Q&A: STEM Student Stressed for Summer

Q: It’s almost summer and I feel like a failure… I haven’t heard from any of the internships I applied to, REUs and SURF were too competitive, and I have no idea what I should do this summer. What have I missed? How can I gain meaningful work experiences outside of these traditional opportunities?

Use your resources on campus.

Kiran: Don’t be afraid to reach out to professors whose work you find interesting! A lot of professors don’t have official labs listed on the Smith College website but will happily accept undergraduate help on their work. This might be unpaid, but you can always get credit through Special Studies. Also, if your work results in a paper, you may get an author credit (and also a killer letter of recommendation). 

Cam: I second what Kiran said, Smith is truly one of your greatest assets. Not only because of the on-campus resources, but the alumni network can be incredibly helpful as well. Many of my friends have gotten internships because the hiring managers were former Smithies, found housing through alumni networks, and established professional connections because of their college. Consider using the Smith Alumni Network or LinkedIn to see where former Smithies are working and start making connections!

Consider using Praxis: the deadline is June 6th!

Kiran: I highly recommend trying to use Praxis internationally! Honestly, there are a lot of companies that would be interested simply because you’re offering free labor (well, free for them). This is a great opportunity to reach out to a nonprofit or an organization related to your field that doesn’t have the funds to provide an official internship. If you choose to use Praxis overseas, you receive an extra $1500 for transportation and housing (remember you only need to be working full time for 5.5 weeks to be eligible). 

Some ways to find possible experiences are through sites like InternHQ and GoOverseas. These sites are intermediaries and a bit predatory, but by going around them by reaching out to partner companies separately, you can find lots of openings abroad. In some cases, the organization will provide housing even if it can’t afford a stipend for you. Also, you can always cold email a researcher you feel inspired by. I had a friend who used Praxis to spend a summer working with an atmospheric scientist she’d reached out to over email. Though she didn’t get into an official lab, she was able to gain just as valuable an experience acting as an unofficial assistant. She recently began a PhD in atmospheric science, so not getting anything official certainly didn’t derail her plans. 

Cam: As we mentioned, the deadline for Praxis is June 6th. So if you’ve missed all of the deadlines for paid internships, don’t fret–  you’ve got more time. If you’re eligible for Praxis, this will be one of your greatest assets in finding a last-minute opportunity. One of the biggest hesitations hiring managers have in responding to internship inquiries from undergraduates is funding: they feel icky about not paying you, but often don’t have the means to compensate. Leading with the fact that you can work for free is key here, so let them know that you can bring your own funding! 

So, what kind of internship can you do with Praxis?

You cannot use your Praxis for a job at Smith, but you can use it at one of the other 5 colleges! Ask your professors if they know people at the other colleges who may want undergraduate assistants. You can also apply Praxis to research jobs outside of the 5 colleges (see cold email section for more). 

Tips for hustling outside of the system

a) Cold emailing

Cam: Oftentimes, the best way to find internships, post-bacc jobs, etc. is to reach out directly to people who you are interested in working with. A “cold email” is an unsolicited email sent to a professor, researcher, or academic professional by someone who has not previously interacted with them. This is standard practice in science and research, this is how people at every career stage communicate with each other! Students, prospective graduate students, or early-career researchers send cold emails to inquire about research opportunities, seek mentorship, propose collaborations, or simply to connect professionally. If you’re seeking research opportunities, find the email addresses of the principal investigator (PI), lab manager (usually on the staff page of the lab site), and the lab email address. Write a brief and direct subject line, like “Undergraduate research inquiry” or “Volunteer research inquiry.” Keep your message brief and make sure to emphasize your assets (e.g. do you have a mutual connection? Do they know one of your professors? Do you have Praxis/can work for free?). For more information on how to write these emails, feel free to check out this guide I wrote for psychology students. 

b) Internet stalking

Kiran: If you have some idea of what you want to do in the future, it might be a good idea to do some internet sleuthing. For example, let’s say someday you want to be the head of conservation science at the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Unfortunately, this is probably not something you can do right out of college. Darn! However, you can take a look at the current head’s LinkedIn to get some ideas of how to get there. What internships did they do during college? What does their work history look like? Does it seem like this position requires graduate school? Working backwards from a dream job can help you think through how to get there. Think about the steps you may want to consider to eventually be competitive for your ideal role. Of course, you may realize this actually isn’t what you want to do at all. That’s also good to know! Basically, no harm in a little bit of stalking… 

Volunteering and making money elsewhere

Cam: Many fields have “translational” or “application-based” opportunities for internships. It may not entail hardcore research, but these roles can be a great way to get field experience and find personal meaning in your research. You can apply your Praxis as a volunteer with a nonprofit or other organization and build your own internship. Alternatively, you can volunteer on certain days of the week and work another job on the side to fund yourself.

I highly recommend seeking meaningful experiences like these. For instance, as a psychology major, I volunteered at a grief counseling center and learned a lot about emotional intelligence curriculum for young children. This gave me a lot of content to talk about in interviews for clinical research internships and ultimately led to me getting the job! I was able to volunteer with this center during the day on Tuesdays and Thursdays, volunteer in a research lab on Mondays and Wednesdays, and work in a restaurant at night. I was very busy, but it was manageable to have these volunteer experiences and simultaneously make money. 

For other fields, like environmental science, consider working for environmental policy or advocacy organizations. Or, as a bio or chemistry major, find volunteer opportunities that relate to your research interests (e.g., if you’re interested in HIV/AIDS research, consider volunteering with a harm reduction group in your area). You can search for these organizations and roles by looking up the key words + volunteering + the area you intend to live in.

Kiran: Another great opportunity for gaining research experience is through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) College-Supported Internship Program. Due to changes in the budget, NOAA may have less internship availability than in previous years. However, please note that Smith College has a separate stipend for this program. It has no relation to Praxis, meaning you can achieve both during your time at Smith. 

First, you apply through the Center for the Environment, Ecological Design & Sustainability (CEEDS), and if the college believes you’re a strong candidate, your application is forwarded to NOAA. If you achieve a NOAA award, you’ll receive around $6,500 from the college. Again, NOAA is not paying you, which may mean this award will be less impacted by budget cuts than experiences like REUs. 

NOAA has opportunities ranging from field work to data analysis to environmental communication (and lots more!). See here to take a look: https://www.noaa.gov/education/opportunities/students 

Whatever you do, OWN IT!

Cam: There are ways to build personal and academic purpose wherever you go. Even if you find yourself without any research or volunteer opportunities this summer, there are so many other things you can do. If you spend the summer working, save money where you can and invest it in your education later (e.g., taking community college classes for credit, application fees for graduate school, attending conferences, etc.). Any work experience can be meaningful in a future job interview because there are a number of skills that will carry over: customer service and people skills, responsibility and work ethic, etc.

Also, just enjoy yourself! Take the pressure off. Smithies are so driven and hard-working–– you spend the whole academic year working your butt off, trying to make good grades, and get involved outside of classes. This is your chance to enjoy some time off, so take it! 

Written by Campbell Linker and Kiran Das-Goel.