Senior Year Bucket List
Hey all. I've signed for full-time after my internship finished this summer. Back at school and wondering if anyone on here has any regrets for things they wish they did during their last year before the real world. Feels like I've signed away a lot of my future free time so I want to make the most of this time now. Thinking about traveling lots and prioritizing some friendships I may not be able to nurture once my nose is to the grindstone next year. Wish I had a killer business plan to make some dough. Not a squid, but don't want to just waste it partying on weekends... that's all there really is to do in NYC, anyway.
Any and all recommendations welcome (bonus points for creativity)!
I'm only a junior, but the way I view next year (assuming I get return, if not, it will be axe to grindstone until I get an FT offer), I'm going to prioritize activities that can only be done with ample free time.
I'm beginning a philosophy discussion meeting this Friday. Basically a book club.
Plan to do a half or full marathon next semester, but I need to start getting in shape for it.
If you're in a real city, and not a college town, try to explore what it has to offer if you haven't already- food, museums, historical sites. That can easily fill a dull weekend.
If your school has competitive sports teams, going to the games is usually a grand time. If it weren't for football, I'd totally study abroad during senior year fall.
Studying abroad is the big one. Everyone says they strongly recommend it. Everyone I know who has done it loved their experiences abroad. You should check with your university to see how you can still complete necessary classes though, as you could shoot yourself in the foot without the proper research and delay your graduation.
Planning a fun trip during a break could be nice. You should have a good amount of money from your summer internship, although you should definitely save most of it for apartments/furniture/car payment (if relevant)/rainy day fund. Being broke when you hit the desk doesn't sound too fun.
Just some ideas that came to mind. I'm sure others will have some better ideas too.
No one cares. Be like every other college kid and stop taking polls from strangers to determine your life decisions.
Also, why do you need to mention you just signed an offer? It's completely irrelevant to your ask. Why, then, do you need an anonymous forum to boost your self-esteem? Perhaps you should work on that as a bucket list item.
Valid point Mr Galore, though felt it necessary to clarify I’m not some schlep aimlessly going about life. You really think shooting that I have a banking job into a forum about… banking… is validating my life? Yikes, hope no deflecting came off from your late night visit to WSO on a Monday.
Mentioned FT to clarify I effectively have an option expiring next June (assuming the world doesn’t go to shit), whereby I can do anything I want.. if you could do anything you wanted in the peak of your youth, health, freedom, etc., what would you do? Respond sanctimoniously to genuine questions from people looking to learn from others’ expertises and experiences online? Okay, lmao
Following
I had a FT internship in PE my senior year where I also went to school FT. I also had a FT offer secured during this year for after graduation.
My biggest regret was not hitting the gym hard af and smashing as many college chicks as possible.
I ended up doing that stuff a few years post-grad anyway but I wish I started sooner instead of worrying so much about $$.
Same position as you brother, congratulations on your offer.
I'm trying to focus on filling up the time with productive activities, I'd like to stay sharp since my courseload is very light and I'm not great at playing videogames and rotting all day.
I signed up for the CFA L1 exam in May '24 which will require daily studying, I'm going to the gym and focusing on my diet to get in good shape, and generally just reading articles and watching YT videos that won't cause a brainrot.
Being aware of wanting to make the most of your time and not sitting at the sidelines watching Tiktok and playing videogames is already a step in the right direction. I try to find things to make my days more productive on a daily basis, and try to make the right decision in how I should fill my time during the day-to-day
Things that I did that I look back on very fondly before starting full time (spoiler alert they are all travel related):
1. Trip to Seattle with my mom. We mostly hiked around some of the national parks, went to Pikes Place market and ate at inexpensive restaurants, but it was a really special bonding experience. The national parks are really pretty. My main memories are hiking the mountains and driving through the beautiful PNW, nothing too crazy by itself, but still stunning. Additionally, if you rent a small Air BnB outside the city it is really inexpensive, like $150 a night or something for a 2-3 bedroom. I am talking 30-45 min outside the city, not hours away too.
2. Road trip through the Smoky mountains with my Dad in an old BMW convertible. Similar to the above, I was super grateful to have been able to spend extended time 1:1 with my Dad before graduating. My family is very important to me and in college I saw less and less of them, and this continued as a trend as I began working full-time. Driving from PA through TN allowed me to see parts of the US I had never been to before, and it was 100x more beautiful than I could've imagined. Good tunes, top down, good BBQ, insane scenic outlooks and a lot of open road made for some excellent memories. We rented a cabin at the top of a mountain that overlooked a massive valley that would fill with clouds every morning, and dissipate over time. You felt like you were living on the top of Everest, and that the entire world was miles below you. Sound traveled in a way I never before experienced, and I could hear people having conversations in clear detail at reasonable volumes from 300+ feet away.
