Student Job Link's Resources

When you’re in high school or college, you probably have a regular summer job.  For one of my friends, it was loading trucks at a local dairy.  He knew the owner and he got the job when he was in high school, and every summer he went back. 

 It was good work and the pay was decent.  He was able to save up some money so that he could have a fun year at college, but it didn’t help him to make contacts that would help him in his later career. 

There’s nothing wrong with working manual labor for a living, but he wasn’t going to college to spend the rest of his life loading trucks, so he decided on a change.  This past summer, he started working for himself as a freelance writer, and its already paying off in making a career.

I’m not suggesting that you quit your regular summer job and try being a freelance writer.  That’s just the path that worked for him.  He was looking for a career in mass media and he’s always been good at writing, so it seemed like a good move.  

So how do you break the summer doldrums and find something that’s good for your career?  First of all, don’t think “small”, think “big”.  Not “big” in the sense of running a Fortune 500 company, but “big” in the sense of experience.  

Let’s say that you are a marketing major. What entry level summer jobs are available that can get you experience that will help in your later career?  Something as simple as working a kiosk in your local mall can give you a lot of insight into how people decide to buy different commodities.

 Summer Jobs Worldwide, 2009: Make the Most of the Summer Vacation (Paperback)

The Back Door Guide to Short-Term Job Adventures: Internships, Summer Jobs, Seasonal Work, Volunteer Vacations, and Transitions Abroad by Michael Landes