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College students are planning for the future鈥攈opefully, anyway!鈥攂ut even high schoolers generally have a few potential careers in mind. Student internships are a great way to get a taste of what a particular job or industry is really like before you make a commitment.

Why? Unlike reading a text or listening to a lecture, spending time in an office or other workplace offers hands-on experience and the ability to learn from current employees.

Why are Internships so Important?

The country is full of successful students with high GPAs, honor society memberships, and long lists of extracurricular activities. But one thing that students often overlook during their educational paths is the importance of completing an internship, even if it is just for the summer or one semester.

Some college majors require internships in order to graduate鈥攆or example, education and most medical studies鈥攂ut they鈥檙e optional for others. Even if you don鈥檛 have to be an intern to earn your degree or diploma, you might want to consider doing it anyway. In some cases, you might earn course credit for your efforts and some internships are paid rather than unpaid. (You might not bring home hefty paychecks, but something is better than nothing!)

Take the Initiative

According to a recent study by Millennial Branding and StudentAdvisor.com found that while 85% of students feel that internships are important to their future careers, less than half of the students surveyed had actually completed one or more internships.

Millennial Branding鈥檚 Dan Schawbel claims that this lack of student interns is not because opportunities aren鈥檛 available, but because teachers and career advisors typically do not recommend internships until students are already juniors, when it may possibly be too late.

Schawbel also points out that there鈥檚 no rule declaring a student鈥檚 first internship must be complex or overly impressive. 鈥淵ou can work for your parents, you can work for your school. It’s very general work if you think about it,鈥� he told the media.

Benefits of Interning

Internships offer more than the ability to get your feet wet. If you鈥檙e still in high school, listing an internship on your college application (or detailing your experiences in your college application essay) just may help you get into your dream school. And if you鈥檙e already in college, there are plenty of perks for you, too.

Consider the following advantages of being an intern:

• You鈥檒l gain real-world work experience.
• You鈥檒l have the ability see if you鈥檙e truly interested in a career.
• An internship will help you stand out from the crowd, a huge advantage!
• You might get paid or earn credit for school.
• You will meet and network with people with established careers.
• You鈥檒l gain new skills and learn new things.
• You will learn common etiquette in that particular field.

Employers often hire their interns for full-time jobs after graduation鈥擳he reports that 60% of paid interns from the class of 2012 also got job offers.

These are just a few of the many benefits of interning. At worst, you might figure out that your 鈥渄ream job鈥� really isn鈥檛 for you or realize that a particular company or firm doesn鈥檛 mesh with your values and beliefs.

Where to Find Internships

If you鈥檝e made the decision to go for it, there鈥檚 one rule to remember鈥攖he sooner you start looking for internships, the better. Just like 鈥渞eal jobs,鈥� some are highly competitive with many more talented, worthy applicants than available positions.

Consult your college or high school鈥檚 career services or guidance office for advice about local internships, and don鈥檛 be afraid to ask professors, friends, family, and even your parents or neighbors. You can also search career sites like Monster and CareerBuilder as well as the 911爆料

If an interview is set up, remember to treat it just as you would any other important job interview. Bring a copy of your resume and practice discussing your strengths and weaknesses, your college major, and why you feel you’d benefit if offered the position.

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Posted on 16 Nov

Melissa Rhone earned her Bachelor of Music in Education from the University of Tampa. She resides in the Tampa Bay area and enjoys writing about college, pop culture, and epilepsy awareness.