Apologies for the rant, but I don’t get why everyone is so excited to be done with university when the workplace is a nightmare. At uni, my classes change every semester, I socialize, I’m learning, and I get to walk to my classes. My physical and mental health is so much better when im at uni because its the closest I have to a walkable community. There’s nowhere else I can go to the gym, get coffee, go to the library, eat, and socialize with my friends without having to drive. And I only go to classes 4 days a week and pick the hours.
I worked full time over the summer and while I was grateful it was remote, the constant expectations to always do something drove me crazy. At uni if you have an assignment, you can procrastinate on it or finish early but for the most part you won’t be given more work.
In the workplace? You finished early? Here’s more work with no extra pay! It’s never-ending and there’s no seasonal breaks to look forward to. The thought of not having a summer vacation makes me wanna cry.
Don’t get me started with in-person work. You get in trouble for stupid things like dress codes and getting up too much. Can’t cook, can’t exercise, and my friend’s office doesn’t have a window. Cubicles make us feel like cattle. 30 minutes for lunch? Wtf? And a 9-5 is your entire day wasted for work that can be done in an hour. Not to mention the “social” aspect is so nerve-wracking because you don’t know who is potentially relaying information to your boss.
To go from an environment that makes me feel human to being treated as less-than human is so terrible. I’m honestly scared to graduate.