Networking and Internships
With the economy unstable, many students are worried about how the job market will be after they graduate. In order to be more competitive in the workforce, internships are now a must. Many employers use their internship programs to recruit future hires, which means that those who participate may get to avoid the post-graduation job search altogether.
After finding an internship, you should do everything they can to get to know the people that they will be working with. Since the old cliché of “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know” holds true, this can be a way to find more than one opportunity. The people met during an internship may go on to work elsewhere, meaning that if the program does not lead to a job with that business, then other doors will be open to you.
Networking has other benefits. Older employees have more work experience than students, which means they can be a wealth of knowledge. These individuals can help you adjust to being a part of the workforce. They can also help you avoid making certain mistakes.
After finding someone at the business you’re interning with that you feel can teach you a lot, find out if they would be willing to mentor you. This person should be someone who has experience in the field that you’re interested in and should have a certain level of success. If possible, they should either be a manger or someone who is in good standing with their immediate supervisor.
Be up front with this individual. Let them know that you want to learn from them. Many in the workforce will be happy to help you become a better worker. This way, when you have a question about how to handle a situation, you have someone to go to.
Even if you do not secure employment through your internship, networking can help you by providing references for when you begin your job search. Employers usually prefer references from others in the field who have worked with an applicant. Just make sure to ask before using someone as a reference. No one wants to find out after the fact that what they thought would be a great reference, didn’t have a favorable opinion about the work done during an internship.
Tags: internships
November 8th, 2008 at 3:51 am
[...] With the economy unstable, many students are worried about how the job market will be after they graduate. In order to be more competitive in the workforce, internships are now a must. Many employers use their internship programs to .. Original post [...]