As I grew older, I expanded my professional resume with retail positions, internships and jobs geared towards my career interests. I came out of college and now have a full-time job (and this super fun writing gig to keep me sane on the side) and am working towards getting the things I want for myself in life.

I consider myself – and many women just like me – to be a part of something new: the New Generation of 20-Something Women. No more relying on a man to determine financial status, stability or success; we are independent and have our own individual goals. Our own plans. Our fate in our hands.

Growing up, I learned that if you want something, you need to rely on yourself to get it and not someone else. I am taking that theory into account and notice that more females these days are too. Years ago, women were expected to find a man, get married, have children and keep the household. Rather than growing up and looking for our Mrs., 20-something women today are looking for a job, life experiences, travel and, most importantly, a life for themselves.

It’s not only the man now-a-days that needs a woman to sign a pre-nup when they get married. Meaning, more women are creating their own success as individuals, before solidifying their life with a man. These women are more realistic to the facts that 50% of marriages end in divorce and, if you want to enjoy your life, you have to rely on yourself first and foremost. Are you with me ladies?

More and more women are coming out of college and getting great jobs (albeit, men are doing the same, not trying to bash you boys, just pointing out our pattern), rather than heading straight to getting a great man. If you can have both, like my lucky self, then you’ve got two great ends of the spectrum. But my point here is that women can have both. And women are starting to realize it and put their own wants and needs first. And I quite like that.

Are you one of these success-driven females? What’s your driving force behind your goals?

[Photo courtesy of LogoKey]

Your dream has finally come true. You’ve made it into a private college, you’re paying upwards of $50,000 per year for your education, and you’ve just met the man of your dreams- a wealthy and intelligent man, who you plan to marry upon graduation. Congratulations, you have just been awarded your very own ‘MRS‘ degree… and will never have to work again!

Possible holders of an MRS degree (pronounced EM-AR-ES) are women who attend college just to meet potential husbands with high social standing and future earning potential.

This phenomenon, which occurs predominantly at private Christian institutions, has turned America’s ‘Bible colleges’ into ‘bridal colleges’. On these campuses, engagement is not only an eagerly awaited (and accepted) part of a relationship, but marriage is often promoted and planned around graduation.

“I don’t care how young I am. I love my boyfriend and I know we will get married and start a family when I graduate,” says one eager Baylor University female. “Never having to work – that’s just fine with me.”

Conversely, this push to wed is in opposition to the values taught at many large public universities, which promote female students’ independence and career planning.

“I find it completely unattractive,” says Ryan Bruels, a recent graduate from the University of Colorado. “One of the most important things to me is that my wife has a passion for something- not just becoming a breeder.”

Bruels’ perspective may be shared by others, but the times speak otherwise. Many students in relationships push the envelope by exchanging ‘promise rings,‘ symbols of an engagement soon to come. Sororties , for example, add to the marriage madness with caqndle ceremonies pronouncing the engagement of a fellow member – typically, by lighting a candle and passing it around the room until the newly engaged sister blows it out and the describes in detail ‘how he proposed.”

And these wedlock-bound coeds have even taken to the internet. Hundreds of Facebook users have created groups in support of the MRS cause. Student-led groups range from the ‘Future Homemakers Club‘ to one called ‘College is my Backup to Becoming a Trophy Wife!’

One group in particular, entitled ‘I Don’t Really Care as Long as He Has a Trust Fund,’ describes its membership this way:

“We know men want sexy, but they also need someone sophisticated enough to take home to Mama… Heck, he’ll be graduation soon, and if he already has, then you’re only a few steps closer to the day you are both driving Beamers and Benzes.”

Although independence and career goals for women are now accepted on college campuses, evidence still exists of women going the old-fashioned route: investing their money in pursuing a future lifestyle rather than in an academic conquest.

You have the ring on your finger and the diploma in your hand. The future is up to you.