Why Internships?

“This means new hires today have an even greater need for hands-on training and soft skills than ever before, for example, teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills”

“My advice for young people is, study what you love and intern in what you want to do. And I think it’s okay to pivot as many times as you need to.”

– Eva Chen, director of fashion, Instagram.

“The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.”

– Steve Jobs, founder, Apple.

An internship chosen with care is a learning experience that empowers you with the skills that are needed to perform tasks which are specific to your career and can further enhances one’s performance while giving a big push to your career. Very specific and practical training is ideal for new age working professionals.

Individuals need to know their strengths and weaknesses and most importantly decide where their real interests lie. This step is important, because for the rest of your life you will either be enjoying what you do or be straddled with work that you detest. In the long run, a career should help you grow professionally as well as personally.

These days, rather than crunching numbers or preparing reports behind the scenes, many entry-level workers and interns are meeting with clients, identifying and resolving issues on real-time basis, and serving on cross-functional teams and processes. This means new hires today have an even greater need for hands-on training and soft skills than ever before, for example, teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills. From a larger perspective, you may say that an internship is the new entry-level job. Employers want to hire college graduates who not only have the required education and training for the job but relevant experience as well.

“Individuals need to know their strengths and weaknesses and most importantly decide where their real interests lie”

Through internships, you can:

· Keep up with Emerging Trends – With the way businesses are constantly changing, one needs to continuously learn to keep up with these changes and internships help with this.

· Network – One of the most effective ways of creating strong networks in the industry is by joining professional internships. They help you interact with peers in the industry and there is great scope to create business contacts and connections.

· Take a career test drive – You can gain deeper insight into who you are and the type of work environments and tasks you enjoy most.

· Understand the practical aspect of work – Internships sharpen your skills and improve how you handle your work as they are practical and teach professionalism.

· Transition from “College to Career” – Lots of things change after college, starting with the time your alarm goes off in the morning! By building good work habits during your internship, the big adjustment from campus life to work life will go more smoothly.

· Earn more college credits – Your college may offer academic credits for internships. In fact, growing numbers of schools require you to complete one in order to graduate.

· Level up your CV – Internships are offered by professional institutions that are the setters of industry standards. Employers are generally interested in what professional courses and internships you have taken to improve your capabilities and your power to negotiate for a better salary or job.