The days get longer and lighter, and recently you might have even spotted the sun from the clear sky. Wait, what is this? Suddenly you remember something, oh, something that surprises you every year after a long, dark and cold winter season. Something that is very hard to foresee during the murky month of January in the northern city of Helsinki. That is Summer. Summer is coming, and you don’t have a summer job yet! Maybe you have already spent long hours writing application letters and searching for a job online, or maybe like me, you are not quite certain of what you want yet. That’s why I have decided to help all the fellow students with this annual summer panic situation. In effect, I have gathered six great tips and ideas for you! Don’t worry, there’s no doubt you will be spending this summer in a nice and productive way.
1. Keep searching for your dream job.
Although many of your friends might already have found their summer job or internship, there is still hope. After all, as the American writer, artist, business man and libertarian philosophist Elbert Hubbart once said: “There is no failure expect in no longer trying”. What can you lose, except for spending less time watching movies on Netflix? So, here is the plan:
- Make sure to improve your résumé and make the best out of your strengths and experience. Also, recruiters may receive hundreds of applications for one position, so the first impression you make matters. Consequently, you might want to build yours to be as simple and clear as possible and customise it to correspond to every single post you apply for. Here, you are selling your skills and expertise; don’t forget to mention your hobbies that might help with corresponding to a profile the company is looking for.
- Your letter of application is also a very significant part in convincing the recruiter to invite you for an interview. Unlike in your resume, here you are supposed to show your motivation for the job and describe your personality. You can also tell more about your earlier experiences that might help you with the work or about your dreams and ambitions for the future.
- Moreover, a good tip is to ask your friends’ and family’s opinion about your applications. At the University of Helsinki you can also ask for help at the Career Services and have a professional’s opinion about your applications.
2. Continue studying during summer.
If you didn’t manage to find an interesting job this time, why wouldn’t you spend time gaining interesting knowledge about everything you have always wanted to study? This is a good way to be able to take it a bit easier in the autumn and study at the beach instead! University of Helsinki offers a lot of courses together with the Open University for free during the summer months and you can study anything on the list without having to pass any entrance exams! Unfortunately, as you might already have noticed, the majority of the courses are in Finnish, but there are still a few options for the English speakers, too. Remember also to apply for a summer study grant, if you are planning to study full time! More info on course registration here.
3. Volunteer in Finland.
Obviously, not everything in life is about money and that being said, the best gifts you can give are free. For this reason, I recommend you to consider volunteering as an option to give a new meaning for your summer. It could be anything: babysitting, reading at an old people’s home, or helping out at a local festival. Or, if you feel the thirst to make this world a better place, you can look into possibility to go abroad for the summer and use your precious time to help others and learn some life lessons. Not to mention that the skills acquired during your time as a volunteer could be useful later on in the working life. Here some ideas for volunteering in Finland – you don’t always have to go far away to help since many of these organisations offer opportunities in Helsinki:
- With Finnish Red Cross you have many possibilities to choose from. For example you can join as a box collector for donations, become a friend for a lonely elderly person or a person with disabilities, join the recycling shop Kontti volunteers, become a volunteer at multicultural activities and help immigrants, donate blood and so on. There are many options available!
- If you are interested in environmental issues, you might want to take part in WWF’s projects. During the summer time there are a few work camps where you can help wild flowers to be able to continue growing by doing some gardening, or help the archipelago’s beautiful nature by cleaning up a beach. Unfortunately, most of the information on the site is in Finnish, but I am sure you can contact the organisation for further information in English.
- Spend a weekend as a volunteer at the Qstock festival in Oulu or help build Flow Festival in Helsinki, which are two of the biggest music festivals in Finland. It will be an amazing experience to be a part of creating the festival venue and make new friends. For all the music lovers, this is the place to be.
4. Volunteer abroad.
If you want to go abroad, there are a lot of different organisations that offer projects with children, environmental issues or taking care of animals. Never thought of this before? If you are interested, there are a lot more different organisations and projects you can find by surfing on the internet
- For example, the international AIESEC organisation offers 6 week long volunteering programs for 18 to 30-year-olds. You can volunteer in Uganda, Italy, Romania, Indonesia, Peru or Croatia. Go to plant some trees or lead a summer camp for kids!
- Also, many big festivals in Europe take volunteers, although knowing the basics of the local language is a bonus during the application process. How about Roskilde festival in Denmark?
5. Explore the world and travel on a student budget.
If you have been saving the whole winter for the summer of your dreams, here’s some more inspiration for travelling and other new interesting experiences:
- Try Interrail in Europe and conquer new countries by train! I would also recommend staying at hostels, which is a great way to save money and meet new people, or checking out Couchsurfing or Airbnb.
6. Suprise yourself!
How about trying something completely new? I’m pretty sure you haven’t even heard of the possibility to herd sheep and spend some amazing time taking care of them in the countryside. In some cases you can stay at a small cottage for free! Also, as Finland is the most forested country in Europe you shouldn’t miss the hiking experience in the beautiful nature and fresh air.
- Interested in hiking?
- What about herding sheep?
I hope I was able to give you some ideas for this summer – at least I found out about some pretty amazing opportunities myself while doing the research for you! So many interesting job descriptions, volunteer organisations, dance classes and projects still waiting for motivated participants. Moreover, I recommend you to take a look at the various possibilities yourself, since I was not able to fit them all in this short article. That being said, I wish you the best summer!