“We have not developed and strengthened institutions to serve young adults,” Mr. Furstenberg said, “because we’re still living with the archaic idea that people enter adulthood in their late teens or early 20s.”

After I graduated from college and began to work, I realized that college might be the best time of my life, because I seemed to have nothing to worry about when I was in college. I am not sure if everyone has the same feeling, but I think most people may not fully realize what the reality is until they graduate from school and step into the real world. I think not only parents, who financially support the young adults, and the transformation of society that “sent more people to college”, but also college (or schools) contribute to the longer road to adulthood. In college, students are usually academically prepared for future work, but sometimes they are not equipped with skills that are essential in their career, and some are even not mentally prepared for work. When I began to work, I found out that getting along with colleagues and employers was quite different from getting along with classmates and professors in college. Though I had collaboration work in school, the collaboration and teamwork at workplace was different from what I had expected. Some of my college classmates complained that their jobs are different from their anticipations. Such situations may partially explain why many employers prefer an applicant who has several years experience to a workplace freshman.

Thus, students in college need to seek full readiness for future work, and college need to help students solve real world problems. Otherwise, the road to adulthood might be even longer.

Cohen, P. (2010, June 12). Long Road to Adulthood Is Growing Even Longer. The New York Times.