I love summer jobs as much as the next broke university student. Sure, I’d rather be spending my summers catching up on sleep, hanging out with friends and basking in the sun, but a girl’s gotta eat! For a lot of us, the job hunt starts right at the beginning of February. This is when all the campgrounds, summer camp positions and theme parks start accepting applications. It can be super frustrating to juggle applying to jobs and finishing midterms at the same time, especially when you know so many others are applying to the same jobs! Here’s some of the things I find the most frustrating when it comes to finding the perfect summer job.
1. Cover letters
Whoever invented cover letters probably just wanted to see people suffer. The most infuriating part of writing cover letters is that most employers likely won’t even read yours. I find myself spending so much time searching up the perfect adjectives to describe my work ethic, trying to format it aesthetically and researching the company online. It would be fine if I could just write one cover letter and send it everywhere that I am applying to, but unfortunately that’s not how the world works. And maybe it’s just me, but I find it so awkward to have to beg professionally for a job. All of these “I’m Passionate!” and “I’m sure this position would be a perfect fit for me!” makes me feel so disingenuous.
2. Waiting for any type of confirmation
So, you’ve sent in like 20 resumes and cover letters. Each one is perfectly tailored to the company you are applying to. You may receive a few customary “thank you for sending in your resume” type emails from the human resources team. Now you wait. I wake up each morning and check my email. My ringer is on full volume. I pick up every call, attempting to sound as professional as possible before hanging up when I’m asked, “Do you need your ducts cleaned?” I wait and wait until the hiring period is over and I’m left feeling vaguely disappointed.
3. Can you come in for an interview?
If you do get a call asking if you’re available for an interview, it can lead to quite an issue. Most places I’ve applied to aren’t in the Kitchener-Waterloo area. Most are back home or are somewhere I would have to find housing for, which can take in-person interviews off the table and result in a phone interview. And phone interviews are so awkward! I never know when to speak, how the interview is going and often I’m asking, “can you repeat that please?”
So yeah. Finding summer jobs can be frustrating and make you feel like you aren’t good enough, but it’s all worth it to be able to work somewhere you love. I hope you all make some cash this summer!