Tag Archives: applications

The Intersecting Paths of Opportunity

Posted on by
Reply

Does every job and position you hear about sound interesting and fun this semester? Do you find yourself attending every info session you can get your hands on? Have you made plans for summer internships three years from now? Are you ignoring the possibility of overextending yourself and being stressed out of your mind?

Congratulations! You have finally returned back to Scripps College!

In my case, I am returning back from studying abroad in Osaka, Japan during the fall 2013 semester. While I truly loved my time abroad, I really did miss being a part of the Scripps community. It feels like so many things happened here without me, like a group of friends who all bonded around an inside joke — for which I missed its creation. Perhaps that’s why I’m applying to so many things this semester, because this is my way of coping. It reconfirms for me that I am present here in Claremont and that there are aspects of this college that depend on my interests and my decisions. I’ve felt so detached from Scripps recently that the only way to get that connection back is to try to participate in anything and everything, all of the things I dreamed of accomplishing while I’m in here.

Now I’m not saying that I am simply applying everywhere for the sake of overextending myself; every single position to which I’m applying sounds like an incredible and amazing opportunity. They are all extremely varied and range from volunteer positions at local hospitals (something you’ll probably hear a lot more about from me as the semester goes on) to on-campus leadership positions that will aid me in becoming re-engrained in campus life. But this doesn’t change the fact that, since I’ve been back on campus, I seem to consciously realize how little time I have left. Scripps has provided me with so many amazing opportunities and experiences and I guess I’m just trying to grab up as many as I can before I am forced to graduate.  I hope that we can explore all of the opportunities this rising senior has throughout the semester!

 

Application Time Part II: Procrastination

Posted on by
Reply

So, you know that post Emma wrote back in November about how it’s application time? This is Part II. Because yes, I did turn one application in that week and then proceeded to procrastinate on the rest of them. I told myself that I had exams to study for and papers to write. (And to be honest, Netflix to watch…) I told myself they’d get done over winter break. Yet as soon as winter break came around I had to spend time with family and friends and read the books that I’ve been meaning to read! (Annnnd watch some Netflix…)

But now it’s February and I’m running out of excuses. So I’m going to procrastinate by writing a blog post to help YOU to stop procrastinating, and maybe I’ll get inspired as well.

We’re going to make a toolkit! (Using several tips I learned at the Time Management Workshop hosted by CP&R as part of the Emerging Professionals Program.)

What you need:

Motivation!

  • Think about what you’re applying for and why! If it’s something you’re passionate about, that might make you excited to start your search for the perfect job or fill out the applications that will secure it.
  • If the prospect of the job itself doesn’t motivate you, try rewarding yourself after. If you filled out two applications, then you can spend a half hour on Facebook. After you hit “submit,” you definitely deserve a night of Netflix.

Information!

  • Google is every college student’s best friend. Google information about the field you’re looking to go into. You can find prominent companies or positions in that field. You can also find general descriptions of your ideal job so you know what you’re working towards!
  • If that seems like it requires a little too much effort or you’re not sure where to start, make an appointment at CP&R! My first appointment helped me so much. I learned how to look for jobs on ClaremontConnect, find Scrippsie Alums through Life Connections, and how to make my resume look like I’ve actually done something. (#undergradlife)

Application! (Had to keep with the –ation theme.)
Now you just have to do it and this is where the time management comes in, but thanks to the workshop I have a few quick fixes for that!

  • Do applications stay at the bottom of your to-do list in lieu of this week’s reading? (And this week’s episode of Sherlock?)
    • Try using the site “Remember the Milk” or download the app “Remember the Milk”. (It’s free!) You can (and should!) set due dates for each task, and the app will send you notifications or emails about what tasks you need to complete today. This way you can’t keep all your applications at the bottom!
  • Do you not know your schedule well enough to know when you could have you “Remember the Milk” tasks be due?
    • Try taking a closer look at what you’re doing each day with either of the worksheets attached below. If scrolling through Tumblr takes the 5pm-7pm slot three nights a week, maybe one or two of those slots could go to applications!


  • Do you automatically type “facebook.com” every time you open a new window in your browser and get stuck scrolling through your newsfeed instead of opening the application you intended to turn in?

Now stop reading the blog and START APPLYING!!! Right now. 

No. Don’t open Facebook in a new tab.

 

Tentative (but pretty much decided) summer plans

Posted on by
Reply

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.