This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at St Edward's chapter.
Job and internship hunting is a long, sometimes very boring and tedious process. It’s easy to get discouraged and want to give up. But searching for an internship doesn’t always have to be an uphill battle. If you put your two best feet in front of you and follow these steps, you’ll be a working woman in no time!
1. Build a Strong Cover Letter and Resume
Odds are your college has a career services office, or some other form of professional development office. These offices are there to help you, and you are only hurting yourself if you don’t go and set up an appointment. The people who work in these offices are trained to help you brag and sell yourself and all of your many skills in a one-page resume. Make an appointment as soon as possible though, because their schedules are going to fill up very fast. Even if you aren’t looking for a job or internship right away, it is still beneficial to keep an updated resume with you at all times. You never know who you are going to run into.
2. Research
There are endless internships out there, both unpaid and paid. Look into any that you think you might be interested in. It doesn’t hurt to over apply–that way you have more of a chance at getting an internship fast–but it does hurt if you apply to internships you know you won’t love. Although unpaid internships really don’t sound appealing, just look at it like this: paid or not, you are gaining valuable work field experience that WILL come in handy when you graduate and look for a full-time job. Sometimes, internships even turn into job offers!
3. Interview
Interviews are scary, but they don’t have to be. Preparing for an interview will always be a skill you need to have, because you’ll be going to a lot of them now and even in the future. A valuable skill to have is the ability to speak strongly and proudly about what you’re good at, what it is you want from a job, and what you can offer. Interviews are the one time that bragging should be allowed. By the end of the interview, the interviewer needs to feel confident enough with the information you gave them that proves you can do this job and do it well. It helps to look up possible interview questions beforehand and have answers in your mind before the day arrives. Also, always ask the interviewer a question. Interviews are not a one-way street. You are allowed to ask questions, and employers like it when you do.
4. Celebrate in Style
So you got the job? Congratulations! Now it’s time to celebrate and reap the benefits of all your hard work–after adding this new position to your resume of course.