Preparing to leave: What will I face?

Looking at graduation and realizing that it is going to be closer than I think scares me incredibly. I have so many doubts about myself and what I really have to offer others, because I have never been in the position in which I am not affiliated with a school. No longer will I be a student, but I will be a contributing member of society, and one who is ultimately held more responsible for their actions. I know that what I do have to offer, is at least the attempt with the very best intentions to help others. While I am not 100% sure of what all I am capable of, as I have not had to prove myself yet-- I do know that I will do everything in my power to help others.
There are a number of things that one will ultimately face as they enter the so called "real world". Oftentimes they may not be huge social issues on the whole scale of things, but they are there nonetheless. I feel sometimes like the narrator of The Invisible Man, invisible. Not for the same reasons as he however. I feel like people sometimes look at people our age as lazy, or not caring about things like they really do. They look at some of us with a stereotype without looking for the deeper story, they assume things about me and then draw their own conclusions. I have often found that me being a quiet, shy, female college student many people find me incapable of things and many times are later proven wrong. In internships or other volunteer work I have done, I have been told that when they initially met me they thought I was either a stupid sororitygirl or they assumed I was too selfish to volunteer and help anyone-- but after getting to know me, knew I was completely different.
I also find that I worry too much about what others think and sometimes that prevents me from doing what I truly think is right; I think that the wealthy man's son was right when he told the narrator that Blesdoe did him a favor by making all the wealthy men shun him-- for he could truly be free when he wasn't worried about their opinion. And like the narrator, I sometimes feel like I don't openly question things even when I know things are wrong the way they are, I am simply too afraid to voice my opinion for fear of the backlash. Obviously there are huge differences between he and I and what we have encountered; not only does he live in another region than I, he is a different gender, and race. Ultimately we may have some of the same thoughts or feelings, but the way in which the world views and approaches us will be different because of the stereotypes they have previously conceived.