The emotional rollercoaster after student life ends!

Finishing your last ever exams and graduating from college is all fun and games… until life after college kicks in. Everyone around you suddenly has completely different plans, and somewhere along the way, you’ve grown up. You’re no longer attending the same classes or working toward the same deadlines. You’re carving your own path now. For international students, there's the added layer of deciding whether to stay or go home (and the visa maze that comes with it). Tenancies are ending, and now you have to find a new place to live, which adds even more to the commotion. 🌀

The overwhelm waiting for you after the academic rush can be a lot. And it looks different for everyone because no two post-grad paths are the same. But if there’s one thing they all share, it’s chaos. 😵‍💫

Letting Go of the LSE Identity 🧠

For months, or even years, your identity has been deeply tied to LSE. The campus became your second home, filled with back-to-back lectures, seminars, society meetings and late-night study sessions. With graduation behind you, how you see yourself has completely shifted. Suddenly, you find yourself checking LinkedIn more than Instagram, searching for your next step. The shift from “What’s due this week?” to “What am I even doing this week?” can feel jarring. Even those around you begin treating you differently. You are not a student anymore, but an adult who is expected to have it all figured out. And that’s tough, especially when just a few weeks ago, you were still attending class. 🤯

Moving Out and Moving On 🏠

Now that LSE’s intense and intellectually stimulating student life is behind you, it’s also time to move out of the safety and convenience of our beloved halls, if you haven’t already. If you're heading back home, it’s slightly easier. But if you're staying in the UK or moving elsewhere, good luck finding a place to rent, especially without viewing it in person, which is a horror story on its own. And even if you’re able to view places, the rent in London or other big cities? Yeah. Good luck. Plus, switching to a new grocery store (because your trusty Sainsbury’s Local isn’t around anymore)? Chaos. 🛒

 The Financial Reality Check 💸

Student discounts? Gone. Staying in the UK? Say hello to council tax. The ever-increasing cost of living in London? Still here. If you don’t have a job yet, the pressure to find one (and fast) is real. If you do, there’s the stress of managing your new income and budgeting like a grown-up. It starts to feel like no matter where you turn, you’re paying more and saving less. It seems like a never-ending and exhausting struggle. 💰

Navigating Changing Friendships 🌍

Your LSE friend group may now be scattered across cities, countries, or even time zones. Gone are the days of spontaneous grocery runs or late-night debriefs. Everyone's busy adjusting to their new lives, which sometimes leads to friendships fading. It’s the harsh reality. When you’re already navigating the unknown alone, this part stings even more. Because even though you're surrounded by change, it’s the absence of familiar people that can make you feel even more isolated. 💔

Dealing with the “What Now?” Feeling ❓

You might’ve asked this out loud while hanging out with friends, and someone probably made a joke and changed the subject. But when this question starts popping up during late-night scrolling or worse, family get-togethers, it gets real. The pressure to “move on to the next big thing” sets in: a job, another degree, a plan. You feel haunted by the idea of a gap on your CV. And LinkedIn is suddenly the most triggering app on your phone. 📱

But here’s the truth: It’s okay to not know your next step immediately. Trust me, there are so many others feeling exactly the same way (even if social media makes it seem otherwise). You’ve just finished one of the most intense academic periods of your life. The very fact that you made it through is proof enough that you’ll figure out what’s next. Pause and breathe. Panicking won’t help you figure it out faster. It’ll only slow you down. And, you don't want that. 😮‍💨

You’re human. Feeling overwhelmed, puzzled, or even a little lost and upset right now doesn’t mean you’re failing; it just means you’re transitioning. Remember how terrifying it felt to move to London and start at LSE? And yet, you adjusted. You made friends.  You met deadlines. You got through it. You’ll get through this, too. 🫶

It’s easy to feel like you’re falling behind when everything around you feels uncertain. But just because it’s messy doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong. You’re just doing it your way. 💬

So, if you’re feeling unsure, don’t isolate yourself. Talk to someone. Message a friend, call your family, reach out to a mentor. Even if it’s just to rant or cry. Practical support is available too, like LSE Careers. (Yes, you can still book one-to-one careers advice appointments even as a recent grad.)

Life post-LSE is messy, weird, and kinda scary, but hey, so was Week 1. You’ve survived exam season, dissertations, and 9 a.m. lectures, trust yourself to survive this unknown too.