Hi
@charlottehowe,
Welcome to the forum! I know messages like these are not always easy to send too, so credit to you for posting. 🙌 It is a really positive step to have taken if you are feeling stressed or dejected.
I empathise with how you are feeling about the prospect of leaving university without a job lined up. It was a fear I had too. I only finished university in June last year, so these feelings are still fresh.
The good news is that you
have time. Getting something this year is
definitely attainable (even if you haven't sent a single application so far!). As
@AvniD and
@Jessica Booker say, many firms get 50%+ of their applications on the day of the deadline.
As this is not your first application cycle, you will have some material to build on, so you are not starting from scratch (even if you feel that your applications were not very strong!). One useful piece of advice I was told by a cousin of mine is that it is always easier to iterate and improve on a piece of work than to start from scratch.
It is easy to feel like you are running out of time and to put pressure on yourself. This leads to stress and further delay in sending applications. This is a really toxic and unhelpful pattern of thinking. It is also awful as it is self-reinforcing. It is
very normal though. I remember feeling like this when I was applying in my second year for internships.
If you have been feeling this way, I hope that some of the below might give you some practical solutions!
Ideas and advice
My first piece of advice is, as best you can, try to avoid stressing about not having enough time this cycle. I realise this is easier said than done. Yet I cannot stress enough:
you have time. I promise. It is mid/late December and many applications close in late January. This gives you
plenty of time to draft, reflect on and send off a lot of very strong applications. You also have the option of a straight TC applications. Many of these close in the summer. Both
@James Carrabino and
@AvniD went through this process, so I am sure they will be more than happy to provide you with some insights on their journey!
Secondly, I would advise making a plan. Use
this application tracker and take a look at
@Patricia K's
compilation of this year's application questions (from nearly every firm you could think of!). I
wish I had seen this list when I was applying. Personally, I found that once I had a schedule to stick to and I invested a few hours into drawing it up, my stress levels massively reduced.
Finally, here are a few links to check out. Have a look and afterwards I am more than happy to help in any way I can. We can get you something this year I am sure of it!
That is a lot of information, so I understand if this is overwhelming. However, I would set aside an afternoon and go through this material thoroughly. Strike out what is not helpful or irrelevant and then give yourself a schedule and stick to it as best you can!
I hope that this is helpful. I really want to emphasise too, I am here if you would like any further support, advice or guidance 🚀.
