College Grads Get Creative in Job Search

"Being productive is rewarding in and of itself. It makes me feel like I'm a legitimate writer," Djeljosevic said. "It's a matter of sticking it out."

Recent Florida State University graduate Stephanie Mellini has plenty of friends who are just hanging out, waiting to hear back on dozens of job applications. Others have jobs, just not the ones they truly desired. And still others are contemplating going back to school.

Off to Europe

Mellini wanted something different for her post-grad life.

"It just kind of hits you. Everyone's so wrapped up in this world on campus, this microcosm of society -- and then you get out, and no one really cares," Mellini said. "You have to kind of start over from scratch."

For the 22-year-old international affairs and theater major, starting over was all the reason she needed to satisfy an itch she's had since studying abroad as an undergrad.

"I'm really interested in just traveling and seeing the world a little more," she said.

So now, she's about to fly to London -- but not as just another scruffy backpacker. She was accepted into an international work-exchange program, allowing her to stay abroad for up to six months.

"I figured if I worked there, I could stay longer," she said.

She just hopes that after she touches down, she'll get a job that satisfied her urge to meet new people and covers the bills at the same time.

"A lot of people in the program work at bars or in pubs. I'm happy with anywhere I'm going to meet cool people," Mellini said.

Wanderlust and exploration may be all the satisfaction Mellini wants after college, but on the home front, there were tough decisions and parental opinions to weigh before she eventually made the plunge.

"At the same time I'm getting this other stuff from my parents. They're all about me having adventures, however I think if it was their choice, they would definitely have me go to law school or something," Mellini said. "You know, something sensible."

From a bedroom-office he shares with his girlfriend, Victor Amin runs his one-man IT startup, a company called rSapient. He's developing a new spin on the spam-prevention tools Websites use to verify whether users are human, or a computer programmed to act like one.