It's so easy to get caught up in the pressures of college. There are people reminding you of every one of your responsibilities, professors, advisors, friends (who don't always even know they're doing it). I have a feeling these five things may be beneficial for other people too though, not just myself. Just remember it's OK. Things will be OK.
1. It’s OK not to have an internship the summer after sophomore year.
Speaking as someone who is currently a sophomore, about to finish the school year and enter into the summer months, the pressure is so real. Everywhere you look people are applying, getting or searching for internships. As juniors or seniors, sure, an internship is really important in the job hunt, but as sophomores? Ease up a little, it’s not the end of the world if you spend one more summer without the burden of the real world. It’s OK if you spend one more summer working at your local convenience store, a boutique, a fitness center or whatever other low-wage job that’s available. Or, use the summer to find something that’s actually interesting for you to talk about in an interview. Take a Habitat for Humanity trip to volunteer in Thailand, take art classes and build a portfolio, read a thought-provoking book.
2. It’s OK to go on spring break with your parents.
I just did it and it was awesome. Some people get their break by surrounding themselves with friends and getting “turnt” but others, like myself, get relief from time alone. And… I’m betting your parents can afford a nicer beach house than you can.
3. It’s OK to have no idea what you’re doing with your life.
I know people say this all the time and they tell you that your major doesn’t really matter unless you want to be the next surgeon general or something, then I’m thinking you might not want to be an art history major. But in all seriousness, it’s so easy to forget this when you’re surrounded by people who claim they already know what firm they want to work for the day they graduate. It’s cool. Move back in with your for a couple months after school. Get an internship after graduation. You have all the time in the world to figure it out… kind of.
4. It’s OK to take a night off.
I know some people have no problem taking every night of the week off, but this is for the people who feel guilty when they’re not doing work because they feel like there’s something they need to be doing. I’m letting you people know right now, I feel you. I’m not saying go out and drink your brains out but take a break, watch a movie. The world’s not going to end.
5. It’s OK to take a class and not get an A.
GPA GPA GPA — blah blah blah. I get it, the number is important to some people and I obsess over it too, but don’t let it keep you from taking the class you know will challenge you. If it’s a subject that’s totally interesting to you and there’s a 99.9 percent chance that you won’t get a 99.9 percent in the class, take it anyways. You’ll remember the classes you actually enjoyed putting time into instead of the classes you took just to get that A on your transcript. The stuff you’ll learn in those hard classes will be so much more useful later on in life, even you only got a B or a C.
