That Internship May Land You a Job

Shannon Kietzman, Contributing Writer

Updated: 3/18/2010

While working hard to earn your college degree, you may be concerned that you will be required to complete an internship before you can actually start working in the field of your choice. Furthermore, you are probably concerned about how you will fit an internship into your busy schedule as you try to juggle your education with your other responsibilities.

Whether or not you will have to complete an internship is largely dependent upon the area of study you pursue as well as your unique career goals. Therefore, if you do not like the idea of completing an internship, it is important to determine whether or not one is required in the field you are considering entering. That way, you won’t have any unexpected surprises to contend with after you earn your degree.

Fields That Typically Require the Completion of an Internship

There are several fields in which an internship may be required before you can start pursuing your career. These areas of study include:

• Advertising
• Business
• Engineering
• Law
• Medical
• Science
• Technology

In most cases, internships in these fields are paid. Therefore, while you may not be making as much as you had hoped after earning a college degree, you will start earning some money as you further your education and get better prepared for a job within the field.

Although these internships typically provide some sort of pay, there are some careers in which the internship is not paid. These include career paths that involve working for charities and think tanks.

What to Expect from an Internship

It is difficult to predict what to expect from an internship, since the duties you will take on will depend upon the career field. Your duties will also depend upon the type of internship you undertake. There are two basic types of internships you may participate in:

• Work Experience
• Research

With a work experience internship, you are expected to put the things you have learned in college to work. These internships typically take place during the second or third year of your university experience. A research internship, on the other hand, takes place during your final year of college. In this case, you perform research for the company in order to help improve an area the company has determined requires improvement. Your research results will then need to be put in a report so it can be presented and reviewed by a review board.

Your internship experience may also be made more enjoyable and exciting if you choose to participate in a diversity internship program. In a diversity internship program, you go to a foreign country in order to complete your internship requirements. Some countries that are commonly involved in these types of internship programs include:

• Australia
• Canada
• France
• Germany
• Nepal
• Netherlands
• Spain
• United Kingdom

By performing your internship in one of these foreign countries, you can learn more about your area off study while also broadening your understanding of other cultures.

Internships are a great way to sample different parts of the field you have chosen to work in and offer an opportunity to be mentored by experienced professionals. They may even lead to a job offer once you have received your degree or, at the very least, a strong job reference for the future.

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