Are you a student at school or college? 

Are you a year or less from graduating, dreaming about getting into a university abroad, and pursuing a programme that drives your passion?

And are you stuck at home because of Covid-19 and wondering what to do with yourself?

Well, wonder no more! 

The Hurray Overseas Education Team has compiled a list of things you can do over your summer under lockdown – to dispel boredom and feelings of unproductivity, and better yet, to raise your chances of gaining admission into your dream university abroad!

1. Enrol in an Online course

Several platforms operating online, including Udemy and Coursera, are making available a huge number of heavily discounted or even free online courses – several of which are offered by some of the best universities in the world…maybe even the one you’re hoping to get into!

Your current school or university may also be offering a range of webinars and online workshops – you can make the most of such opportunities! 

Use this time to expose yourself to new knowledge and ideas – related to the field you are interested in pursuing, or perhaps something completely new and unexpected…you never know what it may lead to!

Not only will you get to keep in touch with the learning process, but an online course certificate can add credit to your CV – showing any potential university that you are serious about your work!

2. Pick up a new skill…or hone an old one!

Have you always wanted to learn to play the guitar? Or perhaps to speak in a language like German or Japanese? Or maybe coding is more your style, or website design?

Or perhaps there are skills you once learned that you lost touch with over the course of a busy schedule?

Whatever may be the case, now is the perfect time to jump right in! A new skill can be the perfect addition to your profile, indicating that you have developed a number of interests. 

There are a ton of classes and resources available online for any and every skill you would want to learn – with more options added every day. Keep an eye on advertisements in your usual news source…several organisations are taking their classes online to keep up with the demand of Covid-19! 

3. Take your activities online

If you are a member or leader of a school club, college magazine and so on, take the initiative of taking it online. 

Or get a group of likeminded classmates together and form a new group, getting others online with you.

It may involve a few logistics to sort out, including figuring out the right platform, and getting other members on the same page… but with a little work and some imagination, anything from a book club to a drama club can be taken online!

4. Get an Internship

There are several internships available at this time, where you will of course be required to work from home, in online mode.

Reach out to your institution for any opportunities they may know of; if you have seniors who have graduated and are now working, they may give you some interesting leads as well.

Another great option is to upload your profile on websites like Internshala, GlassDoor, LinkedIn and so on… you can zero in on the perfect internship, based on your interests and talents. You may even find an internship in a city or country other than your own, that you may not have been able to land before everything shifted online!

With an internship, you will further bulk up your CV with valuable work experience.

Plus, you will get first-hand experience of working with an organisation virtually, and understand the ins and outs of online work – after all, online work may become the norm for a much longer period than we expect, going forward!

5. Volunteer work

At this time there is great demand for volunteers to perform all kinds of work.

Again, your institute or usual news source may be your best bet – or else, a dedicated Google search may give you great leads.

(P.S. The volunteer work may involve you working online, or it may need you on the ground – so make sure that you choose yours wisely, keeping in mind any health issues or other such things relevant to your family or household, or to you personally.)  

6. Prepare for competitive exams

While we would not suggest spending all your time focusing on studying for exams – as you’ve seen, there’s plenty else you can do! – a situation like the present is the perfect opportunity to get in some valuable preparation. Here are a few options you can look into:

• Enrol in preparatory courses that are delivered in online mode. 

• Make the most of practice tests – it can give you the edge you need.

• Make a time-table for your work and stick by it! It will help you organise and make the most of the time.

Here at Hurray we have plenty of ways in which to help you with your preparation!

If you are looking for online training for IELTS, PTE or OET – we have it all!

Or if you are looking for online resources for your own preparation, you can check out our blogs. We have regular blog articles for IELTS, PTE, and OET, with plenty of tips and strategies to help you prep and practice. While you’re at it, you can also refer to our Overseas Education blogs – where we discuss everything from SOP strategies and interview guidelines for several countries.

We at Hurray understand the kind of uncertainty and anxiety you may be feeling because of the Covid-19 phenomenon – we sympathise, and we would like to offer you a little extra advice:

• Keep yourself occupied in productive activities like the ones we have discussed: when you do, you will feel connected with your goals and confident that things will work out.

• Take care of your physical and mental health: now more than ever it is important that you look after yourself. After all, you will want to enter the next phase of your academic life feeling secure and confident – and good health is the key! So, eat well and exercise, practice all safety measures to keep yourself healthy, keep in touch with loved ones, get plenty of rest – and make sure you keep some time aside to have fun!

You can reach out to our Hurray Overseas Education team for our services are currently online and available – you may reach out to us at info@hurrayedutech.com or 8971357938 / 9900426501, for assistance.