Featured Student: Planning for a Successful Future by Building Experience Now

By Janet Zimmerman

With the newness of this semester wearing off, it is a good time to take into account what your schedule looks like on a weekly and monthly basis.  I usually sit down with my calendars and pencil everything in (classes, projects, test, birthdays, trips, jobs, volunteer opportunities, SDA activities or other organization obligations, “me” time, exercise time, etc.). 

I have learned that organization and planning are key to time management, and time management is key to getting the most experience in dietetics that you can (which is one of the most important things we can do as students).  By outlining the activities you have in a calendar, you can see when you have time to explore the different aspects of dietetics.  I promise that ANY time you put into volunteer or job opportunities concerning nutrition or food will NOT go void, and the planning that allowed you to make time for opportunities will keep you from overbooking yourself, getting more stressed, and wasting time.

So how do you plan for more experience and success?

1)   Like I said above, use a calendar/planner and find out when you have periods of free time.  Besides showing you free time, planners are a wonderful tool to keep you on task and remind you of upcoming events or important dates.

2)   Once you find time, start looking for opportunities that will work for these times.  For example if you have Saturdays open, then you can look for soup kitchen volunteering opportunities, volunteer positions at the farmers market, volunteering positions with a dietitian in the hospital, etc.  The Student Dietetic Association or organization at your university should be able to help you find opportunities in your community as well.

3)   By trying different volunteer opportunities that fit your schedule, you will already have started building your resume and filling out areas of your internship application.  I suggest that all dietetic students keep track of their leadership positions, memberships in organizations, jobs, and volunteer positions.  I keep mine in a simple spiral notebook; beside each thing I do, I write the hours I spend, a description of what I did, and anything that I might have learned.  This little notebook will help you tremendously when it comes time to fill out your dietetic internship application and personal letter.

So, why not start off the semester using your time wisely in school and outside of school?  Planning out the time you have will pay off during the semester and in your future as you build your experience!