Category Archives: Jing

Tentative (but pretty much decided) summer plans

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Confession: I only applied to one summer internship program at a battered women shelter. I’m waiting for them to pencil me in, so to speak, for an interview sometime this month.

Happy related confession: Although the internship has not been officially secured (eek fingers crossed) I’ve been talking with the people who work there and it is confirmed that I will be working with them one way or another over the summer and very possibly beyond.

If I’m honest, which I’m trying really hard to be, the reason that I didn’t apply for more internships is because I really didn’t want to. I just hate filling out applications, waiting for responses, and composing formals emails. But, mostly, I hate the filling out apps part. It takes so much time and effort to package and present myself in metaphorical glitter, ribbons, and scented paper in an effort to be the most appealing candidate. Just, uugghhh. Obviously, I’m going to have to deal with it because they are as inevitable and as undesirable as taxes. But in all seriousness, I went through over 300 internships on The Gateway and most of them just didn’t feel quite…right. Props to everyone who did find and got really awesome internships that way, seriously, it’s impressive. For me though, I couldn’t shake my amplified aversion to applications this semester. Just as an explanation to why I applied to that one internship: Part of it was due to very personal reasons. The other part is that what they do there is important and necessary, the values that they stand for are values that I believe in and care deeply about, and that the community they serve is my community.

Okay, now that my dislike for applications is off my chest, the other part of my decision to not apply to more internships is that I wanted to start my own hands-on project that would have tangible effects. I mean the point of paying a ridiculous amount of money for a liberal arts education is kinda so that the things I learn here are going to be applied in real ways out there. So the specifics: I’m going to start a radio, or podcast, program specifically for showcasing the fictional, nonfictional, and everything in between works of the women who are or were incarcerated. This project was inspired by my Core II class on the prison system during which we had the amazing opportunity to participate in a writing workshop with the women at the women’s prison in Chino. Attending the writing workshops, meeting the women, and hearing their stories really got to me. Theory never takes precedence over experiences and their experiences told stories of strength, suffering, courage, and hope. Serious work needs to be done to reverse the dehumanization of people who are or have been incarcerated. They are so much more complex, more genuine, more talented, more thoughtful, more insightful, more resourceful, just so much more than an identifier heavy with stigmas such as “prisoner” can ever convey. I am very excited to be able to serve as a medium through whom their authentic voices can be amplified, spread, and most importantly heard by more people.

There are obvious perks that come with starting my own project. Some things that come to mind include the autonomy over my own work, the exciting (and equally scary) process of learning from doing, the rewarding results, the interactions with real people instead of ideas, and the working in PJs in the comfort of my own bed with the glorious Cali sunrise. (I’m a true early bird especially over the summer.) Also, no applications needed.

Why I am majoring in philosophy

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I am a philosophy major. I entered college knowing that I want to major in philosophy and the courses I’ve taken in the past academic year have solidified that decision. The question that very understandably follows is some variation of “WHY?” to varying degrees of politeness. Some people ask with curiosity which I appreciate and others ask with an audible scoff (umm rude). If I got a flex dollar every time I’ve been asked why I’m majoring in philosophy I seriously will not run out of flex for the rest of my college career, or the rest of my life actually. Just as a preface, I don’t try to convince people to major in philosophy because it’s not going to be the right choice for many. I do, however, try to open people up to the major as an option to consider or at least to taking a philosophy class.

So why am I a philosophy major? I feel like the question of why I’m a philosophy major is generally presented in such a way that is really implicitly asking what the heck I’m going to do with a philosophy major in the world ‘out there’ in terms of career options (as opposed to why I, personally, want to major in it). In other words, people are really asking, “What are you going to do with degree in it?”. I will answer this question by addressing the most common concerns.

Concern #1: The subject is just not relevant to everyday life because it is a bunch of theory.

Firstly, yeah there is theory involved but why assume that theory is irrelevant to life? Just for funsies, go on Wikipedia, go to a random article, click on the first hyperlinked word, do this a couple of times, and you’ll land on an article that has something to do with philosophy. Also, philosophy is directly relevant to everyday life in that it encourages people to literally questions everyday life raising questions such as what does it mean to live a good life, under what conditions are beliefs justified, what is the ethical thing to do.

Secondly, philosophy hones in its students the ability to write, think, criticize, and make good arguments about anything and everything. You learn to question assumptions, find weaknesses in arguments, think (almost automatically) of implications, and construct good arguments. The ability to analyze information and proposals in a critical and systematic way is incredibly applicable to fields including but not limited to politics, interpersonal relationships, business proposals, art critiques, big and small life decisions, EVERYTHING.

Concern #2: Okay but what can you do with a philosophy major besides being a professor or a philosopher by trade?

In short, you can do anything you want with it and I mean anything. Popular options include: lawyer, author, politicians, and journalism. Here is a comprehensive list of famous people in various fields who are philosophy majors.

The transferable skills such as communicating clearly, verbally and in written form, analyzing data, deconstructing arguments, and making good arguments are marketable and highly desirable. Rachel Maddow commented in her speech at Stanford that for her to be able to make an impact on the world she “needed to know how to convince others and how to make good arguments” and that she needs “people who are good at explaining facts, who are good at editing, and who can visualize things in creative ways. We need good artists and we need good writers”.

Personally, I’m going into social justice work but the major is open ended enough so that you literally can make what you want of it.

Concern #3: Money. What about the money? How are you going to make money with that?

Philosophy majors have the highest starting and mid-career median salaries of any of the humanities. I’m just gonna leave this here. Check it out, it’s actually kind of exciting.

