How did you go about finding your first college internship and what did you gain from the internship?
I plan to be engaged in internships when I am at college. #engineering #science #technology #research #experience #work #intern #medical-laboratory
5 answers
Allison Tuszynski, CGBP
Allison’s Answer
Alden, it's great that you are already thinking ahead about how to select your internship. Think of your internship as a trial for a job; you already know it is temporary so you should consider trying something you might like to do after college. If it works out and you like the work, you have the contacts you need to obtain the job. If you don't like the work, you are still ahead because you know what you don't want. I selected my first internship because of the mission of the organization, which was to promote the international exchange of knowledge. Although I don't work directly in that field anymore, it was a great experience and I learned that I loved international work. When selecting an internship, don't think at all about money (unless you have to, based on your financial situation), that will come later when you look for a job. Hopefully you are in a position to select an internship based on the experience you would gain. There is no right or wrong time to do an internship either, it will depend on your course load and any other outside obligations. You may be ready for one your freshman year or not until senior year. My suggestion would be to try to complete two short-term internships in different fields. This way you have some breadth of experience which you can use to make decisions on your career path.
Matthew’s Answer
An internship is a gateway to getting a job. It gets you to the front of the line when you apply at that company. So, when looking for an internship, do your research and pick one in a field you want to work in. The company you choose to intern for should be a company you want to work for.
Notice I keep using the singular when talking about internships. Your only going to do one, maybe 2, over the course of a four year degree, and it will usually happen in your junior or senior year after you have gained some knowledge at college. The internship is setting you up for a career, so pick carefully.
Natalie’s Answer
When you're looking for an internship, don't be shy! You can ask anybody and everybody about opportunities that they might know of or maybe they can tell you more about what they do and how they got there. For example, maybe an internship isn't needed for your career path and you need to look at something else! You can look at community groups, nonprofits, neighbors, or even ask your peers where they're applying for internships.
Sheri’s Answer
At the start of the winter-spring semester, or in early December, a lot of companies start posting summer internships for the coming year, which makes it the best time for college students to start applying. In order to gauge interest, think about companies that you interact with on a frequent basis, especially as a consumer. Start there and decide if that company's values match up with yours. Take the time to LinkedIn search their online messaging and what past interns have said, and search for the company on Indeed's company pages. From there, feel free to take a chance and reach out to past interns, especially if you note any similarities in their resume and yours. I'd also spend time brainstorming on what matters most to you as an employee, what specifically in this internship stands out to you, where does it lie in comparison to your long term goals.
Interning helped me figure out what I enjoyed most about working, vs what I could do without. The work experience and even general understanding of how an office functions, helped me understand how current employees furthered their careers and where I could find my footing.
Nicole’s Answer
For me, getting my first internship was really about finding my first summer job. To do this, I pretty much search job wanted ads and worked on creating an effective resume. This was at a time when job applicants would send resumes in the mail (imagine that :)). I imagine an equivalent process today is to use something like LinkedIn? Or other online tools to submit an online application for jobs? In other words, the tools to find that internship or summer job may change but I don't know that the process for me would have been any different. I was fortunate to get good summer jobs that allowed me to build my resume. Having the opportunity to write my resumes, while in college, has served me well from a practice perspective.
In terms of what I gained, the list is limitless...but for here, I will be brief :) I learned how to work with various teams and to think ahead. Some of my jobs at the time included data entry so I learned efficient ways to be fast and accurate. I learned the discipline of being on time (and sometimes staying late when necessary). I learned the importance of networking which helped me to line up summer jobs for upcoming summers.
I do hope this information is helpful to you. Best of luck!