3. Boys trip to Nashville. Couple of my best friends and I went down to Nashville together. Summer was running out and the only time we could go was in August. Dont go in August, it was horrendously hot. Pro tip from the locals: visit the Peg Leg Porker for BBQ, some of the best I've ever had. The live music and abundance of bars is amazing, but there are also some nice parks that are worth checking out in the daytime. It doesn't have to be Nashville, but if you can get together with your best friends, try and do a trip anywhere, even if its local. Nashville is one of the few cities with an abundance of girls, so a great place to visit if you're single. Everyone was pretty friendly too. They have "clubs" but if you're from a big city you'll roll your eyes at them. I found the more "touristy" bars on the main strip to be the most fun, and there are so many you cant possibly stop in all of them for a drink.
4. Hiking trip to the Grand Tetons. Two of my best friends and I road tripped cross country to visit Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. Yellowstone was cool but moderately underwhelming, but if you like hiking, the Tetons will blow you away. Some of the most intense but gratifying hikes I've ever done, oftentimes ending with glacier lakes that you can swim in. I went in not expecting much and it is maybe one of the most memorable trips of my life, up there with all the to-be-expected higher end places Ive been (Greece, Ireland, Hawaii, etc.). No description can do the Tetons justice. If you like hiking and the outdoors, book a trip in August and prepare to have your mind blown. It was pretty cool to have our typical drive halted by buffalo crossing the road too.
Disclaimer: I realize four trips may sound like a lot, but if you go with your folks you may benefit from them covering some of the costs. Nashville was all in ~$600-700, and the Tetons was roughly $1100. My friends and I drove to both of these places which reduced the costs considerably, and didn't stay in high end hotels, but some of the more cost effective Air BnBs. It can be done without breaking the bank. If you have ~$2000 in excess cash, spend it on traveling to 1-3 places before you commit to working very hard without a break for an extended period of time.
Disclaimer II: I put the trips with my parents first because those are what I value the most. As you age you spend plenty of time with your close friends, especially in your 20s. What you don't do is spend nearly enough time with your folks. Working hard and making money is great and all, but the memories with your parents will be what you value most as you age. I would much rather have the fond memories of another trip with my parents than another ~25k in the bank. At the time neither trip with my parents seemed particularly special, but looking back they were the most valuable without a doubt.
2 chicks at the same time, man!
Lawrence!
WHo's lawrence?
In all seriousness, one of the best things I’ve ever done in my life was take a 6 week trip backpacking through Western Europe with 1 of my best friends. We stayed in hostels for cheap, saw all the sites, partied almost every night with other travelers or locals, met tons of people, and soaked in the culture. It’s cliche, but no other area of the world has so much culture packed in such a small place.
Best decisions of the trip: 1) we had a virtually unlimited Eurail pass that enabled us to go anywhere anytime by train which gave us tremendous flexibility in our planning (or lack thereof) 2) we made a pact that we would not plan ahead anything. We stayed in each city until we decided it was time to move on and only once at the train station did we decide where to next. Some places we loved, like Prague, and we stayed 6 days. Some places we didn’t love, like Vienna, and we stayed 1 day. 3) we agreed that together we’d do all the things we both want to do, and split up whenever we wanted to do different things. No hard feelings or debating plans. We actually split up for 5 days to see different stuff and it was totally great no drama.
It was a once in a lifetime adventure I’ll never forget and I could never again replicate once I started working.
If you can put something together like the above - I Would recommend 1000%.
Travel as much as you can. Get outdoors. Do all of the things that are tough to do once you're FT and have limited time. Spend every dime you have before you hit the desk - you'll make plenty over your career.
- Quick 3-4 day roadtrips with college buddies during the year
- Multi-week "backpacking" during the summer
- Join clubs / build interesting hobbies
Don’t stress about it. Just do smt you used to push off bcs of recruiting. Travel and have fun!
In the same boat, and just got dumped. Not sure what to do for the next 10 months.
Europe buddy.
If you do early graduation, you can spend a semester travel to other places
You can also study for GMAT exam for mba
This is only if you're certain you want to go to grad school.
I never understood the value of going to grad school for those who already studied business in undergrad
Screw all the squids on here posting squid answers. This is what you should do:
1. Collect at least 5 bodies, ideally 10. College is the ultimate time to get laid. That girl you’ve had a crush on, ask her out. You’re never gunna see most of these people again so take chances.
2. Go out as much as possible. I’m talking Thursday, Friday and Saturday minimum. Your liver should be on the brink by the time you graduate.
