Internships are probably one of the best and most important things about college life. They really help in defining and understanding your interests and skills, your strengths and weaknesses, your potential future career.
Doing multiple internships while in college or even after is a very smart decision because the various internships in various fields will help you firstly, define your interest area in terms of work and career, and secondly, help you understand what you’re good at and what you need to work on. This, without a doubt, gives you a head start for your future when you look at job opportunities that could suit you the best. Also, if you perform really well in your internships, you can even get retained in the company/organization you interned at! That’s a big plus because then you don’t have to struggle to get a job because you already have one, and you already understand the organizational structure and know all the people you will work with, which is perfect!
There are various reasons why internships are good for you and your future career. Here’s why –
- Experience and exposure
While in college, you are still protected from the career world and if you do not have a taste of how life’s going to be soon after you finish college, you’d be at a loss. Internships help you bridge this gap. You are able to gain first hand exposure at the workplace and learn about how things function in the real world. Working on the multiple tasks and responsibilities at your internship will help you train for when you start a job and it adds to your experience. You grow in skills, accountability, responsibility, applying theory to practice, processes, etc and in a controlled manner, since you are an intern.
- Building connections for your professional network
Networking is something that will help you grow in your professional career, at any given point. With the various networks you build and maintain, the better it gets for you when you need to work with people/companies/organizations. Networking never goes out of its charm. It’s always there for you when you need those connections and relationships. It’s the best way to grow and develop. Interning helps you with this. It gives you opportunities to develop strong relationships with professionals and maintain them for your professional growth. How you keep these relationships fresh is up to you.
- Good for your CV
Adding your internships into your CV makes it valuable. When you are at an interview, these internships can help you land a job because they show you have experience, exposure and that you show some promise as a young professional. Not only that, these internships bring a sense of confidence in you, from all that exposure and experience, and interviewers like that. You are more likely to get that job you interviewed for.
- You could get retained at the place you interned!
Here’s the best part about these internships. You could move from an intern to a full-time employee at the company/organization you’re at! It is the most ideal situation for interns, but also quite possible. If you are able to work diligently and show progress and good character during your internship, your bosses would notice that and might offer you a position to stay! This way you don’t have to struggle to find a job.
Never say no to internships. Instead do as many as you can in multiple areas of work that you think you would work at in the future. They could turn out to be the best thing for you!
