my best days have already past, even if I know it's not logical.


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## uncreative_name (Sep 24, 2010)

Ok I guess I'm not unemployed, but it feels like it.

Plus, the jobs I've been shooting for don't even require college and I've been repeatedly turned down. The last 4 years feel like a waste at this point.


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## amosbanga (Nov 25, 2010)

I am also in the midst of post college depression. Unemployment, social isolation, living with parents again, lack of productive activity...I'm already predisposed to episodes of depression, so it almost seemed inevitable. I don't really have a solution, since I'm not out of it yet. I've just been trying to make the best of what I have, and tried to find things to do. For example, I've joined a community college band and orchestra, taken advantage of my gym membership, and gone out and spent time out of the house, if only to get coffee or go to the library. I've also worked on my longer term goal of getting into grad school.

I know it's really rough (I've had the same feeling of been past the best years of my life - I loved college), but just try not to let the depression swallow you up too much. I've had a lot of down days and down parts of days, but I try not to let it last too long, or it starts to negatively affect everything else. You have a job, which is better than I can say. Try to make the best of that...maybe you can meet people there, or at least get a good recommendation for the next thing. 

I have a really hard time meeting new people, so that's a place where playing in band/orchestra really helps me out. Join a band/choir/club/gym/sports team, volunteer, take a class...especially if you aren't really into your job, find something else for your life where you can get out, interact with like-minded people, and be productive. For me, even the internet has helped...I've begun participating in online forums!

Finally, it might help to work some more on your plans for the future. My applications for grad schools haven't gone that smoothly, and I'm scared to death I won't get in anywhere...but, at least I was working towards something more long term. I've also been brainstorming on and off about what I will do if I don't get in. I have to keep moving. It's important to me that my life has meaning and (vague) forward direction.

Sorry this is kinda just a bunch of text and not much solid advice. Hopefully some of this typing will be of use to you. Like I said, I'm not out of it yet, either. I'm just trying to survive and move forward. I know this won't be one of the times I look back on with warm feelings, but I've survived worse - junior high, for one thing :crazy:


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## Crapazoid (Jan 13, 2011)

I know how you feel. I just thought I'll get another degree and stretch my college time a little longer :tongue:

I think the situation is just that you don't have a challenging job according to your degree. A chapter in your life has ended, it's time to open up a new one. Now you're just "in between chapters". Try to find a meaningful job that's challenging according to your degree. Every spare time you have spend time at this. You'll get there pretty soon and when you do have that job, the ball will start rolling again and you'll meet new people, have new experiences just in another context.


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## OxidativeCleavage (Dec 27, 2010)

uncreative_name said:


> Ok I guess I'm not unemployed, but it feels like it.
> 
> Plus, the jobs I've been shooting for don't even require college and I've been repeatedly turned down. The last 4 years feel like a waste at this point.


While the economy is bad everywhere... it is especially bad in America - so if you are from the USA then you are definitely not alone... Colleges cranked out too many graduates for the job market and with excessive corporate layoffs it really leaves recent grads in a bad spot... 

hopefully these will help you at least not get depressed about your situation (if it offers any comfort that it has absolutely nothing to do with your value as a person)

- For class of 2009, degree doesn?t mean a job - Business - U.S. business - Made in America - msnbc.com
- New college grads — 80% without jobs Dregs of the Future
- YouTube - American college grads can't buy a job

Hopefully things will turn around with the economy soon... In the meantime can you volunteer at your University to keep your skills fresh.. volunteering at a company might cause them not to hire you or someone else for the job since they can get you for free... but sometimes you *have* to look out for #1... if you career isn't in an engineering or a science related field there typically isn't a lot of research or volunteer work available at the uni for you to take advantage of to keep your skills up post grad.... 

So if your field requires actual work experience out in "corporate america" I would suggest trying to find a place where you can volunteer... but since you are doing it for free maybe go to multiple places and get as much experience as you can in different but relevant areas to solidify your CV... 

If that isn't an option and you're for it you could consider a skilled worker class in a foreign country for a year or so (these can be difficult to get but depending on your degree not impossible - especially after the volunteer experience gets on your CV).... 

You could also consider going back to school - but I would only suggest this if you're really passionate about what you're planning to go back for and you have a good way to fund it - taking on any student loan debt in this economy without some serious parental / familial support could be catastrophic for your long term net savings.... 

good luck and I hope that you are at least able to feel better about your situation and shake the depression...


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## uncreative_name (Sep 24, 2010)

Thanks for the advice everyone...Most days I just feel trapped. I over analyze my options. And then over analyze that I over analyze my options. And it's gotten to the point where I'm taking it out unfairly on other people. I went to school out of state so it's weird being back home.


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## OxidativeCleavage (Dec 27, 2010)

^
Do you think part of this is related to frustration in general? 
A lot of my undergrads that I've TAed feel like they were forced to go to university by a society that lied to them about it's overall importance and I think this causes a lot of frustration because they feel like they've already spent so much time and money on their education that - in the case of the natural sciences - they now feel is somewhat useless but they don't want to go to graduate school to increase their chances of actually having the important jobs they thought they could get with just their B.S. degree... 

I think a lot of colleges and universities false advertise the value of their degrees... I think this is why a lot of people drop out of college and uni even in the later years. Aside from the schools themselves being guilty much of society is to blame as well... 

We perpetuate the false notion that those who have not attended university or college are less intelligent or with less in the workforce.... When many jobs don't really require a degree or at least not a 4 year one../ sure there are fields that require multiple degrees but forcing people in to college / uni doesn't help those either because many times you end up with people going to grad school or professional school just because.... Not because they actually care about what they are doing or have a passion for it. 

