Many college students stress over finding internships to gain experience so it makes it easier to get a job after graduation. However, many students put a huge stress and importance on sole internships that all the other options for experience are disregarded and somewhat forgotten. It can be difficult to get an internship because you are competing with all the other students from a range of ages, experiences, and education. But just because you don't get the internship you want or the one you were hoping for, doesn't mean that you should give up on searching for opportunities.
For instance, in my case, I have always been on the hunt for internships, however never really landing the one I want. In the beginning, I used to feel so discouraged and ended up doing nothing for the semester because I thought internships were the sole and vital source for an experience. However, after studying abroad at NYU Shanghai, I realized that there are so many opportunities, even better ones, than internships. Internships provide real-world work experience while other opportunities such as research and assistants provide analytical and problem-solving skills. What you may think you need may not be what you actually need. This semester, rather than taking on an internship, I chose to conduct individual research and I could not have been happier with my choice.
Doing something other than an internship is definitely a lot less stressful for me because in my case with research, I have my own schedule as long as I pace myself to meet the deadline. I have learned a lot about my personal academic growth in addition to time management and leadership skills. Taking full responsibility for your own project can be quite daunting, but it is definitely a great learning experience. Yes, I know an internship provides networking and real-life work experience, but what if in the future, your job requires more than just that. Your job may require individual skills and leadership and when just doing internships, it can be difficult to take on and manage a project by yourself, because you have a set agenda for you already.
What to gain from this is to look beyond and further than just internships. I used to be so caught up in getting the most internships to put on my resume that for many semesters when I didn't have one, I didn't do anything but stress and look for more internships when there were more and different opportunities besides internships. Rather than having a consistent experience on your resume of just internships, it is also unique and great to have a variety of experiences in similar interest that show your flexibility and difference.
