The first year of college can be exhausting, and the work and stress from the school year are more than enough to make someone want to spend their summer doing nothing but unwinding from a stressful nine months. For some students, that's exactly what summer means, but for others, they look at it as an opportunity to try something new and important to our future careers: an internship. I spent my summer interning for a local website called Williamson Forward, and I can tell you that there are countless reasons why this is the best way to spend your summer after freshman year of college.
1. It helps you figure out if you’re following the right path before it’s too late to change
During the first semester of my freshman year, I switched to a journalism major. I felt like this was 100 percent the right choice for me, but I had little to no experience in the field to actually confirm that. After a few weeks interning, I began to see that I truly loved what I was doing, and I knew this was the right thing for me. However, doing this my freshman summer still gave me time to make changes if I had found journalism wasn't right for me. Internships early on give you the freedom to make those changes before it's too late, which it would be if you were to wait until your junior or senior year.
2. It helps you make connections
Connections are important, especially in journalism. In order to make it easier to find jobs after graduation, you have to prove to companies that you are worth their time. If you prove your worth during your internship, you are already one step closer to being rehired next summer or after graduation. Yes, I know all internships help with this, but doing an internship early on gives you time to do an internship at more than one place, therefore building a wider range of resources for post-graduation.
Any coworkers or bosses that you have may also be an important source of professional advice for you. Have questions about the job field? About grad school? Or even about what skills they would recommend you learn? These people can give you first-hand advice beyond what your advisor ever could.
3. It will help your resume stand out from others
Experience is an important part of your resume, and while employers who are open to hiring recent graduates are to be a master in your field quite yet, they are expecting you to be qualified and skillful. One of the best ways to prove to employers that you are qualified and ready to take on your career is to have the experience that shows you already started doing that. Many people only have one internship, sometimes even none, when they graduate. If you start interning your freshman summer and use your connections and knowledge to continue to intern or hold a job each summer/year, you can have up to a year or more of experience, compared to the few months that other applicants may have.
While you may be losing some time by the pool, these benefits can massively improve your chance at a successful future, and I'll take that over a sunburn any day.
man running in forestPhoto by 
