International relations senior Katie Gjerpen was accepted to work for Teach For America and will be moving to Atlanta to teach social studies to high school students.
Katie Gjerpen came to MSU as a freshman with a plan. As a student in James Madison College, the international relations senior believed she had it all figured out.
“I thought I would do something with the government or work at a public policy think tank or something,” Gjerpen said.
Many MSU seniors preparing to graduate this spring have followed a natural progression since coming to campus. After selecting a major, the soon-to-be graduates are about to complete their degrees in that field.
As graduation day approaches, it is time to apply what they’ve learned in the past four or more years, enter the real world and begin their careers — except for those students, however, who are choosing to
take a more unconventional path.
Things started to change for Gjerpen when she started coaching a high school debate team three years ago. Then, last summer she interned for Teach for America, which aims to provide education for Kindergarten through high school students in areas where public education is lacking.
Now, instead of searching for the public policy job she thought she wanted when she came to MSU, Gjerpen is working with Teach for America again starting June 1, and will be teaching history in Atlanta in the fall.
“After I did a lot of stuff in education, I realized that’s what I wanted to do, not something with the government,” she said.
“I’m excited to be doing something else.”
Gjerpen said she now hopes to go to graduate school and earn her master’s in education through Teach for America — a far cry from a degree in international relations.
Not every graduating senior will start a potential career in a completely unrelated field to the one he or she has studied at MSU like Gjerpen, but some simply will delay the beginning of their work-filled life.
To some graduates, getting a job is seen as more of a restriction than anything else.
Instead of rushing into the work force, supply chain management senior Allie Lucas decided to take a break and travel to South Africa.
Although Lucas is looking for an internship or job after the three-week trip, she said having one already could keep her from going anywhere.
“I’m never going to get the opportunity again to take three weeks off and go somewhere else,” Lucas said.
“And I wouldn’t be able to do that with a full-time job.”
Taking a similar approach to life after graduation, economics senior Andrew Friend is going to continue to take classes through MSU as part of a study abroad program in Greece and Turkey.
After visiting Australia last summer, Friend said he decided he didn’t want to be done traveling, and realized now was a better time than any to do so, sharing feelings similar to Lucas.
“I have no mortgage, no kids and I can go into debt if I need to,” Friend said.
“So I’m going to go see the world.”
Although Friend’s study abroad program is related to his economics major, it’s not exactly helping him advance his career. He was accepted to do an internship for which he had applied, but had to turn it down since it would have lasted the entire summer.
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
Despite the sacrifices he made that might be detrimental to the beginning of his career — and his bank account — Friend said he is happy with the decision he made and even will travel through Europe after the study abroad program ends.
“I don’t think I’m going to regret it at all,” he said.
“You can work the rest of your life so I’m just going to live now.”
