The Real World

It still hasn’t really hit me that my co-op experience and my life in NYC are about to end in just one week. The past six months have been an exciting journey that has taught me so much about myself and what I want out of life. I have always been a motivated person who was always looking to keep busy and feel accomplished. With that being said I came to college wanting to graduate and live in the oh so glamorous “real world”. Before coming to New York I pictured a dream life that was a skewed version of the real world. In my “real” world I was a glamorous fashion intern living in a city full of trendy people and bright lights. I quickly learned that the 9-5 job isn’t actually 9-5 and it is not glamorous at all, in fact it is exhausting and going out night after night chasing all the lights isn’t as easy or intoxicating as I hoped. Being in New York has been an overwhelming, yet cool experience, which I am grateful I had before I graduated. My appreciation for this crazy little island has definitely changed and taught me not to be afraid to set out on my own and try new cities (I’m seeing LA in my future).  

I came to college wanting to work in fashion PR always telling myself I could never sit at a desk and have a “boring” job. Being on co-op has helped me learn that I do in fact want a more “boring” job and when I switched from PR to sales, I found myself feeling more accomplished and challenged. Throughout my internship with BCBGMAXAZRIA I have found that my favorite part about the industry is meeting new people and sharing my passion. There are parts in both PR and sales that I fell madly in love with, and now I know exactly what I want to do. I want to combine the schmoozing of PR with the “boring” deskwork of a sales assistant. I love planning and organizing, but I also love sitting in a meeting watching our discussions come to life. Without the co-op experience I would have graduated college searching for a job I would hate and an apartment in a city I don’t really love. Though I am sad to leave what feels like my new life, I cannot wait to get back to reality and back to class and enjoy my last year of college before setting foot into the real world.