Taking A Year Off

So I have spent all year debating whether or not I want to take a year off. Then, last quarter (winter) I finally decided I needed to take some time off from school. At first I felt disappointed because I had always planned on continuing school immediately. Additionally, all of my friends had been accepted and were planning on attending grad school, which did not make me feel more confident about my decision. However, after thinking about it for weeks I realized that taking a year off was an opportunity for me to do anything. I was free to experiment with my life before committing myself to school again.

Despite this newfound opportunity, I still needed to search for a job. I knew this wouldn’t be an easy task, but I began my search early in December. Ideally, I wanted short term work because this would motivate me to complete my law school applications. Seeking short term commitments led me to Americorp, a U.S. government program offering opportunities to serve through a network of partnerships with local and national non-profit groups. I had been interested in Americorp programs mainly because most opportunities lasted for about a year and at the end of my service I would receive an education award of $4,725 that I could use for law school.

Through Career Services, I stumbled across an opportunity to work for City Year, an organization associated with Americorp that focused on working with children in low performing schools. I decided to apply, but the application process was not simply a resume and cover letter. The application required thought because it asked me to answer essay questions regarding social issues I was interested in and my reasons for applying to the organization. After working on the application for several weeks, I finally submitted it. A few days after submitting the application, I received a call to schedule a phone interview that would last approximately 15-20 minutes. The interview would be for the following week and I immediately turned to the resources at Career Services.

Working as a career peer advisor, I had constantly given advice to students preparing for interviews, but now I needed to prepare for my own. Since the interview would be conducted over the phone I prepared an outline that I could quickly refer to. Additionally, I researched the primary purpose and goals of City Year on their website. I used what I had found to formulate my outline, drawing from all of my experiences over the past four years. I wanted to create diversity in my responses, in an attempt to not repeat myself during the interview. After reviewing my outline and the City Year website I felt confident that I was well-prepared for my interview.

The next morning I woke up early, reviewed my materials, and relaxed. The interview took approximately fifteen minutes and I was certain I had represented myself well. Afterwards I sent a thank you email to my interviewer thanking her for taking the time to speak with me. The following day I received a phone call for a second interview and I was ecstatic, yet frightened because this would require more preparation.