At the time of writing this blog post, I’ve graduated high school seventeen months ago. If I could summarize what I know about “life after high school” to someone about to graduate, I would state a few different points.
- You can always go back to school, education is always something you can come back to. There is absolutely no need to feel miserable if you don’t get into a post-secondary program immediately after you graduate.
- Don’t settle for less, if your dream school didn’t accept you that’s ok! There will be opportunities for you to improve your mark and transfer in. If that doesn’t pan out, find a similar program at another school.
Fun fact: most admissions happen every few months. - If you’re looking to make money “quick” and are not scared of hard-work, go learn a trade. If you decide trades is not the career path for you that’s A okay because you can always further your education (plus now you have a skill to default to if need be)
- Know what environment works for you. In larger schools, you’ll have lectures with hundreds of students and then labs. You’ll be fighting for courses based off GPA. In smaller schools, the classroom sizes are smaller and perhaps courses are given to you. There is trade-off such as flexibility and choice of program.
- Take time to figure out what YOU want. Do not go into a field you know you dislike or a field you’re not really passionate about. If you didn’t like it back then, it isn’t going to magically change.
- Don’t frown on certificates and diplomas. When I was in high school, all anyone seemed to talk about was getting a Bachelors but Bachelors aren’t easy, they’re another four years of intensive schooling. If you decide to pursue a certificate (1 year) or a diploma (2 years), you’ll have a chance to see if you’re actually enjoying what you study. Plus the credits you earned in your certificate/diploma could be transferred.