4 Ways Students Can Maximize their Time During Social Distancing

As schools, colleges, and workplaces adjust to remote work due to the COVID-19 outbreak, we’re experiencing a new way of learning and doing business.

While we do our best to stay healthy and keep our communities safe, we may find ourselves with more time on our hands as we’re social distancing—time we can use productively to work on our college and career goals and stay in touch with our networks. 

Check out some ways that you can use this time to your advantage!

1. Update Your Resume

When was that last time you updated your resume? We know digging out your resume and spicing it up can be difficult and time-consuming. It’s a task we usually don’t think about until we’re ready to apply to a new job or internship. Save yourself this added stress during your next job hunt by taking some time now to update it!

Now is a great time to look back at all your work experiences, internships, job shadows, and professional development you’ve worked on recently to add to your resume. Here are some tips from a recruiter at Verizon to make sure your resume stands out next time you apply for any opportunity. There are also a ton of other professional tips over at KPMG Branding U. 

2. Check Things Off Your To-Do List

Between classes, work, and everything else you have going on, it can be easy to put off and avoid some of the things we need to get done to be future ready. With more time at home, give some attention to the items on your to-do list that you haven’t been able to find time for. 

Are you a junior in high school who hasn’t started researching colleges? Carve out some time to begin your search. We recommend these great resources from the College Board. If you’re a senior, you can use the extra time to apply to scholarships. Websites like Thurgood Marshall list scholarships that you can still apply to. If you’re in college or the beginning stages of your career, now is a great time to learn about a variety of careers and what you may be interested in. Even if you’re not looking to apply right now, you can familiarize yourself with the skills and other requirements needed to obtain an entry-level job in your field of interest. Monster.com and The Muse are two great online resources.

3. Network Virtually!

Just because you’re practicing social distancing doesn’t mean you can’t be social and network! You don’t need to resort to radio silence when you can call, text, email, or DM the people in your network. With more and more people working remotely, this may be a good time to reach out to learn more about a job opportunity, reconnect with a colleague, or seek advice from a mentor. Use the extra time to craft a professional message that will support your college and career goals. 

And remember, these are challenging times and it’s important we check in on one another. Whether it’s to thank a mentor for their support or let a colleague or classmate know they can reach out for help, showing your network that you care can go a long way. 

4. Appreciate Your Teachers

While you’re at home distance learning, your teachers are working incredibly hard to provide you with the education you deserve and maintain a level of normalcy during these unprecedented times. Now is the perfect time to let your teachers know that you appreciate their work and that their resilience during these times will not be going unnoticed.  

You can leave a comment here or DM us on Instagram to tell NAF academy teachers why you appreciate them. NAF will be sharing your comments so our teachers across the country know that we are extremely grateful for all their hard work.

How are you staying productive? Share your tips with us by sending @NAFCareerAcads a DM. You can also get important COVID-19 updates from NAF here.