In addition to all that, on a more personal note, the subject is just so interesting. It’s a super rewarding experience to interact intimately with an argument and have something to say with regards to the it. I make decisions, interact with reading materials in all of my other classes, and approach essays differently now. Philosophy classes challenges the way I think, my assumptions, and previously held beliefs. At the end of the day, yeah the skill set is great and yeah the job prospects look pretty good but, for me, I’m really majoring in it because the subject is just fun and I like it. Yeah, sometimes it gets to be really difficult *cough final papers and long complicated readings* but it’s so worth it.

Want more reading material? Take your pick.

In a New Generation of College Students, Many Opt for the Life Examined

Philosophers Find the Degree Pays Off in Life And in Work

Best Majors for GRE Scores: Still Physics and Philosophy

MUTUAL FUNDS REPORT: To Beat the Market, Hire a Philosopher; Bill Miller Rethinks Value, and Keeps Thumping the S. & P.

Verbal vs. mathematical aptitude in academics

Is Philosophy the Most Practical Major?

I think, therefore I earn

Learn Philosophy: The classic discipline can help with contemporary dilemmas and modern careers

Philosophy is Back in Business

Why does PPE rule Britain?

 

Asking for help is good. Seriously.

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This is not going to be a happy post about how everything is coming along swimmingly but I promise it does end on a positive note. I really tried to write many other things pertinent to my career development process but I gave up after deleting draft after draft. The truth is that last week was a really rough week. I was on a military schedule planning my life in 30 minute intervals,  wore old, tattered sweatshirts twice (to my fashionable friends’ dismay), and squeezed in my reading in between classes. I was so very tired of people but I couldn’t stand to be alone. I didn’t want to talk but I wanted people to understand. I truly appreciate realness and people who tell it as it is and one of my goals is to do that for all the readers of the blog so here’s me keeping it real.

The workload cranked into a higher gear this week, from very manageable to manageable only with considerable discipline, which naturally is correlated with my (ever)rising stress levels. That alone would’ve been okay. However, in combination with emotional ups and downs it was tough. Tidbit about self: sensitive to inner turmoil, acutely aware of emotional states both mine and others. Last week, my productivity took a dive.

Second tidbit about self: I have a hard time reaching out for help. For me, I don’t feel shameful or helpless when I ask for help. I just feel vulnerable and vulnerability is just a tiny, weenie bit terrifying. But as my awesome luck would have it I literally just blurted out that I needed help to my close friend. After a long talk over yummy food, a prerequisite for talking life, I felt so much better about everything.  My friends and classmates really came through for me and–wow–that felt good. Ask for help, seriously. Lesson learned.

So after one of the best Fridays I’ve ever had this year I feel rejuvenated and motivated once again to be productive and to take care of myself. As a matter of fact, I’m in the process of reaching out to a couple of alumnae to talk about yet another possible internship this summer. Concise and professional networking emails here I come. I found their information via Life Connections, a database of Scripps alums who put information about their major, jobs, and contact information on the site practically volunteering to be a resource to Scripps students.  Psss, it’s found in your Scripps portal below the student accounts link to the left.

Knowing what I know about the Scripps community, I’m pretty confident that this too will come through. Besides, being comfortable with asking for help and advice is quite a good thing.

 

The milestone of the first offical cover letter

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Exactly two minutes ago I submitted my internship application to a nonprofit focused on supporting individuals who may be facing domestic violence in Asian and Pacific Islander communities. I’d have to say, to my utter surprise, the entire process was relatively smooth sailing despite the fact that this is the first cover letter I’ve ever written and that my resume has been gathering dust in the neglected “other” folder for the last 6 months.

I found out about the organization through the non-profit fair at Pitzer which I attended on a whim. (Note to self and anyone else who may benefit: read up on CP&R’s networking section before going to networking events. Seriously. I had a oh-my-gah this would’ve been so useful an hour ago moment. But anyways I know better now.)

On the same day, I went to CP&R to pull my resume together which involved producing massive chunks of text about the things I’ve done. I came out with a juicy Chipotle-sized burrito resume which I was then instructed to polish and format. There are three things that I really loved about the burrito resume:

1. the sheer size of it was like a nod of acknowledgment to the fact that I did do things with my life. Very validating.

2. it provides more than enough material for constructing a polished resume.

3. filling out applications to other programs that ask for a more detailed account of your experiences? Open up the burrito resume, copy appropriate material, paste on to new document, edit as need, stick a fork in it and you’re done. Boom. Real talk: how much easier could it get?

I had a much harder time with the cover letter partly because I’m not familiar with it and partly because I felt justified in putting it off due to the ever rising number of essays I have to do but haven’t started.

Also, this was tempting.

But thankfully, the marvelous Lesley Bonds from CP&R set me on the right path by  guiding me oh-so-patiently with how to write a cover letter. It was particularly helpful for me, as a philosophy major, to think of the cover letter as  an argument with a set of premises that lead the employer to the obvious conclusion that I am the best candidate. This is the distilled version of what I did.

Begin by giving some context to the argument; aka how I learned about the position.

The first paragraph = premise 1: Your organization works toward ____, values_____, needs_____.

The second paragraph = premise 2: Given my passions, experiences, and abilities, I can help advance your mission, uphold your values, and provide what you need and what you might have not have known you needed.

Given premise 1 & 2, the logical conclusion: I am obviously a great candidate, I can do the job and do it well, and therefore it would be rational for you to hire me.The implicit assumption is that you are going to hire the most capable candidate with the most relevant experiences whose values align with those of your organization.

The whoosh of outgoing mail was the sound of finality and carried away with it my application and hopes that I will land the position.

Now comes the thumb-twiddling period of waiting for a reply from my number one choice of internship over the summer. But hey, I have successfully reached the milestone of the first cover letter on the road of career building and doing so has helped to reduce some of my anxiety that shrouds thoughts about future careers.