I took an off-term last Spring, and it was awesome. I didn't teach English in a foreign country. I didn't work in finance. I didn't even have an unpaid internship designed to somehow further my career goals. Instead, I went home, worked in a cafe, played jazz in a lounge with my dad and relaxed.
Fail? While I needed a break and would definitely call my term a success, the reactions of my peers to my less-than-ambitious decision varied. Some were supportive and interested, but others just looked confused, asking me why I didn't go abroad or try to land a prestigious internship. These reactions made me question my choice to go home, and reminded me that Dartmouth's fast-paced atmosphere can be intimidating at times.
Students interviewed by The Mirror agreed that the pressure to be successful at Dartmouth can be quite overwhelming and certainly isn't limited to on-campus activities. The choices we make for our off terms are a reflection of our motivation and drive, and it often seems that doing something "ordinary" is considered a failure.
Isabel Murray '12, who spent an off-term working on organic farms in Malibu, Calif., was less than praised for her off-campus pursuits.
"I got the sense that people thought I was slacking off," Murray said.
She said students found her descriptions "really weird," asking about her parents' opinions of her term and how it would further her future career goals.
Although Murray has no desire to pursue farming as a post-Dartmouth career, she still valued her term.
"It was very personally fulfilling," she said. "I needed to relax, and that's something that's undervalued [at Dartmouth] and in American society in general."
Murray, perhaps influenced by her peers' less than exuberant feedback, expressed doubts about her term questioning whether she was "just lazy."
Adelaide Giornelli '12 felt similarly about her winter term in New Zealand.
"The classes were super easy and only lasted six weeks," she explained.
She spent her remaining four weeks exploring the country. Her term was adventurous and personally enjoyable, but she occasionally rethinks her choice.
"There are people that have job offers because they did internships that Winter, and I [think], What am I doing with my life?'" she said.
Atypical off-terms dedicated solely to "personal fulfillment" aren't for everyone. Seemingly more typical is the internship or volunteering route, designed to help students gain experience for defining their potential career paths. While some enjoy these terms and even come out of them with a job offer, others found that their negative experiences were not worth the resulting resume-boost.
A '12 female described her internship at Davis Polk and Wardwell a New York City law firm that formally recruits interns and full-time employees at Dartmouth as "soul-sucking."
She wished to remain anonymous due to the sensitive nature of the subject.
"We made binders. We photocopied. We hole-punched things. One day, we learned how to shake a pile of papers so all the hole-punched holes lined up," she said.
Dressing in business formal attire to do menial work was not what she expected from a position with such a competitive selection process on campus and prestigious real-world label, she said.
The student felt misled and disappointed when the potentially exciting internship turned out to have "absolutely no relationship to practicing law," she said.
Dartmouth students are used to being productive and challenged, she said, and the internship's "lack of a bigger picture" made her term unsuccessful. The belief in the necessity of resume-boosting experiences in an "unfortunate reality," she explained a reality she wishes wasn't so prevalent at Dartmouth.
That said, other students believed that dislike of an internship is not necessarily a failure. Caitlin Ardrey '13 worked in the finance office for the senatorial campaign of Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., in 2009 and found that while she was interested in politics, raising money and organizing events for the campaign were not as fulfilling as she imagined.
"At least I realized I never want to do that again," Ardrey said.
Ardrey said that the harder choice was not what to do during an off term but what to do with a job offer for example, potentially turning down a high-paying job from an unenjoyable internship.
Ali Oberg '13 agreed, saying that not everyone has the choice to turn down a job simply because he or she wouldn't enjoy it. Taking an off-term internship that you don't enjoy to pay for college or to save for another experience is not "failing," but rather being "reasonable and responsible," she said.
Clearly, deeming an off-term a success or failure depends on countless personal measures. Some students may need time away from Dartmouth to self-reflect. Others may find exploring internships, both good and bad, to be the best option. Either way, pressure to be successful can get in the way of personal preference, especially when dealing with our peers' reactions.
"I think it's troublesome the idea that we must constantly be striving, working and succeeding, but [also] having the best time ever," Murray said. "It's an ideal that's very hard to live up to." On a resume, my Spring spent at home probably won't help me get a job. However, the term away from campus has made me much more productive and content here at Dartmouth, and was if only to me a huge success.
I'm in the midst of planning another off-term this Winter. Maybe I'll take the potentially soul-sucking internship route this time, or choose the cliche volunteer experience. Or I could just go home and hang out with my parents again an option which, to my still homesick self, is very, very tempting, regardless of whether it might be perceived as a failure.
