How to Land an Internship

Any decent job requires applicants to have some experience in the field before even considering filling out the application. For a college student this “experience requirement” falls into the same category as final projects, taxes, and cleaning out the fridge. The category titled, “That thing that I know I need to do but I’ll just do it eventually”, also known as, “Oh no I didn’t do it now I’m paying the consequences”. When entry level job positions want applicants to have 5 years of prior experience, it’s pretty frustrating for a college grad. So how is anyone supposed to get a job when they graduate? The answer: Internships.

Dating Game 2018

Hi guys! So we wanted to let you guys get to know us a little bit better. Megan had to do the Dating Game at her CA training so we thought we would do it as well, so here we go!!

Day in the Life: Jennah's Summer

Hey everyone!
So in continuation of our "Day in the Life" series, (Check out Lacey's day here) this is what a typical day would look like for me this summer.

6:15 Alarm goes off. Hit the snooze button.

6:25 Alarm goes off again. Actually get up this time.

6:25 - 7:50 Eat breakfast, read a Bible verse or two, catch up on emails/texts, pack my lunch and get dressed.

7:50 - 8:00 Drive to work

8:00 - 12:00 Do work stuff. As an accounting intern this summer, I have done things like scan tax returns, answer phones, enter in trial balances, balance financial statements and some auditing tasks like testing cash, payroll, investments and adjusting entries.

12:00 - 12:30 Lunch break. Sometimes I meet up with Aly and we eat lunch together.

12:30 - 4:30 More work stuff'

4:30 - 6:30 Go to the gym (so I can convince myself that I totally deserve that ice cream later)

6:30 - 7:30ish Eat dinner, take a shower, get on my comfy pajamas

7:30 - 10:00 Mess around, play my ukulele, watch youtube/netflix, call my parents, read a book

10:00 Bedtime!


And there you have it, proof that I am a normal "adult" and have a perfectly ordinary life. Every so often I go ride horses in the evening at school with friends, and on weekends I go volunteer at a therapeutic riding center. It's nice to have a consistent schedule, I know my sleep cycle thinks so. Although most of my day is spent at work, those 8 hours are filled with different activities, challenges and learning experience which is super cool and keeps things interesting! I am pretty blessed to have such amazing days this summer.

~Jennah

Celebrate the Holidays with us: Our 4th of July 2018

Hi guys! so we hope your 4th of July was Amazing!!! We all have different ways in how we celebrate the 4th of July and we wanted to share ours with you! So as told best from each of us here are our 4th of July story!

30 Lessons We Learned 2nd Year

During our second year at college we have learned both in and out of class. We wanted to share more with you from our second year of school. Last year we wrote about our Freshmen year of college and the lessons we learned then, so if you’re just starting out that post will also help you out! So again in no particular order, here are our list of things we learned our second year of college!

Living on My Own!

So this year, my summer job is about 700 miles away from my home in Texas. Which means unless I wanted to make the 12 hour drive everyday to the accounting office, I had to find a place to live for these 3 and a half months. The town is about 30 minutes away from school, but the dorms are closed for the summer. So guess what! I am now living on my own for the first time in a rental house. The cheapest and most reasonable option was to rent an Airbnb. I ended up booking two different places to get the best deal. I am currently living in a pretty nice, fully furnished house in a neighborhood about 10 minutes away from work.

My Favorites: Jennah

Hi everyone! Jennah here. Here is a random list of my favorite things!

Color: Turquoise (also purple and green tie for second)

Animal: I bet you can guess! The horse of course. I am at college for horses after all. Specifically, these two, Mae and Chaplin. I don't have them anymore, but I still love and miss them! I do also love dogs and tigers!

Food: I will do anything for chocolate. Anything.

Music: Any random song that catches my attention. My playlists usually include a whole bunch of different genres

Books: So many great ones to choose from! Used to read a LOT before college. I loved the Percy Jackson, Narnia and Hardy Boys series when I was younger, and nowadays would love to curl up with a good fantasy or mystery novel.

Movies: I LOVE movies that blow your mind or make you think, such as Arrival, The Prestige and Inception. I am also a huge fan of Star Wars and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Don’t get me started on the new Infinity War! I am still lowkey (ha) freaking out.

Stuff to do: Riding horses, geocaching, reading, hiking, roller skating, hanging out with friends, swimming, bowling, anything adventurous and spontaneous (preferably outside!)

Classes at WWU: Stable Management, the riding classes, Keeper (yes, I enjoy it!), Auditing

Really Specific And Maybe Strange Stuff that I like: The smell of rain. Accounting. That moment

when your Trial Balance finally balances when you’ve been working on it for 2 hours. When you and a friend look at each other and instantly crack up. Jason's smile. The feeling of dirt and sweat on your skin after a day of hard work. When your horse follows your around (even when you are actually just holding treats). The smell of home. Singing at the top of your lungs in your car where you think no one can hear you. Hugs from kids. Licks from puppies. High fives from strangers. When you find the last piece of the puzzle you’ve worked on for the last week (it was under the rug). That feeling when you and your horse soar over a jump after making the perfect stride. When your younger brother asks when you will be back home because he misses you. Realizing you have no more homework. Bubbles (obviously).

People: Jesus. My family. My dear friends. My mentors. My teachers. All those who have taken me into their own families and made me feel loved and wanted. You know who you are 😉

Anyway, those are some of my favorites! Leave a comment with your own favorites!

