Naturally, getting top grades in college helps to access to the best career opportunities. But many college students are unaware how important it is to get a great internship as well. As a result, I have repeatedly observed a giant gap in the career launch between regular college graduates and those who battled to get a great internship.
A professional internship provides four critical benefits in launching a career:
- It is a trial run for a particular career field. It is best to discover as quickly as possible if a career in your major subject of study is a fit for you. You can then change majors, or focus on an industry or niche that is a better match for you. Too many enter a profession only after graduation and then learn too late that they do not enjoy that profession. That is a waste of 4 years and a fortune in tuition. Now, they are forced to either return to get another undergraduate or graduate degree to enter a more suitable career. (Plus, explain in every interview why the abrupt career change without sounding fickle.) This is a predictable lesson that is both very expensive and time consuming; and the inoculation is getting internships.
- It provides direct professional experience that puts you a league above all other job applicants coming out of college who do not have any professional experience. You will have skill sets that a new employer can build upon, rather than someone starting from scratch.
- It provides connections and networking that are unavailable to people who are not in the profession. You will learn vocabulary, industry trends, and players that outsiders will not know.
- If you and the company or organization go well with each other, then an internship provides the easiest transition into full time employment with that organization.
Instead of seeking an internship, too many college students choose a summer break or seek jobs with a higher pay like a restaurant where they can earn tips. With a short-term focus, they may earn a little more money over the summer, or relax and have fun. But by graduation, those with professional internships will immediately take the best jobs in their field while the rest of the graduates struggle to get job interviews and wonder how the interns got so lucky.
There are more students than there are openings for internships, so how do you go about finding them? Meet with your school’s career center, ask professors, family and friends, and job sites. If these don’t produce results for you then you have to be more proactive. For example, start contacting companies directly that you want to work for and ask to speak with hiring managers. Speak to students who have landed great internships that you are seeking. Most college students won’t take extra steps and that is also why landing an internship is so valuable; you are proving to any prospective employer that you are ambitious and get things done.
Given how much time, money, and effort you are investing to get a college degree, I highly recommend you add getting a professional internship to the top of your To Do List as well.