Reflections of a Spring Graduate
Like many of my classmates, it certainly does not feel like I just graduated from UT. Amid the circumstances, it is just a major milestone that has been overshadowed. There has been no swift entry into the next chapter of life like I was expecting for myself and my peers — no bittersweet goodbyes, but rather a kind of a subtle entrance into a grim waiting period. Waiting for a job update, waiting for a much delayed start date, waiting for an inkling of a lead to take hold.
Also like many of my classmates, my plans post-graduation have been severely altered: I was set to head to Mexico on June 1st to volunteer with the Peace Corps for two years. The program was everything I could have dreamed of — implementing small-scale solutions to environmental issues in rural areas (think dry-toilets, solar panels, efficient stoves) perfectly complimented my new BBA in International Business (specialization in Latin America) and Certificate in Environment & Sustainability. I couldn’t think of a more ideal way to enter into a career merging business and sustainability across borders.
As communication regarding the state of my program remains limited, I have found myself mourning the loss of this opportunity. Even amidst global health, racial and economic crises, life goes on and I am forced to face the reality of my situation, meaning that I need to find a job or in two months I am both jobless and homeless. It definitely feels bleak, yet I am comforted, to great capacity, by the knowledge instilled in me from my studies and unwavering support from my professors and the international business community.
The person I am today is radically different than the person I was freshman year. Now, I seek out information; I value learning, understanding, and contextualizing. When I stepped foot on the Forty Acres, I had no direction. Business school was a default — I figured you can do almost anything with a business degree. As I sat in BA 101 freshman year, international business was the only McCombs major that seemed interesting. Required study abroad, language proficiency and area studies, and limited upper division finance courses? Score! Looking back, this reasoning may have made me a better Liberal Arts candidate, but I’m very grateful that I stayed on my course.
The significance of choosing to major in international business really came to fruition in this past year. After taking education for granted for most of my life, I truly fell in love with learning while taking my upper division business and sustainability courses. Ideas materialized and instead of feeling weighed down by class content, I began feeling opportunistic. Everything started to fit together; the fall semester I recall comprehending significant overlapping themes across international trade, environmental health, advertising, exporting and Black studies classes that completely blew me away.
Knowledge felt powerful, and from this realization I began to feel equipped to continue learning independently past my traditional education and have become enthralled by the possibilities. There is real opportunity for positive environmental change in the private sector. Shareholders, consumers, and policymakers across the board are pressuring companies to increase transparency and take substantial action to mitigate climate change. I feel moved to expedite the process; I truly believe there has never been a more important time for business and sustainability to intersect.
International Business majors are constantly asked about their post-graduation plans because at UT there is no direct pipeline; it is certainly more open-ended than other McCombs majors. No one asks a finance or accounting major what they want to do, just for whom they plan to work. This sort of job security is especially desirable right now, but I never wanted my education to be a means to an end. College wasn’t meant to be a transaction — I continued my studies because they fascinated me. I’m entirely interested in the big picture: working across countries and cultures, using and improving my foreign language skills, and applying my passion for sustainability. In my career and in my life, I want to be challenged and pursue self-education especially at risk of unease and discomfort.
Here I find myself with an International Business degree, graduated and jobless, but extremely passionate about my studies and wildly optimistic about my future. While I may not quite feel like a UT graduate yet, I did check every box to signify the end. I found my graduation slide online, wore a square cap, jumped in the fountain, so I guess that’s it. The protests for racial justice, the gravity of the pandemic, and all of their larger implications feel (and definitely are) much bigger than my personal achievement. It is this personal achievement, however, that has equipped me to address these disparities in my community, my career, and (not to be dramatic) the world. Thank you, IB community, for shaping me into the person I am today.
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Elizabeth Bonahoom graduated in May 2020 with a BBA in International Business (specializing in Latin America) with a Certificate in Environment & Sustainability). She would like to thank many people as being instrumental in making my her time at UT special and transformative, especially Josh Barham, Alex Gabbi, Deirdre Mendez, Kiashore Gawande, Jules Elkins, David Tuttle, Greta Fenley, and Deborah Salzberg. She thanks you all tremendously.
