Should You Rent an Apartment or Live at Home After Graduation?

When you first graduate college, you might not know where to go next. Some people are lucky and can line up a job and a quality living situation shortly after graduation, but many others are faced with the decision of either scraping by and living paycheck to paycheck in order to afford an apartment or moving back in with their parents, which helps them save money, but also means sacrificing their freedom. It’s a difficult decision for anyone and there are pros and cons to each scenario.

Getting an apartment

Cons

• Cost – No matter what city you live in, an apartment is going to cost a significant amount of money per month. You’ll be paying rent, utilities, purchasing your own food, and buying furniture. For someone just beginning their career, these costs can take a significant amount of your paycheck each month.

• Lease – Leases often come with a lot of rules you must follow and some of them may seem a little ridiculous. You’re also often locked into a lease for a least a year, which means you need to stay in one place and consistently pay rent each month. If you find a better opportunity elsewhere, it can be difficult to just leave.

• People – You’re likely going to be living with roommates or have very close neighbors. Unless you know all these people extremely well, they could be completely unpleasant to live around. You also run the risk of having a difficult landlord.

Pros

• Privacy – The biggest pro of having an apartment is the amount of privacy and independence you’ll have, especially if you live alone. Living with your parents seriously limits your privacy and ability to do what you want; parents often find it difficult to accept you never being home and staying out late and your dating life can get pretty complicated.

• Social life – Living in your own apartment in a city makes it much easier to make connections with your coworkers or other people living there. You have a place to hang out and it’s easier to attend networking events.

Moving home

Cons

• Privacy – Naturally, unless your parents have an attached apartment or are rarely home, your privacy suffers when you move back home. It’s difficult to host anything at your house and it’s pretty awkward if you want to bring a date home. In college, you did your own thing whenever you wanted, but now your parents will probably question your decision to watch Netflix until 2am while eating mac and cheese.

• Personal growth – Living alone is the best time to learn more about yourself and fully transition into being an independent adult. If you’re living at home, not worrying much about your finances, rarely buying and making your own food, and not having to clean or do much laundry, it’s likely you still feel like a child. In order to grow, you need to be on your own.

Pros

• Cost – The biggest pro, and really the main reason anyone moves back in with their parents, is the cost. Depending how long you live at home, you’ll save thousands of dollars. If your home is close enough to a decent job, you’ll have the benefit of work and avoid the financial stress of an apartment. Even if you do pay your parents some rent or contribute to household costs, you’re going to save a lot of money that’ll help you pay off your debts or save for a house, grad school, or something else. Once you do move out, you’ll be on better financial footing than many of your peers.

• Give back – Another pro not many people discuss is that living at home allows you to give back to your parents for all the years they took care of you. If you contribute to household expenses and help out at home, you save them that stress. If they’re getting older, you can also help care for them or other older family members. Family is important and strengthening those bonds is fantastic.

6 Tips for Preparing for the Job Hunt After Graduation

Graduating college is a joyful, but also daunting time. You’re ready to take a break from constant homework and stress, but you’ll miss your friends. You want to start being an adult, but you might also not really know how to. Often, the most stressful part of the end of college is finding a job. You know you need to have some kind of job, ideally one that pays all the bills and allows you to rent an apartment, travel, and do fun stuff with friends. Maybe your first job isn’t the best, but you need to start somewhere. For many, the job after graduation is the first professional, full-time job they’ll have. Instead of feeling nervous about finding a new job, follow these tips in order to make job hunting easier.

Be realistic

When you first begin searching for a job, you might feel excited and optimistic. You’ll want to retain this feeling for as long as possible, so it’s important that you don’t go into your search thinking you’ll land the perfect job in the perfect place right away. No job is perfect and you’ll need to build your way up from an entry level position. For some people, this isn’t that path the follow and they do get a fantastic job right away, so don’t completely lose hope. However, there’s also nothing wrong with getting an entry-level job. You need to work and you can make the most of it.

Focus

Searching for a job is like a full-time job. You need to constantly check job sites and company pages to look for openings, fill out applications, exchange emails, and schedule interviews. If you’re waiting to hear back from an interview, keep applying at other places! Even if it’s taking longer than you anticipated, stay focused on finding a job.

Update your resume

A mistake many people make is never updating their resume and then sending the same copy to dozens of potential employers. Before applying to any jobs, update your resume. Include internships, volunteer experience, and jobs you had in college. Then, feature the most pertinent information depending on what job you apply for, such as relevant classes or volunteer work.

Create an online presence

Employers love to see that you have some kind of professional, online presence. Do a purge of your social media and get rid of any posts that you wouldn’t want your boss to see, then make your accounts private, unless you want to use them for professional purposes. Create a LinkedIn account if you don’t already have one and consider creating a website to feature some professional blogs you write while job searching.

Network

Most professionals will tell you about the incredible power of networking. Always take advantage of opportunities to build your network and meet new people. You never know who might have a connection that could turn into a future job or some other great opportunity. Make sure to take advantage of any career services your college offers or the alumni network.

Enhance your skills

While you’re searching for a job, you’ll have some free time. Spend this time productively. Consider volunteering and working a part-time job, but also make sure you enhance your marketable skills. Learn something useful, such as some coding or educate yourself on a specific topic by reading and keeping up with industry news.