Right around sophomore year, it seems like everyone is scoring great internships. Where are they finding them, and where are they getting the time and energy to apply? It seems that very few underclassmen know about the career resources on campus, from mock interviews to internship fairs. With help from a few key student services offices, creating a resume and preparing for a job can be a simple step-by-step process with nonstop support along the way.
Step 1: Brainstorm
What field are you in? What would you like to be doing? When searching for internships, the combination of these questions is important. Remember that your first internship doesn’t have to match up to your field of study, as long as it fits into the long-term plan of what you want to make of your career. A WLP, for example, might intern with a human rights organization because they want to work in advocacy writing later on. Not sure yet? That’s fine too. Do some web browsing and get a loose list of possibilities together.
Step 2: Visit Career Services
Monday through Friday, 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm in the Union Bank Building, walk-ins are welcome at Career Services! When you come for a walk-in appointment, you sign in at the desk, and you get a fifteen-minute meeting with a professional career counselor. For longer sessions, you can set up an appointment with careers@emerson.edu. They’re all incredibly friendly, they can show you how to set up a resume specific to your area of study, answer all your questions, and give you lists of possible employers. While having an idea of what you’d like to be doing helps, it’s also totally fair (and common) to walk in and say “Help! I have no idea where to start.” That’s exactly what they’re trained to deal with. By the time you leave, you’ll feel much more confident about the way you want to approach applying for jobs.
Step 3: Make some appointments
Beyond basic meetings with counselors, Career Services offers mock interviews, resume workshops, a yearly trip to New York City to meet with arts-and-communications industry professionals, an internship fair, and a service which matches you to an alum in your field for mentoring purposes. Our alumni network is legendary – use it! Once you’ve got a resume fleshed out, these resources will ensure that you don’t have to go at it alone. By attending these workshops and gradually building your way up to meeting employers at the internship fair, you’ll be well on your way to scoring your first internship.