Now as I see it both groups of people lose. You have some people who never wanted to go to college or uni or only wanted to stop at undergrad ( not saying this is you just speaking in general here) forces to enter or remain in college/uni & people like me who actually want to spend the time gaining the highest qualifications possible because our chosen career paths require it but we are surrounded by burnt-out people that would have been much happier doing something else but for social pressure in the form of underpayment and undervaluation of individuals that are otherwise intelligent and capable that just don't want to run the eat race and deal with the political bullshit....

If you were like a lot of people you thought college/uni would improve your life and earning potential... You are justified in feeling shocked at your current situation. I hope you're able to refrain from taking it out on others so that you can get the social support you might need in the future... 

If you'd always planned on professional school or grad school - my advice is not to give up - but to maybe take a short break from school until you are feeling better about yourself and the situation..

Best of luck...


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## Jwing24 (Aug 2, 2010)

I hear ya on this stuff. This is the second time I've been unemployed and I graduated a couple of years ago. I think regardless of where we are at the only thing we can do is to keep working, keep pushing towards whatever your goals are. 

If you aren't sure what they are then you need to find a way to find that out.

I hope we all figure it out.


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## pinkrasputin (Apr 13, 2009)

Yes, I can relate to post college depression and post marathon depression. This is because I love structure and schedules!! I love having to be around people and complaining about them!

The answer? Well keep getting degrees of course (I also keep doing marathons). And you can make sure to keep teaching at the university too. You never have to leave!!


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## uncreative_name (Sep 24, 2010)

I agree with you so much here!

While I am thankful for the things I learned in college, academically and otherwise, I did feel like it was a societal thing. I mean, it's what we've been told since we started elementary school. "Go to college to have a better life, more money, more opportunities." While this statement may not be completely false, we were fed this message by a different generation when the same rules just didn't apply.

First, a Bachelor's degree was more rare back then, so it was more often a way to a higher salary and a better career, etc. I just feel that's not the case today because getting a Bachelor's degree is more common "because it's what you do after high school," to quote _Orange County_. 

Second, honestly school loans are a part of it. I'm not one who wants to be rich, but being able to be financially independent and debt free is really all I ask for. I'm not in something for the paycheck, that's just never been my view on life. Now it's kind of like, was this really worth that much? It's something that older people telling us to go to school don't always realize. Tuition is like two or three times greater than inflation; it's really getting out of hand. And for anything to change at this point, something bad will probably have to happen. I actually wouldn't be shocked if the college education system doesn't burst like the housing market in terms of students feeling like they need to take out loans. I feel like I have to care more about my paycheck now because of school loans, even if it means being stuck in a job I hate. Or taking up a second job.

We're getting the double-edged sword from a lot of older people (I realize how much of a generational thing this is in a way). We are told to go to school to have a better life because we went to college, and then when we get out and we're disappointed we're told by the same people to shut it and quit being "lazy." There's this stereotype that we demand amazing jobs or what not because we went to college. Um...wasn't that what we were told?

Personally, I expected to start at the bottom and am more than happy to "pay my dues" in a career path. But I can't even get started in a career path because I'm losing out jobs to people who have real world experience doing the exact same job. And like I said, most of the jobs I have been applying for, don't even require a four year degree.

As for grad school? If there's something I want to do that would require more education I would go back. I am consciously taking a few years off before I even think about that though. Who knows if I'll ever be able to afford it after all the loans I have now though. Even a higher salary might not be worth it in the end.

So, I guess you could say, I'm frustrated. I held these same opinions while in college, but it still felt like I was going somewhere (I tried to make the most out of my last year or two) so I didn't feel the pressure. 

You could say I have a strong love/hate view towards my college education. My friends and I discussed though that we aren't telling our kids what we were told. I am thankful because I did get some once in a lifetime opportunities (travelling abroad, a couple internships). But if I could do it over, I probably would have taken some time off before college. A year or two in between. I think that would be the best system even if it's unrealistic. I realize how clueless I was as a senior in HS (as do most I'm sure). Then if college is something you want to pursue once you are 20 or 21, then go for it.


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## OxidativeCleavage (Dec 27, 2010)

^
Yes good for you about planning to teach your kid something different than the "go to college/uni or be a loser for life speech".... I think it does a huge disservice to society... 

If someone wants to go to college/uni as a hobby - they can stretch that out over a number of years while still gaining *real world* experience and working at a real job... 

I have a much older friend who is an automechanic that works for NASCAR... he got his A.A. in automechanics from a local community college or whatever - and then over the course of 8 or so years got a mechanical engineering degree part-time and even went on to get a master's and PhD... and it's important to note that he still works as a fucking mechanic and makes more doing that then he could ever make as an engineer.... so the degree for him was something he just wanted - not something he felt he had to sacrifice everything to obtain less he become a social pariah.... 

It's also important to note that:
He has no debt and all kinds of assets because he's been making over 30k a year since he was 18 years old and well over 70k a year after age 30.... 
So I think the moral of his story - is that if you find something you are good at (it might required college/uni or it might not) thus your decision to go to college/uni should be based on that and not on social pressures or fear of being labeled "stupid" or whatever... 

I also have a lawyer friend who is drowning in law school debt and can't get a job in law... He can't even volunteer in law?
And, yet another person that failed the bar like 10 times which is another problem as far as I am concerned (cos I think it is unethical to be able to pass any accredited law school and not be able to pass the bar)... 

but I digress... 

Still I think college is actively ruining at lot of lives at the moment and I just think it's sad....


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## pinkrasputin (Apr 13, 2009)

Bachelor's is like what a high school diploma used to be. There are people who are getting passed up every day because people with higher degrees are getting the job. The way I see it, pay back the loan when you are in a higher financial bracket. Even if someone has the same job they had _before_ college, they are worth more and will make more with the higher degree they get. Even if they didn't major in that field.


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