Here’s another blast from the past post. Don’t forget to enter my Novica giveaway also! I accidentally published this yesterday, so I’m sorry if this shows up twice 🙁
Anyways, I’ll let the old post take it away now…
Around 2 weeks ago, I started my first reader submission post about college budgets. This week the question is regarding internships. Internships can be very helpful in your job search because of networking, valuable experience, among other things.
There are not many negatives, except for the fact that in some fields and at some companies, it will be unpaid. However, there are also many industries where interns can make $20 and up. Internships seem to be the norm nowadays, and will most likely be expected on your resume.
If you have any questions that you would like answered by myself or by my readers, ask away or e-mail me 🙂
The reader question:
Hello,
Lately I’ve been hearing a lot about internships. I’m not sure if I should get one or if I should just stay at my part-time job. I’m currently making okay money at my part-time job, and most of the internships that I’m finding are unpaid. Would the unpaid experience be better than me having extra spending money?
Also, what if all I’m doing in making coffee? Will just having it on my resume look good?
Thank you.
I thought this was a great reader question. I also found a great resource for getting the internship you want. I personally think that experience that pertains to the field you are in or want to be in is very important. Why you should get an internship:
1. Networking.
Internships are great for networking. You will meet many people at the company you work for and this is great for future potential job offers, referrals, contacts, references and so on.
There is also the possibility that the internship might lead to a full-time job after you graduate. Also, if the company does not have a full-time job available for you, then they still might be willing to provide outside contacts or references for you as well.
2. It looks great on your resume.
Having an internship and professional work experience looks great on your resume, there’s no doubting that. Employers like to see professional work experience because it usually means that you can conduct yourself in a professional manner.
3. It can help you decide whether you want to stay in that field.
Yes, you might find out a little late whether or not it’s for you, but it’s better than finding out AFTER you graduate. You can always switch your major even though you will might have to graduate a little later than you planned. However, that is better than deciding just to quickly graduate, only to find out that you don’t like your field at all.
My friend (who probably isn’t the smartest on earth) was about to graduate when she took her first student teaching assignment. She didn’t realize until then that she NEVER wanted to teach as a full-time job. She then changed her major. Better late than never.
4. Gaining experience.
If you have internship or professional experience, it’ll make you look a lot better in interviews since you have real life experience such as if you want to be a book publicist. You can also tell them of direct ways that you applied your schooling to your position as well.
However, there are also times when you might want to say no to an internship. If the tasks and position require things that won’t pertain to the job ever, and it’s unpaid, then it most likely won’t be worth it to you. If you already have a part-time job, maybe try going for a management position because that’ll also look great on your resume.
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I would always recommend an internship. There is nothing better than learning from experience. Though you can learn book smarts from schooling, you learn "street" smarts from experience and internships provide just that.
I just can't justify not getting paid right now. It seems like myself and my OH are in a tricky position – neither of us are entirely happy in our jobs, but they are very basic entry level positions, so we have room to manouever into other companies. But for some of the companies we'd love to work for, an unpaid internship is the only way to get in the door. But supporting ourselves, and paying mortgages/student loans will be next to impossible with only 1 salary.
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"I can't justify not getting paid" Unless they're already ridiculously wealthy, I don't think anyone can.
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I did have an internship and it was a paid one! I liked it for all the above reasons plus some income. Sometimes however, I feel that interns, especially non-paid ones are being used and abused. So, it is very important to know and set the boundaries while interning.
Internships are good, but full-time internships can be difficult to take. One summer I had an unpaid internship but only worked there twice a week. Four other days of the week I worked at my job that actually paid me something! Overall internships can be a really good thing. I got into my current job by first interning at the company.
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Internships can be good, especially if it opens up other possible opportunities in the future. I never had an internship as I always stayed on campus to work during the summers.
I've always wanted to intern but never had a chance to. I think the networking connections are important and the experience you can get out of interning when you would otherwise have no chance of getting a job in that field is crucial.
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I am in so much debt and I will have bills to pay very soon so I cannot even entertain the THOUGHT of doing an unpaid internship. Maybe someone with rich parents who paid for their college who gets bored could do it.
Simply put, no. I need the money and the idea of putting in hours for no pay makes me ill! Also, it's important to note that many unpaid internships lead to nothing but wasted time and disappointment.
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I should have done an internship during college. I had a very steady job history through high school and college, but it was in retail. Experience in my field would have helped me find a job in my field a lot quicker than 15 years out from graduation!
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When I took an unpaid internship, I kept my part-time job in order to pay my bills. Because of the internship, I was able to compensate for "lost income" by asking for a higher salary once I graduated/finished the internship. I stayed at that job for over a year, made connections and learned a lot both about the job and about myself (namely that I had no interest in becoming a lawyer). My unpaid internship saved me from YEARS of law school — not to mention the cost!
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I did a couple of internships in college. I did one at a non-profit doing fundraising and another for a record label. Both we're great experiences and I highly recommend it!
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Do an internship in the summer or when classes are out, even if it means taking a semester off. I also can't afford to not have an income. But when school is out you can work parttime and intern parttime. Nothing beats real world experience.
Not doing an internship is one of the biggest regrets in my career. Getting a job in my field would have been 10x easier with an internship or two on my resume coming out of college. While holding down a job and taking classes takes a lot of responsibility, it just doesn't get the calls for interviews when you graduate.
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I'm in the same boat as 1st million. Never did an internship and regret the lost experience I could have had.
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I guess it can depend on the industry, but I actually quit a full time job to take an internship. The internship was for a large company, which helped me get promoted full time without much of a struggle. My resume also looked better and I was able to land more interviews. So, in hindsight, that internship turned out to be the best career move I ever made.
In the short term, it might have looked like I was trading down, but all the doors the internship opened up would never been possible otherwise.
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I didn't do an internship but I wish I did for all of the reasons you cited. You get to network, you gain invaluable experience and you get to really see what the job is like. Many times we think we know what a job will be like, but it turns out to be completely different. I think back to when the TV show CSI was huge. There was a boom in people wanting to go to school for forensics thinking it was a fun job. Little did they know that what is portrayed on the show is like the job – you aren't solving a crime every single day.
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