When we think back to how we used to spend our summers when we were young, it’s not uncommon to feel nostalgic. Things seemed so much more simple back then: no SAT or ACT, no summer program applications, no AP classes to prepare for, no pressure to think about college, careers, or the future at all. Many students have reported to me that they’ve come to see summers as yet another source of stress.
Some of this is unavoidable: if you’re taking challenging classes next year, you may have to spend time preparing for them over the summer; if you’re planning to take the SAT, you should probably prepare over the summer.
But summer is also a time to explore, to relax, to dive deeper into things that genuinely interest you. A common thought is that there are specific summer activities that are, to colleges, inherently more valuable than others. Thankfully that’s not true. Spending your summer researching the measurement problem in quantum physics is not inherently better than volunteering, working a part-time job, or spending time with an ailing grandparent. All colleges want to see is that you are using your time productively, exploring things and doing things that are important to you and that contribute to your own intellectual and personal growth.
Instead of thinking of summer plans in terms of what colleges want to see, think of them in terms of what will be the most meaningful to you. Will you still have to do things you don’t want to do? Absolutely. But it’s all about balance.
In the end, summers should be thought of as a mix of a variety of things. Think through the following non-exhaustive categories and see if you can come up with a summer plan that is productive, meaningful, and rejuvenating.
Things that will make your life easier once school starts again in the fall.
***Summers can be a great time to prepare for things to come. If I know AP Literature is going to be brutal, I can read some of the novels ahead of time. What can you do over the summer that will make your life easier once school starts again in the fall?
Things that are fun and that you genuinely want to do.
***What kinds of things will you wake up excited to do? What’s their value to you?
Things that aren’t fun but you have to do them.
***For each item you list: What is it? Why do you have to do it? What can you do to make it more bearable? List concrete things. E.g.,taking one practice SAT test each week is a total bummer, but afterwards I’m going to reward myself by getting tea with friends.
Things that will contribute to your academic and intellectual growth
***For each item you list: What is it? How do you think it will contribute to your academic and intellectual growth? Try to be specific.
Things that will contribute to your personal growth.
***What will help you grow as a person, an artist, an activist, an engaged member of your community?
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