<p>Specifically the summer after freshman year. And by "staying active," I mean working jobs/internships or taking summer courses.</p>
<p>P.S. I forgot to mention that I'm currently in college.</p>
<p>Well, what else would you be doing?</p>
<p>Just taking advantage of my last opportunity to do absolutely nothing.</p>
<p>“You could do absolutely nothing while doing that summer internship/job,” he said, but in a patronizing tone.</p>
<p>I know it’s hard to find jobs, but I really think doing nothing is a bad idea. Even if you can’t find the ideal internship, you should be able to do something worthwhile. If nothing else there’s a presidential campaign going on.</p>
<p>You might want to read some of the stories about 1 in 2 graduate without a job. Those getting jobs have work history, proven work ethic, good references, etc. You will be competing with people that didn’t take the summer off. It is your choice but you are not a kid anymore.
It may be too late to get any meaningful work, but I am a big believer that any job experience can be valuable. At least consider volunteering, if only to give back. I am assuming you don’t contribute financially to your education or living expenses. Maybe part of your “doing nothing” could involve doing something for your parents, like refinishing a deck or painting/handiwork.</p>
<p>If you want to go to 95% of US schools, then you don’t have to do anything. If you want to go to the top 5%, then you should be doing something. </p>
<p>Keep in mind that competitive internships build on your resume from past years. You might not be able to get an internship this year, but getting a job or taking a CC class you are interested in will help you get the competitive internships later as well as help your college app.</p>
<p>mathmom, that is an excellent suggestion. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, since the OP will be out in the real world in the next 4 years. I know my hs senior will be knocking on doors.</p>
<p>I’m already really involved with student media and clubs during the school year, so I’m not terribly lacking in extracurricular activities.
If I were to stay at home and do nothing this summer, it would be an exception. I plan on doing internships with broadcasting companies/local newspapers in the coming years.</p>
<p>Unless you’re already paying for all of your college and living expenses you should get a job and earn money to pay for yourself if you’re not doing anything else productive. And if you’re just kicking back in your room killing time while your mom and dad are working and taking care of the house then I’m sure you can see an issue with that. A job will help you in a number of ways including having responsibility, understanding how a company functions, how to deal with coworkers/bosses/customers, and you can earn money to boot. It also will look good on your resume when you’re seeking a job after graduating. Have you ever had a job?</p>
<p>I said ‘should’ - not ‘absolutely necessary’ depending on family dynamics and finances but then it’s not ‘absolutely necessary’ for you to go to college either. </p>
<p>I expect you knew the answers you’d get here.</p>
<p>Some of my best nothing was had while traveling to different cities on internship. But maybe you want to spend more time with your family and your familiar home space. Those may be moments that will likely no longer exist in the coming years.</p>
<p>I can continue doing “meaningful” work over the summer on campus (I’m a staff writer for my school’s newspaper, a radio DJ and cartoonist. I would also be able to work at the school library), but the main thing that concerns me is the cost of housing and tuition for the summer semester. In order for me to complete these activities, my parents (well, my custodial parent) would have to pay thousands.</p>
<p>On the other hand, I can stay at home and work a crappy, minimum-wage job.</p>
<p>Hmmm, well, what are the advantages of the summer course, over cash flow, over new experiences from an internship for your prospective discipline of study.</p>
<p>Assuming an internship is well-organized, the internship offers greatest exposure to new experiences relevant to studies. Summer courses are still “canned” learning, plus the cost, like you said. The crappy job is cash on hand, but maybe the time spent is better spent on experiencing things that can make the coming college year more meaningful.</p>
<p>That crappy, minimum wage job will still look better than doing nothing. Start a blog, organize a TED event, teach a cartooning class at a youth center. You will still have plenty of time to hang out. </p>
<p>If you are worried about your parent spending thousands, then it sounds like you could always help out by using that crappy minimum wage job to pay for some expenses as a sophomore and to look for opportunities for next year earlier. </p>
<p>Again, you are aleady behind your peers if you do nothing.</p>
<p>My custodial parent is already guilt-tripping the hell out of me for considering summer courses and housing. I don’t think she really cares about the work experience I could gain on campus; she’s more concerned about expenses (understandably).</p>
<p>I doubt those extra courses on my transcript will have much bearing on my academic credentials–I just wanted an excuse to keep busy on campus. If this is too expensive, I don’t think there’s much of a difference between working at a library at school and working at a local animal shelter.</p>
<p>If you guys really think a minimum-wage job could help me gain internships in the coming years, then I’ll definitely consider it.</p>
<p>Your internships would be communications-related internships? It seems like a job in an unrelated field wouldn’t affect your chances of selection. Although, working in an animal shelter looks good, and can give you material for cartooning. An entrepreneurial spirit could even film and host a weekly “Adopt a Pet” on a community TV network – sort of a “make your own internship” deal that benefits your work site, you, the TV station, the community, and animals.</p>
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<p>If you don’t need the academic credits, what’s the argument against a summer job on campus instead of summer classes? There are probably positions as tour guides, in the libraries, in the dining halls, and some offices might need administrative assistants too. At my undergraduate college, all student employees were eligible for on-campus housing and several of the “big” employers even paid for housing.</p>
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If that’s all you can get then you should do it. They still pay money and you wouldn’t have the undue expenses.</p>
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It can help you gain internships as well as a regular job when you’re done. All of the experience helps.</p>
<p>Have you ever had a normal job?</p>
<p>Why don’t you 1) find an interesting charity near home that you can volunteer your media/communications skills and 2) find a job in a restaurant which is a great way to sharpen your people skills (and would also help you develop empathy with other people in “crappy” jobs. Later, once you turn 21, you will always be able to get part-time or temporary work as a waiter or bartender if you want to earn a few extra bucks while looking for a full-time job or to earn money for travelling.</p>
<p>When I say a job is crappy, I don’t mean that it’s lowly or beneath me–I’m just trying to say that it doesn’t carry a lot of meaning for me, or that it has little to do with my academic/career interests (aside from the development of people skills, I guess). </p>
<p>I’d rather not commute to campus on a regular basis just to work at a library or an administrative office. It’s quite a drive, and I’m sure I can find similar work in/around my suburb.</p>