Every year, once August rolls around, we realize we did not Leetcode enough, our resumes need reviewing, and our LinkedIn is filled with posts on job boards or recruiting events. Juggling the job search, university classes, and other extracurricular commitments takes a detailed calendar, confidence and trust in your abilities to set reasonable goals. However, the stress of not getting an internship or new-grad position and general worries over the job market can derail any amount of planning.

A lot of self-care that I practice during peak recruitment season (August to October) revolves around simplifying/reducing decisions unrelated to school and job search and actively distancing myself from the job search. Here is the way I see it, all day, you are learning new material in your classes while doing job search activities, so you are making many decisions and processing a lot of information. After all this, if you had to come home and try to decide on tasks like chores/what to eat for dinner, it can be hard to fight through exhaustion and decision fatigue.

Over the years, I have found some simple things that help make the entire process a bit smoother. Here are some of the specific self-care practices I actively follow:

  1. Make your meals simple: Most of the time I pick up healthy-ish frozen meals during late August, which is typically when job postings come up and Online Assessments (OAs) are sent out. This would continue during the first two weeks of Fall Term as I settle into new routines. In the weeks I have interviews or multiple OAs, I continue with this frozen meal system. Other options would be signing up for a meal delivery/meal kit option or getting the meal plans on campus if you live close enough.
  2. Talk to your family: Yes, everyone tells you this, but trust me it helps. Your family knows the way you work and think the best. Working under stressful conditions is hard for all of us. Talking about this with your family can not only be a channel to vent but also a way to get recommendations or low-stakes feedback.
  3. Talk to non-CS friends: In a similar sense, when all your CS friends are discussing Leetcode questions or what company’s OAs are out, it’s a constant loop of job search topics. While it can be helpful to discuss together, it is also good to step away from this area and talk to your friends in other majors! Some of my interview answers have been influenced by something I learned from a friend in Philosophy or Creative writing. Tech is something everyone interacts with. Our future customers are our friends, so learning about their views can be helpful.
  4. Have a job search group: This can be friends going through the same process as you, large established Discord servers like CSCareerDevs or other tech community groups. Find people you can trust and practice interviews, share job postings or networking events. You cannot find all the jobs or events out there. It’s really hard, so a group is always helpful! Remember your friends will go on to intern at cool companies and can potentially refer you in the future!
  5. Let your TAs/Profs know and ask for extensions if you need them: I stay back after class or tutorials and tell my TAs and professors that I’m job searching and would need some extra time on assignments. Most interviews get scheduled with 3/4 days’ notice. That is too short notice to move around assignment plans. Letting them know about this can help if you need accommodations or extensions!
  6. Archive the rejection emails and hide them in your job trackers: Looking at rejections every time you open your inbox sucks. I routinely check my email and archive the rejections under a ‘2024 Rejection’ folder. I track my applications in Notion and hide the companies I get rejected from. It is not helpful to keep thinking about them because multiple factors go into rejections: lack of headcount, strict requirements, graduation date conditions, etc.
  7. Have a post-interview/event self-care routine: Once you start attending networking events or interviewing, I strongly recommend a post-meeting self-care routine. It can be extremely simple: eating your comfort meal, watching a TV show, napping for a few hours or hitting the gym. Have something to look forward to after these stressful experiences, and if you can, avoid doing university work until you have rested.
  8. Block out at least 2 hours of your Sunday: Set aside at least 2 hours in your calendar on a free day and ensure you are doing something for fun. I head down to the Harbourfront and read books by the water if the weather is nice! Other times, I recreate complex recipes that end up taking 2 hours to execute. In general, I would recommend doing an activity away from the screens. Again, cliche advice, but it helps break you out of the stress.

At the end of the day, there are many ways to gain experience. Someone working at a cafe is learning the same soft skills of prioritization, user experience and communication as someone in a tech internship. Everything can be learned, it is how we have got this far. Remember to reach out for help - it is always around the corner! Good luck with the job search!