18 to life: High school graduates under pressure out of the gate
It's OK to not have all of the answers right away, even when it comes to your career
Every June, thousands of British Columbia high school students cross the stage, receive their diplomas and mark the end of a thirteen-year journey.
It's what comes next that puts a lot of pressure on young people, according to Verlinda Wale, an academic adviser at Thompson Rivers University.
"Graduation happens and they're supposed to know what they're going to do for the rest of their life; it's just not realistic," said Wale.
Feeling panicked
Graduates heading into post secondary streams are immediately faced with more decisions about their path of study.
"They try not to show it but I can see it in their eyes. When I can see them expressing panic, I tell them 'You don't need to know what you're going to do for the rest of your lives,'" Wale told Shelley Joyce, host of CBC's Daybreak Kamloops.
She tells students to think of education as a journey or a place to explore what interests you, especially in the first few semesters.
Wale works with students to develop two to three goals and then shapes their study plan so that whichever direction they take, the courses they complete early in their education will still be useful even if they switch paths or change goals.
"A large percentage of students finish programs that are very different from the ones that they started. One of my daughters, for instance, started out in business and now she's a salmon biologist and loves it," said Wale.
Second guessing
More than half of the respondents to a recent online poll of 800 Canadians said they would have taken a different course of study of given the chance to have a "degree do-over."
Millennials were more likely than other demographics to say they would choose to enter the workforce directly if given a second chance, according to the same poll which was conducted by online the employment service Monster Worldwide, Inc.
"You have to choose a career so early in life, so as you go through your career's ups and downs I don't think there's any surprise that you may question, 'Did I really do the right thing at the outset?'" said Sheryl Boswell with Monster Canada.
Wale tells students that it's important to remember that they have to be the drivers of their education: do the research, read course descriptions and ask for guidance from a student advisor.
"Education is self-driven. No one can tell you what to do, you need to take that on yourself," she said.
Students weigh in
When asked what his dream job, class of 2017 student Dawson Wood couldn't pick one off the top of his head but said finding work that makes him happy is a priority.
"Something I love to do, even if I don't get paid a lot for it. Even if it's not forever, it's something. Because if you do a job that you hate, it's in my eyes, not living," he said.
Graduating student Max Dickermayer said he isn't ready to think too far into the future and for now, the perfect job would be working in a small mill, at least, he said, "until I get bored,"
Other students said money is a priority, but they would be happy to sacrifice a high income if they could find work that was stimulating.
"Boredom is the kiss of death for me I always have to have change and variety otherwise life is not good for me," said Jacob Cormier.
With files from CBC Radio One's Daybreak Kamloops