Interning: The Smart Way to Land a Job After College
Dear College Made Simple Reader,
Landing a job in this economy isn’t easy, especially for recent college graduates.
That’s why interning has become a real competitive edge for today’s college students.
Today’s College Made Simple report reveals exactly how much an internship increases your chances of landing a fulfilling job immediately after graduating.
- Scott
Interning: The Smart Way to Land a Job After College
The saying goes, “Practice makes perfect.”
Not, “Reading lots of books about how to do something makes perfect.”
That saying (the first one, that is) rings resoundingly true when applying what you are learning in college with real-world, out-of-the-classroom experience.
Internships are often the most practical places to literally learn how to do what you are paying tens of thousands of dollars to study.
Learning how to do the work is one thing, understanding the work is another. Internships show you how a job, how a company, and how an industry fit into the grand scheme of the economy. They teach you why the trade exists, its history and its future.
However, the biggest benefit of an internship doesn’t even happen during it, but rather after. That is, employment.
For the employer, interns boost overall productivity and while lowering costs of recruiting and training new employees. For the intern, landing a job after the internship is a seamless transition to paid employment in a familiar work environment – not to mention a huge badge of honor that you impressed the bosses enough that they want to keep you.
Thing is, if you land an internship, there’s already a good chance you’ll be hired there when you graduate. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers’ (NACE) 2009 Experiential Education Survey, two-thirds of interns are offered full-time positions.
Two-thirds! Think about how much of an advantage that gives you compared to the rest of job seekers.
What’s more – Internships are often abundant. Even though most are unpaid, the payoff of a great internship is unbeatable.
But while two-thirds are incredible odds, it’s not enough to guarantee you a full-time job. This is where internships separate the kids from adults in the room. Not only does a good intern learn the trade, they learn to act like professionals.
Here’s what an internship will teach you that textbooks rarely do:
- How to meet deadlines,
- How to respect peers and earn their respect,
- How to follow an employer’s specific code of behavior,
- How to multi-tasking projects, and
- How to develop a new set of social skills interacting with people of different ages and backgrounds.
Do not underestimate the opportunities that internships present. Do not take the attitude that since you are unpaid, you shouldn’t work hard.
Specialized and gainful employment is the very reason people attend college. And internships are hands down the smartest and most effective way to land a good job immediately after receiving your diploma.
To your family’s successful college pursuits,
Scott Weingold
Co-Founder, College Planning Network, LLC
College Made Simple – The Free Educational Resource of College Planning Network, LLC
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