Do You Want to be an Intern Large

Do You Want to be an Intern?

October 23, 2023

Do you watch Grey’s Anatomy? Do you think that all interns are going to be doctors and work ridiculously long hours? That is not true. Many high school and college students spend summers gaining work experience in their chosen field. 


What is an Internship?


The definition is - any official or formal program to provide practical experience for beginners in an occupation or profession.

Internships:
  • Are temporary. 
  • May be significant to your career path. 
  • Can help you determine if you really want to follow a particular career path.
  • Help you gain work experience. 
  • Should not be menial tasks.
  • Maybe for pay, no pay, or class credit.
  • Are for beginners with limited career skills.
  • Do not guarantee you a job when done.
The intern often wants to continue working. In fact, a 2009 survey found that 67% of interns received job offers after the internship.



Compensation


Course Credit – Some college courses may require that you complete an internship to receive credit for the class. You may or may not receive payment for the work you do.



Unpaid – There are six rules to meet for an unpaid intern:
  1. The training is similar to a vocational school or academic educational instruction; 
  2. The training is for the benefit of the trainees; 
  3. The trainees do not displace regular employees, but work under their close observation; 
  4. The employer gets no advantage from the trainee’s activities, and the employer’s operations may actually be impeded; 
  5. The trainees are not entitled to a job at the conclusion of the training period; and 
  6. The employer and the trainees understand that the trainees are not entitled to wages for the time spent in training.

Paid – Most intern positions will earn a wage. It may be minimum wage. 



Finding an Internship


If you want to work as an intern, check these resources:

  1. Internships.com ​ – can search by major study, job category, company, and preferred city.

  2. Idealist.org​ – Great place to look if you want to work for a not-for-profit organization.

  3. Internmatch.com – geared to college students.

  4. Internweb.com – same features as other sites and includes a time of year that you might want to serve the internship.

  5. Indeed.com – includes an internship filter.

  6. LinkedIn.com – enter the word internship in the search box; enter a zip code and distance you are willing to travel. The results will vary from 2-1000 depending upon your location and career field.

  7. CareerBuilder or
    Monster​ – job board postings receive many applicants.
  8. Networking – many small businesses do not advertise intern positions. Ask people in your family or neighborhood if their employers might hire you as an intern. You can suggest that you would work for experience only. 
  9. Local organizations – check with the local chamber of commerce or social service agencies if they know of open internship positions.
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