How did you start looking for work and prepare for internships/jobs?
I originally started looking for internships through Handshake. I spent some good time getting my resume up to snuff and had some outside eyes proofread it for me. At that point I started to apply to anything that sounded interesting and was also a paid opportunity. I only ever heard back from a single opportunity out of the half dozen or so I applied for, and that reply came in months later.
I immediately pivoted to looking for opportunities closer to home. I started to monitor my email for potential opportunities within the department. You can opt into a mailing list that the Computer Science department runs for potential work and internship opportunities. That’s when I saw an email from Ed. He was looking for summer interns and volunteers to help get a new Cybersecurity Department spun up. I reached out to him personally and asked if he still needed people, he said yes, asked me to send him a simple resume, and wanted to interview me same week. At that point landing the job was all about doing well in the interview, setting work expectations etc. I have been working there ever since.
How do you manage your priorities to meet school/work deadlines while still managing a home/personal life?
Part of how I handled balance was by setting good expectations up front with Ed at the time of employment. I was open and forward about how if I was underwater with school or personal responsibilities I would need to disappear for a while to get things under control. He was very understanding and made it very clear that his expectations for work aligned with mine.
Keeping clear, consistent, and regular communication channels open with your managers will make your life easier when trying to juggle responsibilities. Whenever anything came up, I sent the appropriate email, text, or phone call and took care of business. I was allowed to disappear if needed but ensured that everyone knew what was going on beforehand.
Other than that time management is pretty important. Write things down, stay organized, and triage your responsibilities. Take everything one step at a time and things will work out just fine