Monday, February 9, 2009

the great white north indeed

I've been looking at summer jobs in Alaska. Fishing lodges, adventure tours, summer camps and National Parks are all on my list to look into.

Pros:
  • I would get to spend the summer in Alaska
  • The money is really good. I guess they figure they've got to do something to attract workers from out of state because I feel like the domestic labor pool would be pretty sparse
  • I'd be gaining valuable...skills...or so the websites tell me
  • Alaska is awesome
Cons:
  • The cost of living is pretty high so I might not end up banking as much as I hope what with rent (most of the jobs don't cover it), fun and food.
  • I'd have maybe 2 weeks to deal with the reverse culture shock of returning home (I expect to be a mess. You've been warned) before flying out again (and potentially dealing a whole new breed of culture shock)
  • I'm pretty sure a number of people who were expecting me to be home for the summer will want to kill me.
  • I don't really have any related work experience for any of the jobs I'm looking at, save the summer camps
  • I would likely arrive back home at the end of the summer in a really messed up place...leaving friends/a life in Thailand, home for a few days, Alaska over the summer, back to Toronto at the end of August saying goodbye to all the awesome Alaskans I would've befriended by that point, just in time to recommence the downward spiral of insanity that is university life.

I'd appreciate your thoughts on the matter.

2 comments:

Jenna said...

I don't really have any advice on the decision-making process, but a friend of mine did his environmental law internship in Anchorage last summer and he loved it. It's a very beautiful place.

Ange said...

Apply and wait it out. If you don't hired, you don't have to make the decision :)