By Danielle Emeka
As I make my way through spring term with school and work, a small thought keeps creeping in —“summer is coming” and it’s in the air. As everyone rushes to the gym to make up for forgotten resolutions, I ponder my plans and what I’d like to do this summer.
An internship first came to mind. It’d be a chance to get some work experience in my desired field and possibly make some extra money. I found the online job site, Handshake, and it offers a great array of local opportunities for PSU students. Also the Career Fair is coming up on May 1st, giving one-on-one face time with employers looking to hire students and offer summer internships.
While keeping up on career opportunities is important, I also wonder if I’d be better off looking for ways to unwind this summer. I believe it’s important to have balance in my life and traveling is a way I find my equilibrium.
One travel option that I have for the summer is to stay with a friend in London. At first this seemed like an obvious decision — go overseas to visit and experience a new country! It’d be a great chance to travel on a budget and see a new place.
But I’ve also been thinking a lot about going back home to New York, and that thought is becoming too difficult to ignore. I plan on moving back to New York once I finish school, and suspect I’m feeling a little premature nostalgia taking over.
I find myself wondering what I’m looking for — a job to give me career knowledge, memories or new experiences?
On the one hand, I want to chase the comforts of home. I want to immerse myself in loud city noise, the subway, the hot summers with a heat so heavy and penetrating that it’s felt upon every breath. I want to wander museums full of history and then find peace in Central Park lying on the grass scrolling through the pages of a good book. I miss all of it.
Yet London is also tempting me. To leave the country and escape all the political weight that’s constantly on my mind and have an ocean of separation from all the stresses of life sounds enticing. The chance to explore a place in real life that I’ve only seen through a digital perspective so far.
But having a summer job related to my field would be great. A chance to exercise what I’ve learned in school and get a feel for the real world job market. I could even potentially gain some networking connections for future opportunities.
Although I wish I could do it all — work on my career and stay in Portland or spend time traveling and take a breath. I know the right decision will find me and take me where I’ll need to be.