10 Ways to Spend Your Summer Without an Internship

By Julia Stalnaker

In his 2012 commencement speech at the University of the Arts, author Neil Gaiman describes working towards your career goals as being like walking to “a distant mountain.” (The speech is incredible; if you haven’t yet, I really recommend reading and/or watching it.) Throughout his career, he says, his focus has simply been making sure he’s walking towards the mountain. The path towards it will likely be long, winding, and confusing. In fact, there will probably be many paths you could take to get there. This is all overwhelming, but you don’t need to focus on the twists and turns and which path looks most popular. All you need to do is make sure you’re headed towards the mountain. You’re likely feeling a lot of pressure to have an internship lined up that will be getting you way closer to your mountain this summer. If you’ve secured an internship, congrats! But if you haven’t, know that’s not the only way to stay on your path. Hell, there’s plenty of reasons to take a break and rest on your way. A pause might give you some energy back, bring you better tools, let you study your map, etc. Not having an internship doesn’t mean you have to walk away or fall behind, you still have opportunities to make ground or prepare for the terrain. These opportunities can be through your school, a job, or made yourself. They can be “productive,” or they can be restful. There’s plenty of ways to spend your summer, but if you’re without an internship and looking for some ideas, keep reading.

1.) Other work or volunteer experience Just because you don’t have an internship in your desired field doesn’t mean you can’t gain valuable experience in a work-type setting. Any sort of summer work or volunteer experience can teach you important lessons that you’ll take with you in your career, such as working in a team, communication, organization, leadership, time management, etc. And when you aren’t limited to one field, you’re free to choose a business/organization/etc. that interests you. If you can’t find work experience, you can create it for yourself. For example, if you find your portfolio is lacking you can give yourself assignments to generate work (or use a handy project generator, such as sharpen. design). Personal projects can make great portfolio pieces, and allow you to dictate the kind of work you want to present to potential clients.

2) Summer courses If you’re up for it, taking a summer course or two can help you get ahead on general education or degree requirements. This summer, there are many online course offerings you’ll be able to take no matter where you are. Summer courses are taken at a faster pace, which may be beneficial for classes you find tedious during ten-week courses and want to finish more quickly.

3.) Clean up shop This applies literally and figuratively. Literally, I know that a deep clean always makes me feel more clear-headed, and summer is when I have the most time to really take inventory and organize all my belongings. Figuratively, consider taking some time to polish your resume, portfolio, website, and/or social media presence. This way, you’ll be prepared when it’s time to send out job applications in the future.

4) Learn something new This can be related to your career goals or not. You can pick up some relevant skills through online certification programs, which can be found through universities or companies like Coursera and Google. Alternatively, you could learn a language, an instrument, or explore a new hobby for fun. Learning itself is a skill, and being a good learner will take you far in any career. Summer is a good time to flex this skill without the pressure of grades and while being able to choose your own subjects.

5) Travel and spend time outside Travel can be another way to learn something new, whether that’s learning about a new culture or place. It can give you the kind of perspective shift that’s necessary to grow as a person. Even if it does none of these things for you, it’s fun and exciting, which is much appreciated after a school year’s work.

We are still in a pandemic, and while things are starting to look better be mindful of regulations. Consider taking mostly day trips or even playing tourist in your own city.

6) Plan ahead Still deciding on your major, concentration, or a possible minor? Wondering how you’ll meet all your requirements? Figuring stuff like that out can take more time than you’d like to schedule into your busy school week, so try doing it during the summer! These plans don’t need to be super specific, even just a general idea of where you’re going will be helpful come next registration period.

7) Find a mentor Not only does it force you to practice your networking skills, but finding a mentor gives you a point of contact and insight into the workings of your desired industry. They can present you with invaluable information that comes from experience -- the kind you can’t get otherwise until you’re out of college yourself. This information can help you plan out your route to your mountain.

8) Learn about yourself You will always be the most important person in your life and the thing most worth learning about. You’re also the one that you’ll be walking all the way to the mountain with, so you might as well get to know yourself. This can mean getting to know how you work, what motivates you, or what you want to do post-college. Carve out the time to figure out what you truly want instead of just getting swept up in the expectations of others.

9) Spend time with loved ones Maybe you’re home for the summer after being on campus, or maybe now you finally have the time to spend quality time with the important people in your life. Make the most of this time; as the past year has taught us, our relationships are some of the most meaningful parts of our lives. It’s easy to get caught up in school and work, but to be healthy, balanced people we need to make time for loved ones.

10) Relax

Seriously! You deserve it all the time, but especially after a full year of zoom school and navigating a traditionally difficult time while social distancing. There is no shame in taking all the time off you need to rest. It can save you from burnout, and will help you gear up for in-person classes this fall.

Picture VIA Pinterest by Taryn Cumbo