Last Hours As a Teen

NOTE: As you can see, this post is hideous without any hyperlinks or photos. I'm sorry, but I clearly don't mind it enough to change it. On a more serious and interesting post? Of course. Here? Not worth the effort.

But wait, I was still considered a teenager? Ignoring how cliche this sounds -- college has changed me in so many ways. Every experience I've had I really believe has changed me for the better. Two years ago, I would have never guessed that I would have interned for USA TODAY College or gotten a job working for Microsoft SkyDrive. And the fact that it has only been two years and so much as happened makes me anxious yet excited for what's to come.

But there will always be room for improvement. I will always be learning and changing, both as an individual and a writer. I would have liked to blog more often, for example. And it worries me that I haven't blogged more. I mean, I used to keep extensive (and by that, I mean, stream-of-conscious-like) diary entries on my old MacBook. So clearly it's a lot easier to just type whatever comes to mind without having to self-edit for the web. Plus, you probably wouldn't want to read that anyway -- on second thought, you probably would find them to be incredibly entertaining. It would just turn into a matter of professionalism and dignity. Anyway, blogging in a way that serves to be somewhat useful and interesting to readers will take practice, and without practice, I will never improve.

I wouldn't count this post to be one of those useful and interesting ones, though. While I am minimally self-editing as I go, I like just being able to express my thoughts freely, without having to think too much about organization or whatnot. (I also have quite a few posts that aren't published simply because they weren't up to my "standards.")

I distinctly remember where I was and what I was doing this time last year. I went to see Michael Ian Black in a comedy show, hosted by BU Programming Council. By the stroke of midnight, though, even though I was technically "backstage," due to this one connection to a PC member, I wasn't able to meet the famous comedian. Still, I had an enjoyable last few hours as an 18-year-old, and compared to this year's "last few hours," they were awesome.

Today, I largely just did work. I feel like I can be a workaholic at times. It wasn't until tonight around 9 that I finally decided I needed to take a break and start watching TV shows again. Seriously. I barely took real breaks today or yesterday. Yesterday (a Saturday), I woke up at 7:30 to compile my weekly event guides for Her Campus BU and edit the weekly BU Circle K newsletter. Then I went to Petit Robert with my roommates for our collective birthday lunch. If it weren't planned ahead of time, I would have just went straight to studying for my exam...that's on Thursday. Then today, I woke up at 8 (which I consider late nowadays) to go to the gym. When I came back and showered, I immediately went to do my laundry and started studying for that exam.

And that's what I did for my day. Study for that exam and prepare for my Chinese dictation and did homework for that class that's not even due until this Friday. But in my defense, I did it because I knew I would be busy this week and didn't want anything to pile up the night for my exam. Oh, and that reminds me, I need to read a chapter for journalism class. I'll probably get that done tomorrow, given my streak of doing and completing things way before most students.

Even now, after I started to catch up on USA's "Suits," I felt the need to be more productive and write this post. But I'm justifying it with the fact that this is important and a moment I need to document. Anyway, I need some time to reflect, too. That's downtime, right?

Well, one more hour till I'm no longer a teenager. That word just sounds so strange, for some reason. I guess I never directly consider myself a teen. I call myself a student, a student journalist, a college student, an intern, an ambassador -- anything but a teen, which, to me, has a somewhat negative connotation in terms of maturity and experience. Wow, do I sound arrogant or what?

How should I spend my last hour being 19?

9 (Secretly) Awesome Things at BU

It's time to share some little-known life hacks, secrets, tips, etc.

I've noticed that many people don't know about what BU offers and how to take advantage of them. And let's face it: college is stressful enough as is, but I hope that the following will make it just a bit easier.

See how many of these you know.

1) Look up email addresses (and maybe even phone numbers) through the BU Directory.

Screenshot of the BU Directory

Yes! You don't have to ask people for their email addresses or even phone numbers, in some cases (depends on their privacy settings). In fact, most, if not all, colleges have directories. These are extremely helpful for not only journalists like myself who need to contact people to interview, but also students who need to contact team members, professors, TAs, etc.

2) Host a free WordPress blog and create your own website.

Bloggers and computer science majors, rejoice! Not only can you create a blog and website, but BU's Information Services and Technology site has tons of amazing tips, tricks, discounts, and freebies.

3) Download a free antivirus.