3. Travel somewhere cool before you graduate, use your signing bonus on this and moving in. You’ll have plenty of time to save later in life. Do something other than “backpacking in Europe for 2 weeks” everyone does this. Overpriced, you’ve likely been to Europe before. No one cares. Go somewhere off the beaten track - south east asia or South America.
4. Network with MBAs (assuming you have a business school) and other people in your profession. Will help a few years down the road.
5. Relax. Do some cool activity or pastime as you underload your senior spring. Take the easiest classes possible and the minimum you need to graduate. Spend the rest of your time working out, reading, relaxing or playing sports and enjoying life.
6. If you’re considering doing business school take the GMAT and study for it properly. Good to knock this out.
7. Figure out your living and moving situation so wherever you end up early, trust me you don’t want to stress about this later.
8. Do cool weekend trips you won’t be able to do when you start work.
You pretty much want to get everything you are able to do while you have the free time now to your fullest advantage. You want to be able to look back and think you overdid college in the ways I mention above not underdo it. Your life will suck when you graduate. You won’t have time or your parents to leech off. Do everything to the fullest.
College senior year should be full of adventure and fun. Meet new people, try new hobbies, motivate yourself to go outside and get out of your comfort zone if you're typically a stay at home all day type.
Don't stress much on stuff like studying or exams, you already have your ft job just keep up your grades to a decent level in case you'd want to apply elsewhere.
Visit rio, galapagos islands and machu pichu, some of my favorite places I’ve visited during college
Go and make the most out of your free time. You have 1000 minutes each day to do something interesting or fun. Don’t just sit around reading books unless that’s what you’re passionate about.
Every day after college you’ll be sitting at your desk making excel, ppts and doing other work for someone else. You likely become more jaded and less energetic each year you’re working compared to how you feel today. Go enjoy your college years to the fullest
My perspective is 20+ years out.... so think about what will or will not be impactful for the rest of your life.
You will NOT remember bar nights out, random hookups, parties, how many shots you took, or even local trips.
You WILL remember international/exotic trips (I did a one-way ticket to Madrid, and figured it out from there--including running with the bulls in Pamplona).
You WILL impact your career trajectory with a GMAT/CFA. You will not have time to study for these in most early stage finance jobs.
So take that for what its worth - get your GMAT or CFA-1 and then go somewhere exotic internationally. Everything else is a rounding error.
Reiterating what others are saying here, don't worry about anything pre-professional - you will have decades to work on your career. My biggest piece of advice is to branch out from the friends you've had for the first 3 years of college. This is NOT to say to give up on your old friends, but I have found post-grad that I missed out on meeting a lot of super interesting from my university simply because I was so insular with my friend group. Just make a solid effort to grab a meal/ coffee/ drinks with someone a couple of times a week. Your original, deep friendships will likely last no matter what, and you'll find its the long tail of contacts that you develop that ultimately will be the most useful/ impactful to your life down the road.
Few things
- Build healthy, consistent routines (e.g., fitness, meal prep, etc.)
- Take the GMAT/GRE
- Travel
Source: 2nd year @ MBB
Join some random events or groups on campus if you have been focused mostly on business-related orgs. You'd be amazed by the different personality types you'd encounter
Take improv classes.
Learn to dance.
Get in shape/run a marathon.
Aperiam aliquid earum et. Itaque reprehenderit iusto provident dicta. Officiis quis at facilis et reiciendis sed consequuntur ipsa.
Voluptas nesciunt consequatur accusamus non. Voluptatem et culpa doloribus voluptas. Similique aut et sint dolores laboriosam.
Et in fugiat est dolorem consequatur eos aspernatur. Non maxime voluptatem et et sequi alias.
Dicta ut quia molestiae. Quas nulla earum modi velit dolores. Dicta enim ad et nostrum. In aspernatur exercitationem repellendus est. Est sit in omnis at dolores. Aspernatur laborum aut id laborum eveniet aut. Sint est quia placeat et ut vero.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...
Quibusdam laudantium tempora ut. Quis eveniet rem suscipit aut. Repudiandae sapiente quas aut eaque vero. Est et rerum omnis ut dolore rerum dignissimos excepturi. Velit recusandae omnis iste sapiente ullam cumque. Sint sit omnis odit numquam libero aut.
Qui omnis ducimus quod voluptas ab assumenda. Dolores quia quos repudiandae totam. Suscipit eligendi consequatur asperiores omnis rem ut iure aspernatur. Similique eveniet distinctio ipsa nostrum. Debitis atque aut quas.
Deserunt quis deleniti et accusamus. Iusto omnis perspiciatis accusamus eum. Libero eos eveniet minus omnis ab.
Est corrupti nisi hic rerum. Iure accusantium ab repellat.