Internships are a key way to get a step up on your fellow classmates when it comes time to jump into the real world. Now is the time to start looking. If you don’t know what an internship is, why you should get one, or where to start, keep reading.
What Is an Internship?
The key part of an internship, is that it is (or should be), a learning experience related to your career interest. Hopefully your internship will include supervised, practical training.
An internship is a kind of job that is temporary, and usually part-time (10-20 hrs/week). Some that are offered over the summer require more than a part-time commitment.
Most internships are not paid, because, although you are doing work for the company, they are doing you a favor by taking you on as an intern. This is especially true if you have little or no practical experience in the industry. The company will be spending time training and teaching you. If you hate the idea of not being paid, you can think of an internship as a trade – your work for their training.
Why Should You Get One?
If you weren’t convinced by the whole learning aspect of an internship, there are other benefits to consider.
While most internships are unpaid, you can often get credit from your school for the work you do (usually only if it is related to your major or minor). Talk to your guidance councilors, they should be able to point you in the right direction.
A major benefit of an internship is the inside exposure you have to the industry of your choice. This is great for people who have never worked in a professional environment, as well as for people to test out industries. Many students have gotten internships in their chosen field only to discover that they hate the work. Being on the inside of an industry can help you realize what you don’t want to be doing just as much as it can cement your ideas about what you do want to be doing.
Not only will you see the workings of the office but you will make several contacts – this is crucial for your future job search. Anyone and everyone you talk to will tell you that networking is the best way to get a job. Ever hear the saying, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know?” Well, the people you know at your internship may be the people who point you towards a job when you graduate. Even if those people can’t help you, the internship experience alone will look impressive.
Get Searchin’
You have now seen the light and are ready to start the search, but where? The first step to finding an internship is knowing what you are looking for. Once you have determined your goals, decide where you want to be. You can look for internships all over the country, but you probably want to limit your search to the city you are or will be – living in.
Remember, most internships are not paid, so if you need more funds, you will either have to ask for help from mom and dad, or you’ll have to get a part-time job that pays. The first place to go on your search is the college office.
Don’t limit yourself to just the college office, they don’t have the only listings in the world. You can find ads for internships in the local newspaper and on many websites.
Be creative in your search. If you have looked through every resource offered and all the websites you can find and you still don’t see what you are looking for, don’t despair. Many people get internships by just looking up companies in the Yellow Pages.
Make a list of companies for which you would like to work and call them to ask if they have internship programs. Some companies don’t normally advertise for interns but might consider creating an internship for you if you pitch yourself well. You are offering them the benefit of working for free. Of course, you don’t just want to be the “kid who makes the coffee,” but you can hammer out the details once you get your foot in the door.
