6 Months Post- Grad & Here’s What I Think
I’ve spent the last 4 years getting an amazing education in Music Business from Belmont University in Nashville, TN and that journey finally came to an end in May 2024. Since then I have travelled to a dream vacation destination, got rejected by 3 major job opportunities, moved houses, started 2 part time jobs, got my first tattoo, and finally started a full time job… that is not yet my dream job.
This has been my post grad journey thus far and what I have learned.
Since about the age of 6, just like everyone else, I have been a student, and a lot of my identity lied in my school work and activities. I don’t even have clear memories of a time when I wasn’t in school. The Monday after I graduated from college, I felt like I didn’t have a purpose. I didn’t have a job lined up, I didn’t have a set schedule, and I was really struggling to picture my future.
I used my first month after graduation to goof around, travel, save money, and prepare for the real world. At the end of May, I was able to take a trip of a lifetime to Greece. For 10 days, I sat in the sun, ate authentic Greek food, swam in the Mediterranean Sea, and made memories of a lifetime. After those 10 days were up however, I was thrown right back into reality. I started one part time job at an ice cream shop in the 12 South district, then a second part-time job in a front desk position at Nashville MMA, while simultaneously being rejected after several multi-stage interviews at major labels and booking agencies for ‘lack of experience’.
Obviously, dealing with rejections from any job is disheartening. In school, I had heard many stories about people, straight out of college, getting jobs that they love at the company of their dreams and how post grad life was the best time for them. I felt ashamed that those people were living their dream while I was working two service industry jobs and getting denied from jobs that I was so close to securing. Looking back on those moments, I wish I would’ve been told the whole truth. I wish I would have been told the stories that sound like mine. I wish that someone would’ve spoken about how they struggled finding a job, about how they got denied from jobs that they really wanted. I want to know that I’m not the only graduate who is working a job that they don’t like. While jobless and confused I didn’t know what I was doing wrong and, to be fully transparent, I still don’t, but I am not giving up.
In the midst of all of the “no’s” I did receive from potential employers, I finally received one “yes!” Although I am extremely grateful for this “yes,” it is not my dream job, or something that I necessarily want to pursue for an extended period of time, but I am learning and gaining experience. I still haven’t been fully able to quit the serving industry but it’s better than working in it full time. I work at Nashville MMA when I can while still balancing my schedule of working a 9-5. It’s been tough to not fall back into the cycle of comparison, while others are working full time jobs that they love, but I am constantly reminding myself that this is exactly where I am supposed to be for now. Real life is about paying bills, hanging out with your friends, making changes, traveling, and struggling sometimes.
I don’t love every aspect of post-grad life, but honestly, I wouldn’t change any of it. The feeling of being lost, learning myself, growing up fast, and asking for help has been such an interesting journey, and while I am still trying to figure it out, I’m so excited to see what is to come!
About the Author
Anabel Rossi first came to the Music on The Move Studios community as an intern and is now a trusted friend and freelancer for us! She graduated from Belmont University in May of 2024 with her Bachelor’s degree in Music Business.