By Trina-Jo Pardo, TrizCom PR Intern

Jealousy and severe #FOMO come over you as you scroll through your Instagram. Pictures of tan bodies and foreign lands fill your friends’ news feeds while your spring break is filled with press releases and media contact lists. The sandy beaches and abundance of mai tais will still be there at the end of this semester, but your internship won't.

Here are some benefits of spending your spring break as an intern rather than as a tourist.

1.        More time in the office

Spending spring break at your internship allows you to devote more time to understanding the business without the distraction of school. It allows you to take on more responsibility and prove your worth to your employers.

2.        More for your portfolio

The additional week at your internship not only means more face time with your employer, but it also means more samples of work you can add to your professional portfolio.

3.        Get ahead in school

Weeknights spent in the dorm or home will give you time to focus on future projects or tests. While your friends are out of town, you can be getting ahead! Making spring break into a proactive workweek will lessen the stresses of the second half of the semester.

4.        Get ready for the real world

After graduation, unless you become a teacher, there is no such thing as “spring break.” You will acclimate yourself to work life more quickly by opting to work at your internship during spring break.

5.        Saves you and your parents money

Vacations and plane tickets can be expensive, especially around the spring break travel period. Opting out of a traditional spring break trip will save you some serious money and will also save you the time of planning a weeklong trip. Plus, you can use the money you would have used for spring break for an even better summer vacation. If your parents are your primary source of income, I’m sure they will thank you for deciding to stay in town for the break by using that cash for a great graduation gift.

Don’t have an internship? No problem! This week is the perfect time to research and apply for possible internships. It’s also a great week to shadow a person who has a job that interests you. You’ll be able to see the daily routine and the ins and outs of what it takes to get the job done!

Spring break is ultimately about you and how you choose to spend your time. Whether this is your first spring break as a college student or your last, make it count and have fun!

Trina-Jo Pardo is an intern at TrizCom PR and a senior at Southern Methodist University.