By Chron Contributor Updated July 23, 2020
Many colleges and universities offer internship programs for their students. This gives young job seekers the chance to decide if a particular job is a good fit. Interns may have limitations on what they can do within an organization, but they can certainly observe the activities of others to add more value to the experience.
Meet Goals and Requirements
Colleges often establish requirements that interns must meet to complete the internship program successfully and earn college credit. Ursinus College stresses the importance of having written academic, personal and professional goals and objectives before interning. Goals for an internship in human services might include applying social work principles to the client intake process. Sample internship leaning objectives might include developing group facilitation skills.
These goals then become part of the evaluation process at the end of his time with the company, and they need to reflect the requirements set by the college. The goals may long-term for the entire length of the internship, or they may be short-term goals.
Interns are often required to update their faculty advisers weekly on how they are meeting their goals. Some colleges send faculty advisers to work sites to observe interns in the work environment.
Gain Real-World Experience
A primary goal of any internship is to gain as much experience as possible. While an intern may not have major tasks assigned to him, he should pay close attention to all the steps that go into completing a job. Interns should seek opportunities to work in a variety of situations. For example, PR internship goals might including writing web content, designing ads, assisting customers and working on ad campaigns.
As the internship progresses, the intern should receive progressively more challenging assignments. The broader an intern's experiences, the better he can determine if the job is one he wants to pursue after college.
Bolster Resume
A key goal of any internship is resume-building. The intern wants to not only list the internship on his resume, but to also have tangible examples of things he created during that time.
For example, if the intern has the task of creating a multimedia presentation for his supervisor, the presentation can become part of the intern’s resume. Tangible examples of job skills from the internship on a resume provide an edge for the intern over people who cannot document similar experiences.
Start Networking
An internship offer an opportunity to explore career options and socially network, according to the KU University Career Center. Also, the intern may find someone to serve as his mentor. This may be his supervisor, or it may be someone else who is willing to let the intern ask detailed questions about the job.
A mentor also serves as a sounding board and may offer encouragement to the intern. The intern may stay in touch with the mentor long after he completes the internship. In addition to these job contacts, the intern should make every effort to get to know as many people as possible at work. Any of them might prove instrumental in the intern’s future as his makes job applications and asks for references.
Land a Job
Internships, particularly in in high-demand fields, can lead to an offer of full-time employment after graduation. Check with your advisor for information on internships that may lead to a job. For example, the Accounting Department at Austin Community College indicates that local companies Allen Hill Associates PC and Accenture have offered paid accounting internships leading to full-time employment with their firm.
