What are your college students doing over winter break?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mine (first-year) has a solid month off. She'll use some of the time for R & R, but she doesn't want to just sit around all month. She'd like to work, but the timing for seasonal retail help isn't good (by the time she was trained, she'd only be useful to them for about 10 days). She loves to babysit, but that can't really fill one's days. Maybe volunteer work? What kinds of things are our imaginations not thinking of? What are other kids doing?

This is partly why colleges should just close from Thanksgiving until Jan 2. Apart from reducing the cost, stress, carbon and other issues revolving around back and forth travel, it could give many college students the opportunity to get a seasonal job.

[Anonymous]

DS has now graduated and works full time, but in college he was always able to get some hours during winter break working at a bakery he'd worked at in high school. They wouldn't hire someone new for a short term holiday job but were always happy to have a couple experienced college students filling in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mine (first-year) has a solid month off. She'll use some of the time for R & R, but she doesn't want to just sit around all month. She'd like to work, but the timing for seasonal retail help isn't good (by the time she was trained, she'd only be useful to them for about 10 days). She loves to babysit, but that can't really fill one's days. Maybe volunteer work? What kinds of things are our imaginations not thinking of? What are other kids doing?

This is partly why colleges should just close from Thanksgiving until Jan 2. Apart from reducing the cost, stress, carbon and other issues revolving around back and forth travel, it could give many college students the opportunity to get a seasonal job.

Jesus Christ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. She just found out that our city has a program for underserved kids for December, and she is going to...be an elf. Right up her alley, plus I'm sure after spending several afternoons with hyped-up kids, she will be begging for rest.

19 minutes after your original post about winter break activities, your kid found something to do?

[Anonymous]

In college I used to work a seasonal job at Bath and Bodyworks. I got virtually no training and wasn't allowed to use the register. My whole job as to greet customers and put more product on shelves. They normally gave 50-60 hours each week leading up to X-mas. Then I got bunch more hours (45-55 hours) the following week as people made returns and we redid the store to get rid of the X-mas decor. It was easy work and they were always eager for help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mine (first-year) has a solid month off. She'll use some of the time for R & R, but she doesn't want to just sit around all month. She'd like to work, but the timing for seasonal retail help isn't good (by the time she was trained, she'd only be useful to them for about 10 days). She loves to babysit, but that can't really fill one's days. Maybe volunteer work? What kinds of things are our imaginations not thinking of? What are other kids doing?

This is partly why colleges should just close from Thanksgiving until Jan 2. Apart from reducing the cost, stress, carbon and other issues revolving around back and forth travel, it could give many college students the opportunity to get a seasonal job.

Jesus Christ.

We get it, you're conservative. move on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In college I used to work a seasonal job at Bath and Bodyworks. I got virtually no training and wasn't allowed to use the register. My whole job as to greet customers and put more product on shelves. They normally gave 50-60 hours each week leading up to X-mas. Then I got bunch more hours (45-55 hours) the following week as people made returns and we redid the store to get rid of the X-mas decor. It was easy work and they were always eager for help.

Now there's literal single-digit acceptance rates for some stores, and they don't hire if they know you won't be back in a months' time. The landscape has changed a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In college I used to work a seasonal job at Bath and Bodyworks. I got virtually no training and wasn't allowed to use the register. My whole job as to greet customers and put more product on shelves. They normally gave 50-60 hours each week leading up to X-mas. Then I got bunch more hours (45-55 hours) the following week as people made returns and we redid the store to get rid of the X-mas decor. It was easy work and they were always eager for help.

Now there's literal single-digit acceptance rates for some stores, and they don't hire if they know you won't be back in a months' time. The landscape has changed a lot.

This type of job for one month is pretty much gone now.

[Anonymous]

taking annual lifeguard recertification in order to guard over the summer

[Anonymous]

Studying for exams taking place in January!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In college I used to work a seasonal job at Bath and Bodyworks. I got virtually no training and wasn't allowed to use the register. My whole job as to greet customers and put more product on shelves. They normally gave 50-60 hours each week leading up to X-mas. Then I got bunch more hours (45-55 hours) the following week as people made returns and we redid the store to get rid of the X-mas decor. It was easy work and they were always eager for help.

Now there's literal single-digit acceptance rates for some stores, and they don't hire if they know you won't be back in a months' time. The landscape has changed a lot.

I don't understand how this would work for a store with such wild swings in business. They didn't want employees to stay after the holiday because their sales dropped to almost zero right after the holiday. But it was all hands on deck for about 3 weeks. A super short spike.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. She just found out that our city has a program for underserved kids for December, and she is going to...be an elf. Right up her alley, plus I'm sure after spending several afternoons with hyped-up kids, she will be begging for rest.

19 minutes after your original post about winter break activities, your kid found something to do?

Yep! Admittedly, there was a three-day lag between the last I spoke on Friday (I would have posted my question earlier, but I tend to stay offline over the weekend).

[Anonymous]

Mine has 6 weeks. He'll spend 2 on a study abroad to SE Asia with his business school. Otherwise home and relaxing.

[Anonymous]

Mine will get his wisdom teeth out! Then I expect he will spend a good week eating everything he couldn’t eat while recovering and going to the gym.

[Anonymous]

It's a break for a reason! She's traveling to see aunt/uncle/cousins whom we haven't seen in years (they live abroad), taking a family vacation, doing some volunteering related to her main HS EC.