Since about my freshman year of high school, I was told I needed to go to college, get an internship and get a full time job. Although I’ve been successful in the first step of attending college and making it to my junior year, the process of securing an internship is nothing like people originally described. I was told to make solid connections, build my resume, and dress nicely to secure my future. But now that I’m actually here and it’s my reality, it’s no longer that easy. As a mass communications major, career options are limitless and full of opportunities, but when it comes to entry-level internships, that’s just not the case.
After spending the last few months trolling through job websites such as Indeed, LinkedIn and ZipRecruiter, I probably applied to nearly 50 internships all over Virginia. I even took the chance and applied to some internships all the way in North Carolina! In the last few weeks, I only heard back from a total of about 10 and almost all of them offered an unpaid position or declined my application. At first I thought it was something that I was doing or saying wrong in my cover letters or throughout my resume, but after talking to several other college students and successful adults I’ve come to realize that there are a lot of people struggling with this same issue.
Personally, I think I have a pretty solid resume and my cover letters are usually well thought out and quite personable. I’ve spent the last three years doing volunteer work or small paid jobs here and there to build my resume and experience in the communications and public relations field. As a junior, I’ve already held four relevant positions that I can use on my applications and that have given me a pretty good starting point. So, what has made this process so difficult, and why? If it’s not my resume, cover letters, or lack of education requirements, I was left almost clueless. But then I realized that the majority of people I knew that were obtaining internships seamlessly were going to in-person hiring events and interviews instead of applying online! Due to the mass amounts of applicants from all over the world applying for internships on the online platforms that we all use, it’s making the chances of getting actually hired much lower than a more secluded in person event.
Although we’ve been told to rely on technology and use it to our advantage, it seems as if a large number of companies and organizations are still favoring in-person hiring methods when searching for new employees and interns. Thankfully, VCU has its own internship fair coming up titled the RVA Internship and Experiential Opportunities Fair on February 7! If you’re currently struggling with finding a well paid and enriching internship like I am, I completely recommend attending this event and seeing what internships Richmond has to offer face to face.