Being a Graduate during a Global Pandemic...

 Okay, so this is not a 'light' topic of discussion in this blog. It is a topic that I have wanted to write about for a while now, and I thought that this was the right time to do so. 


To introduce myself, my name is Emma and I am a graduate. I completed my BA in History at Aberystwyth University in 2019, and my MA in Modern History in September 2020. I graduated with a 2:2 for my BA and I received a merit for my MA in December 2020. During the 'beginning' of the pandemic here in the U.K *dating to around mid-March 2019* I was faced with completing multiple assignments which included a few 3,000-word essays, as well as a 15,000-word dissertation (I wrote about the commemoration of Chartists on a local and national level, or in other words on a Welsh/British scale).  This was a difficult situation as myself, and many *many* students found to be the case, without the help of our University libraries this task was almost impossible. 

    So fast-forward to finishing my MA degree, I left Aberystwyth and moved back home. I was so grateful to be back home with my family as I could make up for lost time during my time at university. I applied for many jobs and found myself getting more fed-up and frustrated with the current climate. *Of course I know that I am not the only one who had/has to experience this, we're all here plodding through together* but I did feel alone. Many of my friends were employed and I was so so SO happy for them, but I always seemed to worry that I was 'unemployable'. 

    November came around and I eventually got a job, two months of unemployment was an eye-opening experience and I often felt useless/helpless as I continued to sit at home waiting for something positive to happen. A seasonal job felt like a step in the right direction, and I really enjoyed the experience. However, this was typically cut short, shorter than a seasonal temp job contract as we went into lockdown 2.0 *in Wales, not including the 'circuit breaker'* and yet again I found myself unemployed. This lasted until four weeks ago, when I found myself employed, and what a relief. I am enjoying actually having a job and having a routine to follow, and my colleagues are so nice which definitely makes the experience so much better.

What I have come to learn during this process is that: 

* I am so frustrated with the lack of entry-level jobs for those interested in the museum/heritage profession. We are expected to enter these careers with experience, but that experience is so difficult to get, so how is this possible?

* I keep telling my friends/family that things take T I M E, and that I have come to repeat to myself over and over again. Time is so precious, as well as being something that can become so draining. 

To conclude, the pandemic has been an awful time for everybody. Our lives have been turned upside down, and it has caused so much disruption and devastation. However, it has given people time to reflect on their busy lives, sit back, and actually spend time with their immediate families and focus on themselves. 

Here's to better times ahead. 

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