Summer Plans

Hi guys,

This will be my formal farewell to the Friend’s at the Woods Blog because I am transferring to a school closer to home. 15 hours is a long way from home! 

Meet the Hunter/Jumper Horses!

There are all sorts of wonderful horses in the Hunter/Jumper barn! They are all donated by amazing people and are teaching students how to ride hunt seat. We have a herd of 38 horses, made of of mares, geldings and all sorts of breeds, sizes and colors. Here are a few that you might find if you visit the hunter/jumper barn!

Adventures at the State DECA Competition

A few weeks ago, I travelled with the WWU DECA club to compete in the annual DECA State Competition. DECA is a club on campus that focuses on improving an individual’s knowledge of business, leadership and finance. For more information on the organization, check out our WWU Clubs post here. DECA used to stand for “Distributive Education Clubs of America”, but the people in charge realized that the phrase didn’t really describe the club very well. So now the letters don’t really stand for anything *shrug*. During state competitions, students compete in various events such as marketing, retail management, business ethics and accounting. In each event, an individual or a team analyses various case studies or simulations and are judged on the most correct or creative response. A multiple-choice quiz for each category is also involved in the judging. Other judged events include prepared business plans, chapter and member of the year, and a trivia bowl. All of this takes place over two days in a resort located about an hour away from the school by the Lake of the Ozarks. 

Life as a WWU Keeper

Keeper [key-purr] noun

                1. A student who is enrolled in ­­­­­­­­­­­­­Horse Management Practicum I or II, whose main duties involve taking care of the horses at WWU along with other students in the class.

                2. An absent roommate who smells like horse all the time.

Also see: #keeperlife

Major Highlight: Accounting

Although I mostly talk about horses and my Equestrian Science classes, I am also majoring in Accounting. When most people hear the word “accounting”, they think of math equations, lots of numbers, men in fancy suits and dollar bills. In reality, accounting is simply the method for keeping track of what happens in a business. Yes, there is math and a lot of numbers involved, but the math portion is just addition, subtraction, division and multiplication. Personally, I am not a fan of math or numbers, but I took an accounting class at a community college and fell in love. There is just something satisfying about the way everything has its own place and making sure everything is organized.

Sample Income Statement

Celebrate the Holidays with us...Winter Break 2017-2018

Hi Friends!  I have returned “To the Woods” from Winter Break.  Over the holiday, I spent time with family, shopped for a vehicle, and had several interviews for summer intern graphic design positions.  The Weber Family is a LARGE group; 40 of us gathered at my aunt and uncle’s house to celebrate Christmas.  The ages range from one to 85.  I am blessed to have both my grandparents living.  After the holiday, my parents and I shopped for vehicle.  I am looking at a silver jeep, but that hasn’t come through yet.  I also had the opportunity to interview for several summer intern positions.  My hope is that one of them come through and I’ll be set for the summer.
~Aly

SWAT

              

  Last semester, I joined the WWU Student Website Advancement Team (SWAT). This is a student-run business on campus that helps businesses create, update, or improve their websites. It is an awesome club which has been helping me improve my technology skills and make new connections both on and off campus!

Celebrate the Holidays with us...Thanksgiving 2017

Hi friends, this past weekend was thanksgiving and in my family this means a lot of

parties and turkey, lots and lots of turkey. I have two days of parties that I went to for thanksgiving because my family is so big.

Adventures as a Teaching Tech

For EQS (Equestrian Science) majors at WWU, there are a series of classes called Teaching Tech. The first class is a theory class, where students learn basic teaching concepts and how to formulate lesson plans. Once the student is first aid certified, they can take Teaching Tech 2, 3, 4 and Seminar. During these classes, the student chooses their main riding discipline and becomes an assistant for the instructor during riding classes. Here are my experiences as a tech so far!

Magic the barn cat sitting in a feed box

WWU Hunter/Jumper Derby

     Last weekend, William Woods hosted the Fall Hunter/Jumper Derby. The hunter/jumper show team runs the competition, which consists of classes anywhere from ground poles to 2’ hunters to 3’ jumpers. This was my first time showing as a Jumper, and it was a very awesome experience!

The Scoop on WWU Orientation

This year, I was hired as an Orientation Leader for the incoming class. It was a really neat experience! So, if you are thinking about becoming an orientation leader, or want to know the behind-the-scenes of college orientation, keep reading!

WWU Clubs

When you go to college everyone wants to give you advice. I remember checking out at Walmart and when my Dad mentioned I was going to college next week I suddenly started getting advice from the cashier, the cashier in the next lane over and the customer behind us! Most of what people say is either common sense, not worth listening to, or is repeated by everyone. One of those repeated pieces of advice is to join clubs on campus. Four of us here at Friends at the Woods agree with this wholeheartedly. We are still trying to convince Aly to join clubs but the rest of us cant imagine college without them. So, today we are each going to describe the clubs we were a part of last year. If you are coming to WWU this is a great way to see SOME of what our campus has to offer. If you aren't coming to WWU then you are going to the wrong school! JK! Maybe you can start a club like one you see here at your own school. So without further ado, WWU clubs...

Packing for College... The Bulky Stuff

In this post, we will discuss the items that seem like the most troublesome things to bring: The Big Stuff. If you have a roommate, it might be helpful to coordinate with them and see if y’all want to share or just bring your own. Also consider your available space in your method of transportation to make sure you are physically able to bring these items along.

Here are some Bulky Items to consider: