Was That Just a Waste

The following post is dedicated to the President of the United States, the hopefuls for the upcoming election and all the other lawmakers on the national and state levels. It also hopefully reflects how some of my fellow recent and soon to be college graduates feel.

As I get ready for bed tonight I can't help but wonder what it is really worth. And by it I mean the 4 1/2 years and $51,000 my parents spent on my college education and the framed degree that now sits on a self in my room. What does that piece of paper and all the time, effort and money spent to get that paper really get me. 

I graduated in December of 2011 with a Bachelor's of Science in both Criminal Justice and Psychology from Sam Houston State, which I must say is not one of the more expensive schools, but still it wasn't cheap. I was so excited I had finally reached that milestone. Ever since I was young I was told that I would go to college and get a degree because it would help me achieve a better future for myself. I never argued with it because I wanted a better future and I understood that a high school diploma would not get me where I wanted to go. Getting into college made me feel so accomplished and like I was really going somewhere and getting to the point of graduating felt like getting to a new level on a video game after you've been stuck on the same level for ages. I was finally done with school. 

I knew that after graduation I would have to begin the search for a job. I couldn't just sit around all day and expect to get everything I wanted. I gave myself the Christmas holidays to relax since I hadn't really been able to do that ever in my life without the next semester of school looming ahead. So in January I began the hunt. A part of me hoped for a job right off the bat but another part of me knew it would take some time. I hunted and hunted through website after website of job listings at hospitals, schools, local governments, and law offices. Some jobs jumped off the page others I wasn't really sure was what I wanted to do but I told myself any job that will get me experience was good. The only limitation I put on myself was I did not want to do jobs in retail or food service because I wanted experience in jobs that required more than just being able to service people. I wanted experience working in places where I would have the opportunity to go somewhere or at least take those skills to a job where I could go somewhere and not just become manager of the local Bath and Body Works. Everyone I talked to said that was good because with my degrees I should be looking for at least $9-10 an hour and these jobs were really below what I should be looking for. I thought great I'm right on track.

I never expected it would be June and I still would be without a job. I have applied my butt off to the point I can't count on my hands and feet combined the number of applications I've filled out and still nothing. There have been a couple I thought might pan out but still nothing. I'm getting to the point where I feel like I might as well apply at McDonald's and be done with it. So now I find myself wondering did I waste my time going to college when my only option left would be working in retail hoping to get enough hours to make decent money to pay for gas in my parents car because I can't even afford one of my own. 

We encourage our kids to go to college and get a degree because it will give them a better chance getting a job. Our lawmakers pass all kinds of mandates like "No Child Left Behind" and encourage better education so that every child can receive a college degree. For What? So they can end up working at a burger joint or clothing store doing a job they could have done without even a high school diploma? I know we are in an economic crisis but there are thousands of college graduates ready to work yet there are no jobs. 

There are so many times I have felt not good enough because I don't even have the opportunity to get experience working in the "real world." My parents allowed me to focus on my education so therefore I didn't work and now I feel like I'm being punished for making sure I focused on my education instead of getting work experience. So someone tell me did I waste my time and effort and my parents money for a piece of paper that isn't doing me any good? I'm sick of feeling like a waste of space. I just want someone to give me a chance to prove myself. I learn quickly.

Btw if any of the candidates want my vote for president I need to see some kind of idea how they plan to work with congress to create jobs for people who are educated and willing to work because if I had the money I would be spending it (of course I would be saving some up for a car and to build my savings account but otherwise I would be buying the things I want).