Is Productivity the Only Way to Spend the Summer?

In a fast-paced community like Stuyvesant High School, many students have made productivity the main priority of their high school years. In a literal sense, productivity is when work is done over a specific period of time. For Stuyvesant students, this “work” is ongoing, whether the goal is to hone in on academics, pursue extracurricular activities, or work on college applications. While summer break is supposed to be a time for students to relax from academic pressure, it presents another opportunity to be productive, with many students spending significant portions of their summer enrolled in some kind of commitment. Such undertakings vary broadly in time commitment and required effort. 

The drive to be productive over the summer can stem from a variety of sources, whether it be from oneself, peers, family, or a combination of the three. When asked if there was pressure to do a summer program, junior Yubin Li replied, “Definitely pressure, but it was pressure from myself. No one told me to.” This self-motivation seems to be largely attributable to Stuyvesant’s incredibly competitive environment, which fosters a hardworking student body. “They pressure themselves to do something over the summer, because they see all of their friends doing cool stuff. And I’ve definitely felt that over the summer as well,” Li explained.

Sophomore Winter Costanzo agreed with Li, highlighting that most of the pressure to be productive over summer break comes from herself. “I’ve just been given a lot of resources, and it almost feels like a waste to not do anything with them. But that could be seen as kind of a pressure,” she added. With resources such as Mr. Blumm’s opportunities bulletin available to them, students may feel the need to make the most of every opportunity. Although this drive to take advantage of all resources available is not necessarily a bad thing, it can foster an environment in which some students feel behind their peers because they are “wasting” possibilities. 

The primary source of the discussion surrounding productivity for high schoolers is college applications. “I feel like I need to start preparing, because I only have two summers left, and one of them is already gonna be after I apply for college,” Li said. High schoolers only get three summers to curate their resume for college admissions. Depending on what schools one is aiming for, the activities they do can feel incredibly important to building a well-rounded college application. “I just have one summer left to do something that actually looks impressive,” Li explained. This need to appear “impressive” can stress students to apply for summer programs that will look appealing to colleges.

Much of the stress and negativity surrounding summer opportunities for students comes from the fact that students, caught up in worries about college applications, sign up for programs and opportunities that they don’t enjoy or have any particular interest in. “I originally joined Key Club’s Locksmith Committee just for college, but I felt as if I did not belong there. Other people looked like they were also there only for college reasons since they don’t do the work anyways,” senior Raymond Zheng said. Many students sacrifice enjoyment for what will look good on college applications, turning what are supposed to be engaging activities into more of a chore. 

However, these “productive” summer activities don’t have to be something that students dread. Costanzo believes that the key to a fun and fulfilling summer is to select activities that align with personal interests: “At a more basic level, the idea that students have to be doing stuff with their summers to get into college is a little bit odd. But given the fact that there’s so many different programs, you could be doing pretty much anything, no matter what your passion [is].” For example, Costanzo tutored younger students in math online. “I genuinely enjoy tutoring the kids. I have fun with it. I also think it’s a pretty relaxed environment, especially because you’re doing it online,” Costanzo explained. Additionally, she shared that she participated in a CIEE entrepreneurship program over the summer in Sydney, Australia. “Those were probably some of the most fun three weeks I’ve had,” Costanzo noted. “I learned a lot, but it was really chill.” 

Summer can also be a great time to pursue activities that are not necessarily academic. Some students chose to catch up with family and friends and to use the break as a time to truly focus on themselves without stressing about school. “I mostly hung out with family, like I regained the time I lost during school time. I also hung out with friends, went to places, stayed at home, looked after my siblings, [did some] hobbies, and saw what I’m interested in,” junior Yasmina Askarova said. During the school year, where productivity and education are constantly at the forefront of many students’ minds, it can be difficult to make time for oneself. Thus, summer break presents the perfect opportunity for self discovery and to prioritize non-academic interests. “Stuy students should definitely prioritize free time because [as] students, we’re already productive during the school year. We’re grinding, we’re doing homework, we study, and we also do activities after school. That’s already productive enough. During the summer, you should be more on break.” While important, academic productivity does not have to be the end-all-be-all during summer break. Resting and personal development are also incredibly important.

Although there may be some pressure that comes with being surrounded by self-motivated peers and having many opportunities at one’s fingertips, ultimately, the summer months do not have to be an all-or-nothing experience in terms of productivity and relaxation. Activities and summer programs that students enjoy may allow them to view these “productive” experiences as not only something that they would be proud of on a college application, but also as something that they learned from and had fun with.