At school sometimes a week can fly by so fast that it feels like a day.  However, do not underestimate how long a week actually is, and what can be done during that time period.  Spring break may only be a little over seven days, but that is enough to throw you out of your groove.  Settling back in to courses and schedules can be a pretty big adjustment, even though our time away was technically short.

Where you are in your job search might have influenced how you treated your time off.  For me personally, I have not heard back from many places that I applied to, so I could not fully unplug.  However, I was not completely on top of my game either.  I checked my email every day for internship news and did my homework, but I dedicated most of my time during break to the purpose of taking an actual break.  Sometimes you need it, which is why we have it.  However, now that we are back in school, it is like I was never gone.

I heard back from two of the one dozen internships I applied to over break, and unfortunately did not move on in their hiring process, but that is not stopping me.  I hopped on to LinkedIn and Handshake the first night back on campus and set up a system.  I researched and selected several jobs from each site and moved each to their own tab.  I like to organize them by paid or non-paid, location, due date, and qualifications.  That way I can organize the order that I apply to them in based on how I should tailor my resume and when I should complete each one.  This is a very helpful strategy, at least for myself, because when we are dealing with school work and extracurriculars on top of job searching, we need all of the organization we can get.

I plan on applying to my new list over the course of the week.  There is something about filling out an organized schedule for my week and its workload that makes me feel like I am way more in control of my life than I probably am.

Speaking of managing time, I recently got a peer leader position for the Body Project Collaborative on campus.  I am very excited to start leading workshops, but first must go through a training course.  The course is all day Saturday and Sunday, meaning I am going to have to find time for homework.  I plan on dedicating all of Friday, as I do not have class, to completing as much homework as I can in order to prevent a stressful Sunday night.

I am passionate about social topics such as the media’s influence on body image and gender norms; I know I will enjoy facilitating Body Project workshops and developing my leadership skills.  Another plus side to getting the position is updating my resume, an activity that I always have fun with.  Adding experience always gives me a little boost of confidence.

Overall, getting back from spring break and settling into my routine once again has been fulfilling.  I am excited to get back to work and hopefully will receive some good news from internships within the next couple of weeks.