Jenny Collins, Overland Park senior, has had her share of college crises and triumphs. Despite the rollercoaster ride she endured for the past four years, Collins kept an open mind about the future and her prospects for a career.
"I'm pretty positive about my job security," Collins said. "I'm ready to make an impact in my field and I know that there are a lot of options."
Collins will graduate in May and will leave Lawrence for Tallahassee, Fla., in August, where she will attend Florida State University as a graduate student in religious studies.
Like Collins, thousands of students will graduate in the coming weeks and will venture onto new tracks in their lives and will encounter those all-to-common real world situations. As graduates flock into the corporate world, stress and failure accumulate and alter the physical and mental behavioral patterns of people.
According to an article in last fall's issue the Bureau of Labor Service's publication Occupational Outlook Quarterly, 55 million jobs will be available by 2014, but more people are attending and graduating from college. The influx of graduates signifies a competitive job market and possible downfalls in a graduate's job search.
Heather Rasmussen, an evaluation coordinator at the KU Institute for Educational Research and Public Service, did extensive research in optimism and its effects on people's behavior and health. Her work was based on goal adjustment and flexibility in negative situations. In December 2006, The Journal of Personality published a study co-authored by Rasmussen that observed the physical and mental effects of optimism and goal adjustment. Rasmussen felt it was important and healthful for graduates to have attainable goals and to be able to adjust those goals when they couldn't be reached in full.
"People who are hopeful and optimistic usually have the flexibility to adaptively cope with obstacles and stressors in their lives," Rasmussen said. "This hope and optimism leads to less depression and is even linked to better physical health."
Rasmussen expressed importance in expecting good things to happen, but to also look for the positive aspects of any negative situation. This mindset enabled study participants to learn from negative things so the next time obstacles arose, it was more likely the end would result in a positive outcome.
Shane Lopez, associate professor in the department of psychology and research in education, has done research on hope and positive psychology, character education and psychosocial factors associated with academic achievement and professional training issues.
Lopez said that graduation was an exciting time for the entire KU community and that the ceremonies bring graduates many endings and some new beginnings, as well as positive stress and the typical taxing stress.
"Graduates that have learned to develop clear and specific goals in good times and in bad will navigate this transition well, regardless of what their job or educational future looks like today," Lopez said. "For all, it is time to consider all valued goals; prioritize them through discussions with mentors, family, and friends; and throw your energy behind the goals that matter to you most."
Lopez acknowledged change is never easy and it could be overwhelming. People who are hopeful continue to explore possibilities and ultimately find exactly what they are looking for, he said. Optimistic people were also willing to admit downfalls and be honest with themselves when they needed new tools and skills to make themselves more competitive for positions they desired.
According to Rasmussen, research has shown that people who are optimistic experience greater social support than their pessimistic counterparts.
"This can affect your career," Rasmussen said. "Others are more likely to enjoy being around someone who is realistically optimistic than someone who is pessimistic."
Lopez pointed out the social nature of goal pursuits and people couldn't succeed in getting into graduate school or landing the right job on their own. He said it was important to recognize and utilize all the people that are involved: family and friends who offered support, teachers who provided education and training, mentors and advisors who wrote letters of recommendation, and professionals who interviewed for potential.
"The folks who navigate this transition into advanced education or the job force well are the ones who take advantage of social support," Lopez said. "They monitor their own progress, get feedback from trusted others, and keep creating pathways toward their goals."
Lopez said when recent graduates got frustrated or disappointed, they went back to their support network and reflected on past successes and kept moving forward.
Support systems and communal interaction were healthful ways of dealing with goal achievement or failure. Rasmussen did add that goal setting was personal, but it could be useful to consult others about set goals.
The goals graduates set should be based on their priorities and what they aspire to do with their lives, Rasmussen said.
Juliann Morland, Girard graduate student in international studies, is graduating this summer and will attend law school at Washburn in the fall. She wants to eventually work in the United States diplomatic core or with the United Nations.
"I feel it's very important to come to a place of knowing what blessings and skills you have to offer the world and find the career which allows you to best express these passions," Morland said. "I believe in the concept of what some may refer to as the 'American Dream,' however, more so it is one's ability to make their imaginations their reality."