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Five tips for making your job or internship search less stressful

Spring quarter is here, and it’s sometimes difficult to reconcile the anticipated fun of spring with some of the career stresses that might be on your mind. I get it – I’ve been there. I graduated from Stanford a few years ago and had to navigate the highs and lows of the job search multiple times throughout my four years. Now, I work at the university’s career center, CareerEd, so I’ll share with you some ways I learned to cope with the job and internship search stress.  

Get the big picture. 

Did you know that according to the University of Washington, the average college graduate secures a job opportunity around 3-6 months after graduation? Although I was able to secure an internship just before graduating, I wouldn’t secure a stable full-time, permanent position until a whole year later. My timeline to a job opportunity looked nothing like what I thought the timeline should’ve been. The big lesson to take away from this: it’s never too late to find an opportunity, and you’re not alone! 

Talk to someone about it. 

The career journey is unique for each person, but that doesn’t mean you have to take the journey alone. Sometimes, it can feel discouraging and maybe embarrassing to admit that you don’t know something or that you are stuck with your job and internship search. However, our career coaches at CareerEd can offer you a judgment-free space to express your uncertainties and ask for help. You can schedule an appointment with a specific coach or go to one of our many drop-in hours to talk through your situation with somebody. If you would like some resume help and speaking to a coach feels intimidating, we also have peer career coaches who are offering resume reviews all quarter. 

Set time aside to search for an opportunity… 

Setting up a job or internship search plan can be stressful on its own. It helps to block out some time on your calendar that you can dedicate to the job or internship search. This is not only a great way to help keep you accountable but also a way to prevent you from trying to spend every free moment in between classes and club meetings scrolling through LinkedIn or Handshake, which will quickly burn you out. 

…But also remember to take breaks. 

That being said, there are definitely more intentional ways to avoid job search burn out. The search process benefits from the amount of time you dedicate to it, but this is true only up until a certain point. For example, opportunities are constantly being posted, and no amount of time spent on the search today can change the fact that an opportunity that might be right for you won’t be posted until next week. I say this not to discourage you but to help you reason that while hard work is important, so is resting. So take a break, take a breath, and remember that your wellbeing matters.

Written by: Sharon Tran, ‘21, Communications Coordinator, Career Education

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