Graduation is what every student looks forward to, right? It’s where students stop their formal education and begin on the journey towards “real adulthood.” Well, in my case (and in the case of some of my fellow seniors), graduation has terrified us. We aren’t afraid of going into the “real world”; we’re afraid of stopping our learning. I consider myself to be a lifelong learner, and the end of my formal education (until just over one year from now when I start graduate school) means that I need to find bigger and better ways to continue my learning. Around social media, I’ve seen statistics that some people rarely read once they graduate. I don’t know the validity of these statements, but in my personal experiences, that seems to be a true statement. Those statistics don’t reflect my post-graduation reading experiences (as I’ve read 10 books in the weeks since graduating), but I don’t want to lose my love for education. After some reflection, I realized that I probably should be learning more post-graduation than during my time at university. Think about it. I’ve spent about four years (sometimes more, in other cases) taking classes that will culminate in a degree. That’s only a small portion of the average lifespan. If all goes well with the rest of my life, I have decades to continue my learning. Why should I stop now? There is always something to study, and I don’t think graduation should be the end of my learning; it should be the beginning of my education as an adult in the “real world.”
