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How to land an intership By Linda MacDonald, former Associate Board Member
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ollege is a time of growth, learning, and preparing for “the real world”- you are taking four years to prepare for your career! A great way to ready yourself for post-grad life and get a feel for your dream job is to apply for an internship. Through an internship, you are able to gain work experience, get out into the field, make yourself more marketable! There are all different types of internships available and it is important to find the one that best fits you and can help benefit you the most in the long run. How can you do this?
Ask your advisor! Your advisor is not just there to
help you plan out courses each semester, but also help you be as successful as possible- they want you to be an expert in your major! If you major in Hospitality or Tourism Management, you can intern with Hershey for example. If you are a Sports Management or Sports Journalism major, see if your school’s athletic teams have internship opportunities available. Biology major? Take a trip to Australia for the summer and intern with wildlife reserves. Studio Arts or Culinary majors can look at local bakeries to help design, bake, and sculpt wedding and birthday cakes. If you are unsure of your career path, the Walt Disney Company offers an internship for you too! If your advisor is unsure, try talking to a professor or asking friends within your major if they have any suggestions.
Take a trip to the Career Counseling Center! Your school may have a Career Counseling Center available to students. Stop by one day and ask if they know of internships, and if they can help guide you in the right direction and prepare you for applying. Many schools’ Career Centers host job fairs throughout the school year, too, and it is always a good idea to stop by - you may just find what you are looking for there!
Talk to your sisters! You have a strong, driven group
of women surrounding you each day in your chapter. Your sisters may be able to give you information on where they interned, how they discovered opportunities, and advice on the application process. Take a few minutes to reach out to alumni, too; they may have a business or a professional connection that is hiring interns, and you could be just the person they are looking for!
"Every day, I am so thankful that I took a few minutes to look into internships, as it led me to the most amazing, life changing work experiences of my life."
Get yourself on LinkedIn! We live in a Social
Networking age. LinkedIn is a professional social networking site, connecting you to hundreds of people in your major or career field. Create a professional, detailed profile for yourself, then search for internships! Even if you do not find an internship immediately, you can still connect with professionals who could give you some great pointers for the future!
My personal internship experience. My junior
year of college I found myself in a bit of a rut. I had declared my major as Art History, but I had no idea what I wanted to really do for a job. I knew I had to get myself out into the professional world, but I was not sure of what to do or where to go. So, I grabbed my laptop, opened up Google, and searched for an internship. This led me to the Disney College Program. I learned that this internship was open to any major, could help me gain work experience, and meet people from all over the world. So, I applied. I went through the interview process and a month later, I received word from Disney that I was offered a spot. At first I was working as an “Attractions Operations Hostess” while also taking courses offered through Disney. Here, I learned how to job search, how to perfect a resume and cover letter, how to network appropriately, how to conduct myself professionally during the interviewing process, and what the term “business casual” actually means. Every day, I am so thankful that I took a few minutes to look into internships, as it led me to the most amazing, life changing work experience of my life. So, what are you waiting for?!