Speaking of freebies, don't buy that expensive antivirus software! BU IS&T offers McAfee VirusScan free of charge to students, so you can keep your notes, essays, and other schoolwork safe.

4) Print in a CAS computer lab without decreasing your quota.

Shhh. BU may or may not know about this...flaw. Do they care? Somehow, the printers aren't connected to your account. In other words, print as much as you can right before class without worrying about your print quota.

5) Read print newspapers for free.

Don't feel like shelling out $99/year for a Wall Street Journal subscription (and that's with the student discount)? Head to the College of Communication (640 Commonwealth Ave.), Mugar Library (771 Commonwealth Ave.), or the School of Management (595 Commonwealth Ave.) to read the paper. You can take copies from COM, while you can only read issues from Mugar and SMG in the libraries.

75 percent? Try 100 percent with BU's free daily newspapers.

6) Get free tutoring and writing assistance.

Don't bother spending money on hiring a tutor. In addition to office hours with your professors and TAs, the BU Educational Resource Center (100 Bay State Road, 5th and 6th floors) offers many free academic support resources, including peer tutoring. The Center for Career Development is also located in the same building and offers career-related support. Both centers host workshops ranging from resume and cover letter writing to test prep and time management.

7) Study in a new space with a fantastic view.
Request a private study space in one of the Educational Resource Center's beautiful new rooms, overlooking Kenmore Square and Deerfield Street. These spaces, which are otherwise used for ERC appointments/interviews, were open to students during the fall 2012 finals period, and I truly enjoyed my privacy.

8) Learn a new language on your own time free of charge.
Take advantage of Howard Thurman Center's Rosetta Stone! Bring your computer, and learn one (or more) of the 14 languages offered at the basement level of the George Sherman Union.

9) Get discounted movie tickets for the Regal Fenway theater.
That's right. Buy tickets for just $6.50 at the Activities Information Desk on the second floor of the GSU, right across from Metcalf Ballroom. You may have to pay an extra dollar or two for new releases. This reminds me -- check out my article from The Buzz on Boston' secrets.

Have any BU tips of your own? Share them below, and share this post! I hope to add more hidden gems as I discover them.

Instead of waiting around...

for my currently taken-but-unused domain name to expire (soniasu.com), I've decided to upload the new site I worked on for a total of two days (yes, the site is THAT simple) onto my previous site hosted on Boston University's domain. Our college offers free blogging and general website space for the BU community, and I had used it for a very simple, one-page website similar to an about.me page. Can you believe it took me this long (10 days) to realize that I can just use that to upload my new personal site, rather than wait until June/July 2012, when soniasu.com is supposed to expire?

Besides, that one-page site was pretty lame and amateurish. So, until I actually have an idea for a real blog post (I had a few, I promise), please check out my new personal website, and let me know what you think!

10 Career-Related Lessons for the College Intern

2012 was not just another year.

I would have never guessed that I would have learned so much about my career path this year, largely through my internships and jobs. Although it seems that this year just flew by, when I think back to January 2012, it has, indeed, been a long and eventful year.

My first article for USA TODAY College made it to the top five articles of that week!

Three experiences stand out to me the most:

1) WINTERNSHIP

I can hardly believe it has been one year since my first internship -- a Winternship with a travel magazine. It was brief. Extremely brief. I'll admit I did not seem to get as much out of it as I had hoped, even though I knew all the things interns should do: always keep occupied; instead of asking for things to do, create them; follow up every few months after the internship; try to be involved as much as possible; etc.

Instead, I asked for things to do, and of course when I didn't have any tasks, within a few days, I sat idly, waiting for things to do. I had broken the infamous intern sin, and I knew it. But I was young, and everything already seemed to work so well without me.

It wasn't until a few months after the internship, when I was supposed to, but didn't, receive the copy of the magazine I had worked on, that I reflected on my mistakes. I knew it wasn't a productive internship. I had failed, and it wasn't enough to comfort myself with the knowledge that I had yet another line on my resume. I had wasted that time.

Yet, I did learn.

Lesson #1: Always choose an internship for which you can work at least 6 weeks. Because let's face it: You'll end up feeling like you haven't done much, and the first three weeks are usually the most unproductive, because you're just starting to get a feel for what it's like working at that company. Have a few weeks to spare but not enough to make the most out of an internship? Know the company. Don't apply to a random position, simply because it's open. I'm not saying Winternships don't work because of the short time period (at least for my school). It most certainly can, in terms of happiness in both professional and personal aspects, as long as you come in having been familiar with the company for years and have specific goals to accomplish.

