The advice I always hear is "use what you learn." But there's lots of ways to do this. One is to try to come up with a project or experiment or use case where

The advice I always hear is "use what you learn." But there's lots of ways to do this. One is to try to come up with a project or experiment or use case where you're actually implementing some of what you're learning. (That'd also be a good question for a professor or teaching assistant: how do they use this stuff in the real world?) One of the best career-building skills (for when you leave academia) is "information interviewing." That is, find someone who has the job you want, and ask them to meet you/have lunch, just so you can pick their brain about the industry. Yes, sometimes they'll know of a job opening that you can apply for -- but also, their perspective really helps you focus on what's important about what you've learned, and where to go next. Also, I had a friend who started a study group teaching others the things he'd just learned the day before. He said it was great for him, because it made him restate everything he was learning, and be ready to field questions and give examples.