Choosing the right internship

Most tertiary students prefer to go on an internship during their holidays because it gives them many benefits. For one, they gain valuable working experience. Furthermore, internships make their Curriculum Vitae (CVs) look good!

Despite these advantages, many students complain about their poor internship experience due to various reasons (low pay and long hours being the most common). They would have had a much better internship if they had only choose wisely.

1) What is the purpose of your internship?
It is always good to ask yourself why you are doing an internship rather than just follow the crowd blindly. If you have already decided to pursue a career in a field related to your degree, then it is probably wise to choose internships within that field, so that you get hands-on-exposure to complement your theoretical knowledge.

However, if you are still unsure about your career choice, then an internship can serve to be the trial period in which you realise if a particular field is suitable for you or not. By understanding the reason for doing your internship, you see the bigger picture which allows you to cope with any stress or despair you may encounter during your short stint at an organization. If money is your motivating factor, I suggest you forget about interning as most internship positions provide paltry paychecks.  

3) Research and Choose early
Companies usually offer their internship positions quite early. So it is important that you start planning ahead. The internship offers will generally be available at the career centre. Hence, it is a good idea to drop in and take a look at the various options on a regular basis. It is advisable to decide on a particular internship offer and apply for it around 2 months ahead of your summer vacation. But it is just as important to do a thorough research on your preferred choice of company.

Factors such as the company’s nature and field of work, as well as your individual job scope are must-knows before you begin any internship. You may also want to have a quick word with your friends or seniors who have done internships at that particular company so that you get a better sense of what you are getting into. Ignorance may be bliss for many issues but I think that internships are one of the exceptions to the rule, and I am sure you won’t want to find that out the hard way. Start planning and have a great internship experience!  

Do you have any tips or experiences related to internship programmes? Write in to share your experience here!

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