I’ll just go ahead and show my cards here: I did this. I’m biased. But it is precisely my bias that makes it so important for me to say this, and for you all to listen… the Yale Farm Internship is quite possibly the best thing you can do at Yale, and you should all apply. I know: spending the vast majority of your break doing physical labor in the heat of the Connecticut summer does not necessarily sound like most Yalies idea of fun. And at times, it isn’t fun—but what it offers is so much better than fun. Say what you will about hippie stuff or the privilege Yale students bring to the world of sustainable food, it’s really great to change the pace of your life by working on a farm and engaging your body (yes, you will end up slightly more toned than you began) for a while. But most importantly, you’re working with a group of six people for eight hours a day, all summer—and in the process, you get to know them really, really well. I do not exaggerate when I say I met some of my very closest friends—in the world—last summer doing the Farm Internship. APPLY. It even pays! Pretty well! Which is more than most internships can say.

(Note: this is the most earnest post I will ever write.)