Why intern?
To learn more about your field or industry. Internships are one of the best ways to truly learn about your field from a real-world perspective.
Apply knowledge learned in the classroom. Interning for an organization helps students learn how their classroom knowledge applies to real situations and reinforces concepts taught in classes.
Gain valuable work experience. In most fields, no longer can a college graduate land an entry-level job with merely a bachelor’s degree and no prior work experience. Internships help students get this real-world experience while still in school. Internship programs are a great way to generate more work samples for your professional portfolio.
Decide if this is the right path for you. It’s best to know as early as possible, and an internship can help you do that.
Develop and build upon skills. Learning new skills in an internship can help you in future employment opportunities and might give you a leg up on your competition in future application processes.
Get a foot in the door at a company. Internship experiences provide a valuable opportunity to share your skills with a prospective employer long before the hiring process for an entry-level job occurs. This can be a great benefit when, in the future, an opening does occur—if you’ve impressed them, you’ll probably be on the list of top candidates for the job.
Gain valuable networking contacts. Another benefit to completing an internship is the contacts you make. Networking is often one of the best ways to land a new job and a primary way to learn about unadvertised job opportunities.
Obtain references for future job opportunities. Your internship supervisor has had a chance to see your skills in action at the company and is an ideal reference for future job opportunities. Other individuals you work closely with at your internship can also serve as references or provide recommendation letters for your job search.
Meet peers with similar interests. Internship programs can introduce you to other students and recent graduates in your field or who share your interests—which certainly can’t hurt your career or your social life.
To learn more about your field or industry. Internships are one of the best ways to truly learn about your field from a real-world perspective.
Apply knowledge learned in the classroom. Interning for an organization helps students learn how their classroom knowledge applies to real situations and reinforces concepts taught in classes.
Gain valuable work experience. In most fields, no longer can a college graduate land an entry-level job with merely a bachelor’s degree and no prior work experience. Internships help students get this real-world experience while still in school. Internship programs are a great way to generate more work samples for your professional portfolio.
Decide if this is the right path for you. It’s best to know as early as possible, and an internship can help you do that.
Develop and build upon skills. Learning new skills in an internship can help you in future employment opportunities and might give you a leg up on your competition in future application processes.
Get a foot in the door at a company. Internship experiences provide a valuable opportunity to share your skills with a prospective employer long before the hiring process for an entry-level job occurs. This can be a great benefit when, in the future, an opening does occur—if you’ve impressed them, you’ll probably be on the list of top candidates for the job.
Gain valuable networking contacts. Another benefit to completing an internship is the contacts you make. Networking is often one of the best ways to land a new job and a primary way to learn about unadvertised job opportunities.
Obtain references for future job opportunities. Your internship supervisor has had a chance to see your skills in action at the company and is an ideal reference for future job opportunities. Other individuals you work closely with at your internship can also serve as references or provide recommendation letters for your job search.
Meet peers with similar interests. Internship programs can introduce you to other students and recent graduates in your field or who share your interests—which certainly can’t hurt your career or your social life.