29 Jul
Summer 2020 did not turn out the way we thought it would half a year ago. Travel plans are most likely cancelled, festivals are postponed and schools are closed or operate on strict limits. You’re also not supposed to hang out with friends too much, so basically you’re stuck at home.
However, this doesn’t mean you should be just lazing around and doing nothing. There are actually quite a few things you can do and activate yourself with and make of summer 2020 a very productive one!
We want to help you with that, so here are 7 ways to make the most of your summer time at home:
Rewire, debrief and make plans
Summer is the perfect time to rewind yourself from the past academic year. It is good for the brain to be able to distress and take it easy for a while, and this summer especially turned out to be perfect for that.
You’re not expected to leave the house and meet anyone face-to-face unless you want to, so make use of it and spend some quality me-time.
However, if you feel like accomplishing something on top, summer is the perfect time to rewire yourself in time for the upcoming fall and new term. Why not see if you can already plan the upcoming academic year in time to ensure you will also have time for yourself?
Embark on an online internship from home
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, many employers had to quickly facilitate remote work for everyone possible into a reality. It has been estimated that the nature of work has changed for good.
As remote working has been made more widely possible, there’s a growing number of people who wish to work remotely in the future according to surveying done by Salesforce Research.
So why not use this time to polish your skills in remote working? By interning remotely you get to learn valuable skills when it comes to remote working, but to also see if it is something you would want to continuously do in the future.
As remote internships tend to be project based, you don’t have to commit to full-time work if you don’t want to, but instead opt for a part-time virtual internship. This way you will get necessary experience for the future, and have time for yourself as well!
[5 Myths of Remote Internships]
Reconnect with your creative self
We encourage you to use this summer to work on your creative side!
Creativity helps you become a better problem solver by helping you to see things differently, but creativity can also be of help to develop your confidence.
If you’re familiar with the process of creating art, you know that failure is a part of it, and when you start seeing failure as something that is survivable, something that helps you to grow and make your work better, it will be easier to try new things even with the risk of failure.
This summer could be the perfect time to put your art supplies, writing utensils, instruments or dancing shoes into game. If you feel like you’re not very creative in the first place, join an online course and boost your resume!
Earn extra credit(s)
Earn yourself some extra credit. Was there a course you didn't quite excel on your last semester? Contact the professor and politely explain your wish to earn extra credit for their course. It’s best to have some ideas in mind, such as writing an extra essay or volunteering on a project.
If you don't need the extra credit or your professor didn't give you this opportunity, you can always either enroll for summer courses or alternatively volunteer in something you are interested in and have a great experience to add to your resume.
Polish your computer skills
As already mentioned, remote work and working virtually will grow in the future, so you may brush up your computer skills!
Learning extra skills rarely has any other than positive effects, so sign up for a course or find tutorials online. We recommend starting with Office and familiarizing yourself at least with Word, PowerPoint and Excel. Another great product of the Office family is OneNote, which is a great program for information gathering even via multi-user collaboration, to keep you organized.
Other useful programs and skills to handle depend quite a bit on your major and interests, so try finding out what are the ones used in your industry or maybe even your dream job. After finding out, you can master it and be on your way to be qualified for your dream job.
Learn a new language
According to research done by The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL), learning a new language has been proven to make you smarter, and while we’re at it, it also boosts your academic achievement.
When you communicate with someone else in their native language, you learn to develop a positive attitude towards the language and the culture, and thus you end up also gaining new social and intercultural skills.
Guess what the employers nowadays are also looking for? You got it - people with intercultural and language skills. Due to globalization, the working environments are easily multicultural. Go and sign up for a course or download an app for learning languages. We promise: some apps like Duolingo make learning a language fun and addictive!
Work on a personal project
Do you have a project you’ve wanted to work on for a long time, but just never had the time to invest time on it? This summer is finally the time to start with that digital portfolio to showcase your creativities, starting your own blog or even website. Maybe you have in mind to organize a volunteer event or film a video. All these ideas are a great extra to your resume. The hiring managers appreciate having a glimpse into your interests outside of grades and previous jobs!