Lesson #2: Go in with goals, leave with those accomplished and more. If your only goal is to learn, then you should either find another company to work for or create some real goals. Otherwise, you'll leave feeling much as I did -- having accomplished little. But why limit yourself to those goals only? As cliched as it sounds, expect the unexpected.

Lesson #3: Really make those connections. Don't just come in and out everyday you work without making a genuine effort to know your coworkers. You can be as nice as you want, but the difference between that and productive networking really shows when it comes to recommendations and references for future jobs.

Lesson #4: You may discover new passions. I realized tweeting on a professional level was an actual job. Although I was an editorial intern, I was able to tweet for the company about upcoming events and generally promoting clients. And I loved it. Now, I also look for opportunities where working with social media is part of the job description. You may discover that you either love or hate something, and either way, that knowledge is worth it.

2) SUMMER INTERNSHIPS

I was lucky enough to snag two summer internships, and I decided I could manage to do both. Both were amazing opportunities, and you can imagine how happy I was to receive these offers.

I still made time for New England's 5k Color Run! / CREDIT: Sonia Su

Lesson #5: You can do more than one internship during the summer. The obvious lesson here. I accepted both internships, because I knew I had the time and could manage it well. In the summer, if you're not taking classes or even vacations, then the real question is: why not do two internships when given the chance? Internships, especially unpaid ones, are often flexible in terms of how many days you work. I was lucky also with housing. Given that one of the internships was located in Boston (not my hometown), I was able to appeal to my close family friends in Malden, where I stayed for most of the summer. I still managed to see my family and have weekend vacations.

Lesson #6: Aim high when applying for internships. I'll mention this name, only because you can find this information within seconds: USA TODAY College. I aimed high as just a freshman in college, and I am so glad I did. I was able to write for a national online publication before I was even a sophomore. Did I expect to get this opportunity? Yes and no. Yes, because I had worked hard my freshman year to gain as much writing experience as I could. No, because I still saw myself as a young student. But once you get that opportunity, you let this fear go away. You realize you do have the potential.

Lesson #7: Start-ups exist. How embarrassing, huh? I now am very interested in the start-up world. Believe it or not, I had little to no knowledge of start-ups and was even more shocked to learn that so many colleges students around Boston were entrepreneurs -- and successful ones, at that. You may find that you love retail, or you love the food industry, or whatever it is, you can expect to learn a lot about the industry you're working in. For me, one summer internship at a start-up introduced me to a world I now follow and love.

Lesson #8: You may find what you're good at and like doing. Before these summer internships, I knew only that I was interested in magazine journalism. But when I worked for two online companies, I found myself loving the online aspect, and knew I could not work without it. Moreover, my most-successful/most-shared articles were ones related to tech and social media. Cue light bulb. I found my focuses.

3) STUDENT AMBASSADOR

I applied to work for my school's career and academic centers, where they had just created the new position of student ambassador. They tweaked our job duties by taking out resume review, which was definitely one of the factors that made me want to apply. I believed in my resume-writing abilities and wanted to help others. Yet, when I got the news that resume review would be a different position (with less pay and fewer responsibilities), I made a rash decision: I would become an ambassador who would have to present in front of students every week.

I say rash, because leadership and public speaking had not been my strengths. Why, I am a writer -- we writers tend to think most clearly and feel most confident when alone. Yet, I love my job because of the lessons I've learned.

Lesson #9: Take a chance! It turns out that I actually love being a student ambassador. Believe me, I was incredibly nervous and actually doubtful of my choice. Did I make the right decision? I knew I would have been much more comfortable just as someone who reviewed other students' resumes, but I decided to take a chance. I love mentoring students in a more public way. I know my public speaking has improved. Step out of your comfort zone, and only then will you be able to learn the most.

Lesson #10: Do every task to the best of your ability. You may have some not-so-pleasant tasks to complete at work. Sometimes, they may seem pointless, making you not want to do anything at all or putting little effort into these tasks. But when you put in the effort and work hard, your employers will see that, and at the end of the day, you will feel better about yourself.

Now, whether you agree with these lessons or not, I know that I will take these with me for 2013 and beyond. I have certainly gained a lot, and it may be time for you to do the same.