Making the Most of Your Internship Experience


Making the Most of Your Internship Experience

by  on July 10, 2013 
How can you make the most of your internship experience?
Agree on a work plan. Before you start your first day or work, you should know what you’ll be doing. Maybe not exactly, but you should have a good idea. Talk with your supervisor in advance about the types of things you want to experience, what the site has to offer, and the projects they want you to work on. Get it in writing and make sure both you and your supervisor understand and agree with it. A learning contract, as it’s sometimes called, makes things a little more formal and gives you something to go back to if you get stuck making copies every day. “Remember those projects we talked about me working on? Could I work on one of those today?”
Get out of your comfort zone. It can be tempting to just use your existing skills in your internship or to answer the phone and file paperwork all day in your internship. After all, you’re still getting course credit and getting the same thing out of it, right? Wrong! Doing new things, even things that you may be uncomfortable with at first, is a great way to learn new skills. For example, your internship may offer groups or special programs that require public speaking. After attending a few, volunteer to speak at a meeting or to run a group yourself. Your organization will appreciate your initiative and you will likely learn something in the process.
Journal or do some reflective writing. If you have a course that goes along with your internship, this will hopefully be built in. If not, I strongly encourage you to do it yourself. You will be amazed at how your thoughts and feelings change over the course of just a few weeks and months. Jotting down your thoughts during your first few days and then reading them during your last weeks at your placement will show you just how far you’ve come. Sometimes the best lessons come from experience and keeping a record of those experiences is important.
Establish a good working relationship with your supervisor and coworkers. For some students, the internship is their first real work experience. Regardless of your experience level, your internship is a great place to start learning professional behavior and workplace relationships. You don’t have to be best friends with your supervisor or coworkers. You may not want to go to their houses or have dinners with them. But being able to communicate and interact in a professional manner is important. Make an effort to listen, ask questions, and get to know them. You may want a letter of recommendation when you leave and you may work with them in the future in another capacity.
Get support. Completing an internship can be a stressful experience. Especially if you’re completing it while finishing your coursework, working a part-time job, or fulfilling other responsibilities at the same time. Be sure to take some time for yourself once in a while and to get support from friends, family, and other interns. If you’re at a large organization with multiple interns, organize a social gathering or happy hour. It’s a great stress-reliever and will likely help you work together more efficiently. If you have a course that goes along with your internship, talk with your classmates and/or instructor. You’re not alone in feeling overwhelmed!
 Additional Resources:
 *Originally posted on the Career Skillet website (Permission granted by Jill Bowers).

Popular posts from this blog

The Power of a Handshake

Image
The Power of a Handshake by   Lisa Brooks   on   August 13, 2013   What does your handshake say about you? Does it convey that you are confident and self-assured? Or, does it suggest that you are insecure, an emotional bully, or overconfident? Research shows that not only will you be judged by your handshake, you will be forming an impression about the other person when shaking hands. During my etiquette training at the Protocol School of Washington, I was taught to see the right hand as a sensor for discovering the type of person with whom I was dealing. Once you understand the subtle messages of a handshake and learn how to deliver the correct handshake, you will have a significant advantage in mastering your professional image. This article provides guidelines for delivering the correct handshake, as well as it will help you interpret (and avoid) some of the most common types of undesirable handshakes, such as the “dead fish,” the “fingertip holder,” the”glo...
Read more

The Art of Self-Disclosure

Image
The Art of Self-Disclosure by   Jill Bowers   on   June 30, 2013   How much information will  you  disclose in an interview or professional setting? It was Abraham Lincoln who said, “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.” This does not mean you should have to feel insecure that everything you say might be stupid or offend someone. What it does mean, however, is that you should think before you speak. In doing this, you can avoid disclosing  too much  information about yourself. In fact,  what  or  how much  you disclose can influence how others’ perceive you and how much they trust you as a potential employee or colleague. For example, “too much disclosure” may cause an interviewer to think you have “issues” or cause them to question your ability to keep information about their company or clients confidential. Not enough disclosure, on the other hand, can make you appear “c...
Read more

Strategies for Communication and Organization When Struggling in Classes During the Pandemic

Image
Strategies for Communication and Organization When Struggling in Classes During the Pandemic By: Jill Bowers & Sabrina Roley It is always best to turn  the assignment in early or by the due date. Yet, we have been living in a pandemic. I am a graduate student and know that a lot of students struggle with online classes though that is their only option right now. Some of us work at least part-time while navigating a full course load and have family responsibilities. Some students are trying to home-school a few children and or struggling to access the Internet from home because everyone in their home is online at the same time. The struggle is real. But, we will get through it, and there are many things that we can do to take responsibility for our course work and life. Small changes can also influence how professors respond to us. Professors continuously hear about students needing or asking for extensions with assignments, yet some individuals take the wrong approach with thei...
Read more