While in college, maintaining great grades, having an active social life, participating in extracurricular activities, and holding leadership positions are extremely important. However, having an internship is very vital for your career path. We live in a world where you basically need “experience to get experience” and internships are the perfect solution.
An internship provides real life experience and exposure
An internship is able to give you an inside look into what it will be like working in your desired field. Everything that you learn in the classroom is valid, but nothing beats getting hands on practice. Interns are able apply the knowledge that they have (acquired) throughout life and apply it to real work training.
Connections
Making connections and keeping in contact with them is very important, but it’s much easier, because many things are online! Many people have Linkedin profiles, so make sure to connect with important people in your industry through Linkedin during your internship!
It helps you find out what you like to do
Having an internship is beneficial, because it helps you realize that maybe the career field you want to go into, isn’t really the best fit for you. Many students enter college with a career path and major in mind, and internships help provide insight.
It gives you an edge
Employers love seeing that you already have work experience in the form of internships. They are likely hire you compared to others who haven’t had internship experience before. It means that you don’t need as much training and you can handle responsibilities
Internships are important to your career, but please do not let them define yourself worth. It’s completely and utterly okay if you do not get an internships after your freshman year of college, or even after your sophomore and junior year of college. This does not mean you are not a talented individual in your field.
I was fortunate enough to secure an internship during my fall semester of freshman year, and I was very confident in myself and my abilities. So, I applied to a plethora of internships for the summer after my freshman year at Howard and I was rejected from every single one, and it did not make me feel good about myself at all. It made doubts start to enter my mind, and I was nervous that I wasn’t as talented as I thought I was, but I took that summer to keep working on my craft.