Story by Jackie Cohen
Artwork by Caroline McNally
Finally! The semester is almost over, but now what? Stephanie Wigley, a freshman integrated education studies major, is among those unsure of summer plans.
“I applied to 12 jobs on campus, but if that falls through, I have no idea what I’m going to do,” Wigley said.
Such is the dilemma for many Chapman students. Intern? Volunteer? Work? Take classes? Rest? Travel?
“I want to try to do more, like internships, next year, so I wanted to enjoy this one,” said Alice Metcalfe, a freshman creative writing major.
Metcalfe will be spending her summer in Los Angeles attending concerts, spending time with her cousins, playing with her pets, and getting healthy and fit. She is also considering traveling to Portland to visit a friend.
Other students have made ambitious plans for the summer to add professional experience to their resume.
“I always recommend that freshman, sophomores and juniors get internships over the summer. I know some people need to get jobs but recommend that they get some professional development by attending conferences or volunteering,” said Sahzeah Babylon, a career educator from the Career Development Center. “It is important to make sure that you are investing back into your professional development.”
Students are everywhere on the spectrum of applying for summer internships.
In April, Todd Sweetman, a freshman business finance major started applying for an internship at a finance consulting firm in Newport, which he found using PantherConnect, a website where internship and job opportunities are posted for Chapman students.
“I want to gain post-graduate life experience and connections,” Sweetman said. “I am also always up for a new challenge.”
Sophomore strategic and corporate communications major Rachael Cohen will be partaking in her second summer internship.
While last year she interned at a non-profit organization called the Jewish World Watch, Cohen plans on getting hands on experience in the marketing department of Alfred Music Publishing in Van Nuys.
“I wanted something to add to my resume, but also to get experience in something pertaining to my major to see if this is the path I wish to pursue,” Cohen said.
With similar ideas in mind, Kelsey Parrate, a freshman creative writing major, is interning at a non-profit organization that fights poverty called the Borgen Project, where she will be writing for their online magazine.
“I am excited to learn the ropes that go into publishing and seeing how the content is chosen,” Parrate said. “I also want to see the impact words can have on helping end poverty.”
Meghan Wells, a freshman psychology major, will have the opportunity to go back to the camp she attended when she was younger either as a general counselor or as a martial arts instructor.
“I want to work with children as a psychologist, so working at the camp I used to attend will give me professional experience with kids and will help me find out if this is what I want to do,” Wells said.
With the free time that comes along with being on vacation, some Chapman students have decided to give back to their communities.
Arman Gulamani, a freshman business administration major, is going to New Jersey for an 11 week mission trip.
As a part of his mission trip, which he is attending as a part of Chapman’s Cru club, Gulamani will be living in a hotel and working at the boardwalk either in the food industry or sales.
“I decided to do this because I want to start practicing being Christian in the business world,” Gulamani said. “Also, I like helping people and thought this would be a great way to spend my summer.”
Students often feel the need to work over the summer because they need to earn money for the the school year.
“I’m trying to get a job because all of my spending money for groceries and going out with friends during the year is money that I have earned,” said Dorcas Hoi, a freshman integrated education major. “I have worked in food services before and am comfortable there, so I most likely will be doing that again while attending classes at community college.”
Other students, like Cassie Soumas, a freshman theatre technology major, are having a hard time applying to jobs.
Soumas is applying to jobs in Idaho, but has been having a hard time because there are less jobs available there than in California.
“No one wants a college student for three months, because they need to train them but they won’t be there longterm,” Soumas said.
While Soumas applied to 22 jobs in Idaho and two in California, she has only gotten interviews for the ones in California. According to Soumas, this is because there is greater job and internship availability in California.
Other students have been able to return to the jobs that they held before leaving for college. Emily Volz, a freshman business administration major, will be working at a boutique in Phoenix, where she worked before college.
The summer is often seen as a great time to travel and students at Chapman have found various ways to travel to exotic places through different programs.
Brittney Souza, a freshman peace studies and political sciences major, was crowned Miss Gilroy’s Garlic Queen in 2014 and now has the opportunity to be an ambassador for Gilroy in its sister city, Angra do Heroismo, Portugal. Souza will be in Angra do Heroismo for their 10 day festival that includes bullfighting and a parade.
“The parade goes through the center of town with giant floats and I get my own float with a specially made dress,” Souza said.
Souza will be spending two weeks in Portugal and is excited to spend time traveling around and at the beach, besides her duties at the city’s festival.
“I love to travel and was invited to represent Gilroy, and who wouldn’t want a free trip to Portugal?” Souza said. “I’m super stoked. Everyone that has been there has told me that the island is beautiful.”
Sophomore strategic and corporate communications major Mai Gattenyo will also have the opportunity to travel far from home.
Gattenyo will be taking a break from her marketing internship at an Israeli start-up called Take and Make, which designs tutorials and sets for do-it-yourself projects to go to Israel as a part of an interfaith delegation. This delegation’s goal is to see the vibrant make up of Israeli culture and how Jews, Arabs, and Christians interact.
“As an Israeli, I’m really excited to go to see the interaction between the different cultural groups, but also to see my family and eat Israeli food,” Gattenyo said.
After her program in Israel, Gattenyo will be traveling through the southern part of Spain with her grandparents.
“I’m really excited for Spain because I’ve never been to any country other than Israel and the United States and I also want to practice my Spanish,” Gattenyo said.
Afterwards, Gattenyo plans to continue working on her internship for the remainder of the summer.
