Dire Straits of a Grad School Summer

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We’ve come to the glorious time of year: the sun is shining, the flowers are in bloom, and the stress is high, because all of the procrastination has come back to haunt.

Normal people at the beach.

It’s the end of the semester. All my regular classes are done; all that stands between me and a good, long nap is a war game simulation, two take home finals, and a research paper. I’m almost there.

And then…what? For the first time in, well, I’m not sure how long; I don’t know what I am going to do this summer.

You see, grad school summers are unlike other summers because you only get one. You have to make it count. It’s not meant to be like an undergrad summer where you went home, turned off your brain, and worked at Starbucks. If only.

Grad school summers are meant to be productive: internships, fellowships, research, and immersive travel. You gain experience that makes your resume sparkle, access to an inner circle of working professionals in your field, and make connections with important people. And I don’t have that lined up.

It’s not for lack of trying: I’ve been worrying about my summer plans since the fall. Deadlines are early and were sometimes missed when I was swamped with work. And my twenty (give or take) applications to Pathways internships were rejected. And some of those beautifully crafted cover letters and resumes that I sent out into the ether received no response at all. I was offered one (unpaid) internship, but declined the offer for the high opportunity cost of the four hour minimum roundtrip commute.

So the question remains: just how picky should I be now? Is it worth it to apply for unpaid internships that are relevant to my career and academic interests? Should I now go after some Starbucks-like job just to supplement my pesky habits of eating and living indoors? Is forfeiting pay for valid experience possible? Is forfeiting valid experience for pay (likely a minimum wage job that will require a cash register) worth it?

Riddle me this: intern or barista?

Hence the dire straits of a grad school summer. Experience or pay? Where will I derive the greatest benefit? Which has the higher opportunity cost?

My brain and my heart are answering those questions very differently.

And the rest of my work is telling me to stop worrying about this and worry about finishing my paper on chemical weapons proliferation. Yeah, yeah work. I’ll be there in a minute.

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