The Impact of an Internship
By: Timothy Augustine, Author, How Hard Are You Knocking?
It is truly hard to measure the power of an internship. Throughout my career, I have worked with thousands of students in a number of capacities. As a business owner, I have hired many students as interns as well as full-time employees. As a career coach, author and speaker, I help job seekers navigate through the job search process. Regardless of my role, my advice has always remained the same. The more life experiences you have, the better career decisions you can make and the more value you can provide to a potential firm or position. Internships are a once in a lifetime experience that can change your future forever.
I am not going to get to philosophical here, but I want to explore the power of experience and perspective that internships can provide.
What are Internships?
According to Wikipedia, www.wikipedia.org, an internship is commonly considered ‘a temporary position with an emphasis on education rather than merely employment.’ Internships allow students, especially college students, to work in the field that they plan to enter after completing their college education. An internship may be paid or unpaid, depending upon the field. Often, internships concerning engineering, science or business are paid internships while internships involving liberal arts are usually unpaid. Here are ways an internship can be beneficial for career planning.
Internship are opportunities for you to work for your target companies, in your target industries, doing what interests you, adding value by performing a role and gaining invaluable life experience. These opportunities can also help those interested in many different careers or industries decide which one is best suited for them by having ‘hands on’ experience.
Internships provide many benefits. They provide a perspective of different industries, firm types and cultures and types of positions that might be of interest. Internships provide a glimpse of what business is like, how people and teams interact and how things get done. It also provides the experience, confidence and valuable skills that make job seekers more marketable during their job search.
Marketable Benefits:
Developing Work Skills
Internships can help students apply the skills and knowledge they have acquired through their involvement with professional or social organizations and throughout their college career. Students may also learn new skills while on the job under the guidance of a mentor or work team. Many companies have formal internship programs that help the intern acclimate to the firm, integrate into the team and better understand how projects get done as well as the skills needed to complete various tasks. This type of environment is especially useful for students to gain ‘hands on’ experience in a work environment.
Build your network of contacts, peers and mentors
During an internship, students may have the opportunity to work with teams, leaders, other employees and peers. By working with others, students are able to make connections with their co-workers. These connections are beneficial as they may result in friendships, mentors and even employment references as part you future job search process. As part of any job search advice I provide, I recommend leveraging your network to help make corporate introductions, facilitate informational interviews and provide advice and contacts with potential companies. Overall, the skills of developing relationships and building your network will provide many benefits throughout your long-term career. I am actually still friends with people from my first internship.
View your internship as a learning opportunity and a chance for you to show the world how valuable you are. It is not just a job; it is the first step in your successful career!
Walt Disney once said “I hire interns because they are pure, have the world ahead of them and view each task as an opportunity to make a first impression”
About the Author: Augustine is a nationally acclaimed author and professional speaker focused on career development and corporate people strategies. He is the Author of the book How Hard Are You Knocking? and has been featured on ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC and reviewed in USA Today, Wall Street Journal, LA Times, The Chicago Tribune, and The National Association for Campus Activities. He has made numerous radio and television appearances and has presented to over 400 organizations and 100,000 people throughout the United States. He is a contributing writer to Inc. Magazine, Fast Company and Monster.com on topics pertaining to the people strategies of successful organizations. His newest book titled “How Hard Are You Knocking, Landing a Job in a Rebounding Economy” will be released in July. To learn more about Tim, his books and seminars series, please visit www.howhardareyouknocking.com or contact him directly at 248-447-2000.
