Completing an internship is a hands-on experience that can help to solidify your career of choice. Not only can you attain industry-relevant skills but you can also network and begin building strong relationships that may be helpful to you in your future career. Finding an internship can be tough when you are unsure of the resources available or how to even begin the search. It can also be intimidating when you are not sure what internships align with your overall career goals. This post provides some tried-and-true suggestions for finding a worthwhile internship opportunity.
It’s important to do some self-reflection before you begin your search:
Understand your ‘why’: Why you are seeking an internship and what you would like to get out of the opportunity?
Identify your interests: If you haven't yet, consult the Career Interest Communities (CIC). You can connect your major with your CIC to find opportunities you would most enjoy. For example, a student majoring in Social Work would is also interested the Arts, Design and Performance CIC may seek out an internship that allows them to work with troubled youth interested in the arts.
Don’t settle: Begin your search with your overall goal in mind for the kind of learning opportunity you are seeking. You don’t need settle for the stereotypical experience of getting coffee and doughnuts, because you are capable of so much more!
Now that you have a better idea of what you want; you are ready to search! The first place to begin is Handshake, ASU’s premier career platform. You can use Handshake to find a number of employers, career fairs and internship postings; all of which can be helpful in finding your internship.
When searching through internship postings, keywords can help identify the type of position you are looking for. For example, if you are looking for internships related to communication, you could try keywords such as media, communication, speech or journalism. This allows the system to scan the database and find opportunities most suitable to your search. Handshake also allows you to search for employers who are specifically interested in recruiting students from ASU. Find and favorite employers you are interested in so that you will be notified when they post new opportunities. Other great resources for finding an internship are Internships.com, LinkedIn and Indeed. Each of these websites also have search engines similar to Handshake, which will help you to quickly explore potential opportunities.
Lastly, when looking at upcoming career fairs, you can search through employers and identify not only who will be attending specific fairs, but also what types of positions these organizations are seeking to fill. Once you have identified internships that interest you, the next step is to apply. Here is a link to our Youtube channel that can assist you in drafting the materials you may need for your application. Happy searching!