I graduated, my friends graduated and one day you'll graduate too

In May, my Dad, stepmother and grandparents flew in from Orlando and watched me walk across the stage at the Tad Pad.

They walked in when the announcer got to the Ls and disappeared as soon as they said “Mallory Simerville” and snapped a picture of me walking across the stage. As soon as I sat down from receiving my fake diploma (still haven’t gotten that real one in the mail) they sat in traffic for an hour trying to get to the Square and finally met me at home for a celebration over BBQ and cake.

At this point, I was set to work at a coffee shop for a year until my fiancé finished with graduate school.

As I write this from the beach in Destin, I’ll be attending graduate school in the fall, and we will be living in Oxford as post grads for another two years.

With my own future and career choices changing post graduation, the idea of such a shaky future combined with watching my friends struggle with moving past undergrad has become exciting and scary. I graduated with a wide variety of friends — and with that I’ve decided to categorize Ole Miss post grads. This is what I’ve found (to my friends, you know where you fall):

The Go-Getter – You know them, they’ve been searching for jobs since freshmen year, they’ve always had a LinkedIn account and they landed a job before they even graduated. By the time I’m 30, they’ll have invented something, won an election and/or be making more money than I can imagine.

The Married/Getting Married Grad - The Mrs. Degree is a real thing. Getting hitched can be all-consuming — but we all know that bride who has planned every aspect of her wedding and that groom who popped the question without realizing the monster he’s created.

The Seed Planter - This grad is planting their seeds all over the career map, they just haven’t figured out which ones to water yet. Although your 20s are about not knowing what you want, the seed planter takes this to a new level. They aren’t quite sure when or where they’ll move away from Oxford — and they definitely don’t know what kind of job they want. Their least favorite question at the bar, “So … what are you doing after this summer?”

The Hangout - Not quite ready to make a move, this grad either hangs out at home or hangs out in town — they have no interest in a career or a marriage, they just love being an undergrad or love eating out of mom’s fridge. Either way, they are the super fun to hang out with people who will always be around when you need them!

**Another version of the Hangout chooses to hang out all over the world. They take odd jobs in China or Iceland. Sometimes they just buy a ticket to Germany and you receive odd snapchats from them while they frolic through Europe.

The Procrastinator - Graduated from undergrad … and back on campus for grad school. Living near campus and spending weekends in the Grove. Not quite ready to graduate, and not ready to just hang out. This grad keeps living the dream walking on to campus every day.

The Lackey - This is the perfect not-quite-ready-to-grow-up, but I-need-a-real-job choice for any grad. The transition is easy, and the job is guaranteed: Work for mom and dad! Home you go, with all your high school friends and the joys of dinner on Sundays with your family!

Obviously, I know all of these categorizations aren’t true while and I claim three of them. I’m getting married, a multiple career searcher and the procrastinator of real life. And when I started as a freshman I didn’t want an Mrs. degree, or to procrastinate real life. Here, I am! Writing a column for The DM, working as a barista, moving into a new house in Oxford and preparing for a wedding at the Lyric. Hotty Toddy?

Published in The Daily Mississippian on June 26, 2014.