The summer. A time of being exam free, where lying down all day in the sun and drinking a cider at 11am seems perfectly acceptable and where short-shorts make their repeated dreaded appearance. Either way, it is meant to be our time to relax.
Well, that’s wrong… and I shall explain why.
Having recently taken up a two week internship slot to work with Poet in the City, a charitable organisation that seek to bring new audiences to poetry events across London, I’ve suddenly seen the light in terms of using my spare time to get whatever experience I can for the future. Gone are my days of staying in bed until beyond midday, I am rid of the times when wearing my pyjamas all day was a reasonable response to rainy weather. I am now an early-bird riser on their laptop throughout the day looking up opportunities to improve my CV and employability skills for when I graduate, when I’m not working a shift for one of my many employers, that is.
And yes, the idea of graduation seems ages away, but when you are stuck in that way of thinking, you’ll fail to notice the time slipping by, and before you know it, you’ll be deciding which footwear goes best with the cap and gown.
Now, don’t panic, you probably do still have some time before you are pushed over the cliff into the depths of the real world, but within our own small bubble of a campus there are some fantastic opportunities that you should maximise.
Despite this being my second year at Royal Holloway, I have only ever stepped inside the Careers room once and still, that was only a few weeks ago, but I could not recommend more to you their incredible services which have helped me to get the experience in a career that I yearn to be a part of. With upcoming events such as how to use LinkedIn to your advantage, networking opportunities and showcasing your CVs and applications to make the best out of your skill set, they really have the vital expertise that we need.
Better yet, certain departments offer internships and work experience schemes using their own personal connections that will suit what you want to do, not just place you somewhere making tea and coffee in an office for the masses (unless that’s what you want to do, then by all means stir away!).
So go on, get out of bed, shower and get dressed to start handing out those CVs, emailing those companies and updating your online personal statement. It’s time to use all that free time to the best of your advantage because who knows? You may even be offered your dream job out of it.
As for my two weeks of work experience, I am yet to make anyone a cup of tea.