Should You Consider An Internship?

For those of you who do not know, college/university students in Canada start summer break at the end of April and the break continues until September. Being a few weeks into summer has made me look back at my educational path, and also question whether others know how important it is to seek knowledge outside of the classroom. Not every college program and professor will explain just how important it is or guide you to get an internship. However, that is what I have decided to do for you in this post. I hope you gain valuable information and thanks for visiting my blog!

If you are a student who has not yet been taught what an internship is, an internship is a position for a student, either paid or unpaid, that allows a student to gain relevant work experience. You may be wondering why you should consider an internship if your plan is to get a degree. Having a bachelors degree is a great achievement and I believe will definitely allow you to be qualified for more jobs. However, I also believe that it is not enough. Below are bullet points that represent the benefits of taking an internship.

An internship will allow you to:

- gain work experience to prove to employers you are capable to perform in a work environment

- gain knowledge of how a business in your field functions and develop skills not taught in a classroom

- make connections with employers that can help you find your dream job in the future

- learn how to communicate with different departments and management levels

The information above is why I believe having an internship is a good idea for any career path. What I did not mention, but what is still important, is that having an internship allows you to understand what your work life could be. If you don't enjoy the tasks you do in an internship, that could be a sign you're seeking the wrong career.

Doing an internship is not easy, so let's dive into the unfortunate disadvantage you could experience. Not every internship is paid and that's a fact. At the end of the day you have to decide if you are able to and willing to take on an internship that does not support you financially. In my opinion, work experience is so beneficial to your future success... so much that it outweighs the financial aspect. If you need to pay for rent and food money, that makes sense. However, what you gain from work experience now will help you land a job that will make even more money in the future. That is my take on the subject!

Let's say you have decided to seek an internship for the summer or upcoming school year... now what? The process of getting an internship isn't easy. Think about how lengthy of a process it is to get a job offer... getting an internship is no different! Paid and unpaid internships can be found on job boards such as Indeed, Glassdoor, and Monster. If you have a LinkedIn account, that is another site you can use to find potential jobs.

Connections, connections, connections. If you have not heard it already, you are about to. You can be over-qualified for an internship or job but still not be considered because of other candidates' connections. Connections can help you not only find positions, but land positions. LinkedIn is great for this, but also your college/university and other businesses you have worked for in the past can help.

That concludes this post! I hope it has made you think whether or not you should do an internship in the future. Feel free to send me a message on my blog Instagram account (found on the top right of the home page) if you want to chat or ask questions!