They mean well, but we know graduation can be overwhelming\u2014a time filled with more questions than answers. This can be especially true for English majors, who sometimes believe they\u2019re culminating their degrees without the readily applicable skills thought to be developed in trades programs. Heck, we remember feeling more like we were slogging through quicksand than soaring through the clouds. Figuring out the next steps seemed daunting.<\/p>\n
All those aunts and uncles have a point. There is<\/em> a place for inspiration. In fact, here\u2019s more\u2014from some of your favorite writers. It\u2019s a good moment to revisit J. K. Rowling\u2019s 2008 commencement speech at Harvard<\/a>. She reminds us that that the twin superpowers of imagination and failure are invaluable to finding our way. And way back in 1977, Adrienne Rich delivered<\/a> what is considered one of the best commencement speeches in history<\/a>. She told the bright-eyed hopefuls of her day that<\/p>\n Responsibility to yourself means refusing to let others do your thinking, talking, and naming for you; it means learning to respect and use your own brains and instincts . . . . Responsibility to yourself means that you don\u2019t fall for shallow and easy solutions . . . . It means that you refuse to sell your talents and aspirations short . . . . It means that we insist on a life of meaningful work, insist that work be as meaningful as love and friendship in our lives.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Decades later, those words still ring true\u2014and provide a welcome reminder. And speaking of meaningful work, if you\u2019re uncertain about the odds of being able to find it, here\u2019s some inspiration<\/a> to help convince you that with a little perseverance, you can.<\/p>\n Besides inspiration, there\u2019s also a place for data. We\u2019ve got that, too: Remember that English majors are some of the most in-demand graduates for professions as diverse as technology<\/a>, medicine<\/a>, and law<\/a>.<\/p>\n We won\u2019t promise that the world is your oyster (although it\u2019s beginning to sound an awful lot like just that). But we\u2019re supremely confident you will<\/em> find your place in the world\u2014and thrive there.<\/p>\n Before you spread those capable wings and fly away, make sure to say goodbye. We\u2019ll meet you at the English department \u201cwelcome table\u201d after the ceremony on Convocation day. Come on over for photos with your favourite profs, cold bottled water, and special graduate \u201choroscopes.\u201d You\u2019ll find us in Section 108, near the celebration area and other reception tables.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Just about now, just about every UFV grad is hearing inspirational messages from aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, older siblings, and friends. Oh, the places you\u2019ll go! Follow your bliss! Do what you love and the money will follow! The world is your oyster! They mean well, but we know graduation can be overwhelming\u2014a time […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":107,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-141","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/107"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=141"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":146,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141\/revisions\/146"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=141"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=141"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=141"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"English](\"http:\/\/blogs.ufv.ca\/english\/files\/2015\/06\/English-blog-spreading-wings.jpg\")
<\/a> Photo Credit: Fulla T<\/a> via Compfight<\/a> cc<\/a><\/p>\n