Students blog

So, you’ve spent the last couple of months working and studying and your midterms and finals are finally over. You now have all this extra free time and don’t know what to do with it. Well, as an expert in feeling completely lost after school ends, let me help guide you on what you should do over winter break to help you 1) prepare for next semester 2) have fun while staying safe during COVID-19!

Actually Take Time Off

First, take a few days off. Don’t jump right into your work! You just worked your butt off studying for finals and you deserve a couple of days off. Use this time to destress, sleep, binge all the shows you weren’t able to, and generally relax.

Though COVID-19 has made going out and having some semblance of a normal life very difficult, there are still some things you can enjoy safely. First, you can always cozy up in your fuzzy socks and blanket to watch a good Christmas movie. I recommend The Santa Clause– it’s a classic. If your friends are also on break, I recommend hopping on a Zoom call with them and watching the movie together. Although many of us can’t physically be in the same room, small things like this make a huge difference.

Spend Time with Friends

Next, I’d recommend scheduling time to catch up with your friends. It’s often easy to get caught up in your own world and now that everything is online, it’s even harder to connect with people. You don’t run into people randomly in the dining hall, so we have to make a conscious effort to reach out to people. Don’t be afraid to message someone you were in a group project with or even someone who you talked to in a breakout room! You never know where the best friendships could arise.

Getting Back to Work

After those few weeks, you may start feeling restless. I know I always get bored very quickly whenever I’m on break. Use this as motivation to get back to work. I know many of us are looking for summer internships and this is the perfect time to prepare. Get your LinkedIn ready, scour Google for contacts or positions to apply to, and if you’re just a freshman, don’t be afraid to work at a local company or organization. Any experience is better than no experience. And with COVID-19, job hunting virtually has been made easier than ever. Don’t be afraid to cold email or message people on LinkedIn about your interest in their position or company!

Next, try to stay on a somewhat consistent schedule and maybe start learning again. It doesn’t have to be linear algebra or biochemistry, but it never hurts to stay informed and educate yourself. I recommend finding some podcasts to listen to when doing your morning or night routine.

If you want to be extra prepared for the upcoming school year, try to find the syllabus for your classes and get ahead on readings, or the topic in general. This is going to make the future you very grateful and happy.

Before you know it, you’ll be ending your break and going back to school soon. Hopefully, you found this guide helpful and will be ready and energized to tackle the spring semester!

Pearson Students: What is your favorite thing to do over break?

We all know how difficult it is to get an internship. Most times, you need job experience before even getting your first job and this standard has only increased. To add on, COVID-19 has made internship hunting harder: no coffee chats, in-person recruiting events, and many companies can’t even afford to hire. However, COVID has also allowed us to work from anywhere. After going through the recruiting process myself, I’ve gained some experience that I feel can help you maximize your time and get an internship when you feel like it’s impossible. Keep reading to find out!

My Background

For reference (and ethos), I had a consulting and small banking internship two years ago and had the opportunity to attend some small conferences. Currently, I’m interning at an investment banking firm. I received neither of these opportunities through traditional resume dropping or online applications. With all this being said, I hope the advice I give in the rest of this blog holds some merit.

Build a Network

The single most important thing you can do to help you stand out from other candidates in lieu of in-person career fairs is building your network. Since you won’t be able to talk to recruiters in person and Zoom fatigue gets even the best of us, you have to take things into your own hands to, basically, create a career fair of your own.

Firstly, NETWORK. NETWORK. NETWORK. And did I mention network? Utilize your connections and if you don’t have connections… find some! Simply searching “[school name] [company] LinkedIn” into google will give you at least 10 connections to reach out to. However, don’t just rely on LinkedIn (most professionals won’t check it often). Instead, try to find the email format of companies. The most common ones are firstname.lastname@company.com and firstinitiallastname@company.com which can usually be found in SEC filings. Next, draft up an interesting, but short, introduction email asking for a short phone or Zoom call. This builds a more personal connection and they now know what you sound like!

Make an Impression

Now, what do you say on the actual phone call? After briefly introducing yourself, give a quick elevator pitch (no more than 1-2 mins) as to why you’re interested in the field and why you want to talk to this person specifically. After that, try to let the conversation flow naturally and ask good questions. Besides the obvious, sometimes even “what’s your day-to-day like” or “why do you want to work at [company]” are a little generic. Instead, ask about specific projects that are happening within the company. Did your contact just publish something? Ask questions that prove you’re genuinely interested.

Ask for Referrals

Lastly (and this is the most important part), ask “is there anyone else at your company that you think I could benefit from talking to?” This way, your network doesn’t stop here, and you can use this person as a referral for the next. It’s like making your way up to the boss level in a video game. If they say yes, great, reach out to the person they recommend or wait to be referred. If they say no, then no worries, on to the next; there are 10,001 more people to reach out to.

Now, you have a whole long list of people to refer to in your interview; people to vouch for you and flag your resume for interviews and mentors to help guide you through the rest of the recruiting process. COVID-19 era job hunting is going to be difficult but keep pushing and something will come from your efforts!

Pearson Students: How did you land your first internship? Share in the comments below!

It’s the second half of the semester. Mid-term season just ended and for many of us with a shortened semester, finals are right around the corner. With extracurriculars, job hunting, studying for interviews, and actually interviewing, it’s tough to avoid feelings of burnout. However, you need to remember that you’ve got this! A few more weeks and you’ll be on break so keep pushing! Check out PCA Christy’s vlog to learn about things she’s doing to avoid burnout.

We all know this semester is going be a little hectic and crazy but I’m going to try and focus on the things that I can control! Click on the link below to check out my vlog on three ways I’m getting organized for the first week of online classes!