Summer Internship Basics

Summer Internship BasicsSummer Internship BasicsEvery year, young people from all over the world search and apply for their dream internships. Demographics of those applying for coveted internship spots has changed over the years, with high school seniors, college freshman, and college sophomoras all vying for positions historically reserved for college juniors and seniors. With all of these new candidates in the mix, employers are rethinking recruitment strategies. The Basics of a Summer Internship Summer internships are usually eight to twelve weeks long and follow the school semesters. Depending on when the student gets out of school, a summer internship usually starts in May or June and continues through August. The most common timeframe for summer internships is to begin right after Memorial Day and to run through the end of the first week of August. Other Benefits of an Internship Besides Experience These opportunities can be full-time or part-time, paid or unpaid. All unpaid internshipsshould follow the guidelines set out by the US Department of Labor in the FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act).Typically, students are able to receive college credit for their internships, but each school has different policies regarding internship credit. To find out more about this, visit your schools career center. The Purpose of Pursuing an Internship Internships provide students with hands-on learning experience even as they gain a glimpse into the real world, giving them a front row seat to a potential career choice. They go into the internship thinking they want to work at a specific company or in a specific industry and they come out of the internship either having confirmed those thoughts or having decided to pursue something completely different. The idea is that they get to know now rather than when they graduate. So many people move into jobs they dislike after graduation because they didnt know any better. Internships are a good way to curb that likelih ood. Not only dostudents who participate in summer internships get hands-on learning experience theyre also building their resumes. The number one question asked at job interviews after college is where did you intern? Its a good idea to have a ready answer to that question in order to stand out from the pool of other applicants. Internships also provide networking opportunities. If you ask most college students about their professional network, theyll admit it doesnt exist. Internships change that. Students leave internships with a Rolodex of professional contacts who can help them gain future employment, whether by serving as a reference or by alerting them to job opportunities. A summer internship stands out on a students resume and is among the best things a young person can do to prepare for the real world and college graduation. To find summer internship opportunities visit the career center, and websites such as?Indeed.com, SimplyHired.com, Internships.com, WayUp.com,andInter nQueen.com.