Привет, всем!

I have a dilemma, and I'm wondering if any of you have some advice. I'm looking for advice on both sides, be it Russians or Americans.

I'm finishing my degree in December (BA in Russian), and my language courses are finished, sadly. I'm getting conversational help - whenever I can go on Skype, at least - but I know that I need to work on vocabulary. I bought some books that our Russian Culture Club had a book sale with, and a lot of them are grammar/vocabulary books, as well as children's books. I have all this vocabulary, but I'm not sure how to go about using it.

Do I put everything into flash cards and study? Do I write sentences with the words and try to remember them that way? Do I just try to use them when I get conversation practice? I'm working on trying to get a job abroad in Russia or Ukraine for immersion, but other than that, I'm trying to continue my language skills and since I don't have the same resources I had in my courses, I'm at a loss. Can anyone help?

Спасибо большое зарание!