If you are a student, or recent graduate, I’m sure you’ve heard reference to the so called “real world.” You, know the world that you are somehow not privy to while in school. “When you get out in the real world,” folks will say, “then you’ll experience x, y, and/or z.” It is a very troubling term to me.

You see, if the “real world” is one that you are not in while in school, then what world are you in, the fake one? What is so unreal about the reality you are living while in school? Why must practicing your profession in school be somehow…fake?

In my work with students, and professional colleagues, I reject the use of the term “real world.” It is not that there is no such thing, as John Mayer sings. Rather, reality is in fact real at every moment. Even if it is a simulation, it is a real simulation. Ha!

Still there are a differences between being a student and being a professional. The largest of which is found in the opportunity to fail afforded to students that professionals do not get to enjoy…at least not for very long. There exist other differences that make necessary a different term for each. So what to do?

I call the period of formal studies “student practice,” and the period after completing studies “professional practice.” The terms share the word “practice” which is true of both periods. Yet it draws the distinction that one is different than the other. Both practices are real!

While a student, we enjoy a scenario where we preserve the opportunity to fail. We do this by limiting the consequences for failure such that one can experience it without too much damage (relative to what might happen in professional practice). Education affords the opportunity to climb way out on a proverbial limb, hear it creek and crack and even snap, thus falling to the ground. And while failure could also mean poor marks on a project or assignment or exam, no one gets terminated for poor performance. Furthermore, there is often presented a pathway to recover from the failure. It is considered part of the learning process.

In professional practice on the other hand, failure means not getting the gig or contract; and not getting the work can lead to loss of livelihood—not only for the individual but for others under their employ. There is little to no preservation of the opportunity to fail. It happens in professional practice, and one can learn from it just as well. However, the consequence can be devastating to one’s practice. Notice that failure is a part of both student practice and professional practice. The main difference is the impact or consequences for each.

Therefore, insist that you are always participating in the real world, while at the same time affirming a difference between being in school to practice a profession, and then practicing it professionally. Use “student practice” and “professional practice” to mark the distinction leaving the reality of each in tact.