Ahhh summer. The time to relax and take a nice long deep breath. Well now that the moment has passed. College summers tend to be a little different. They are filled with jobs, traveling (especially if you attend an out of state school), and internships. It's tempting to make your summer 100 percent carefree so you can enjoy time with friends, Netflix, and sleep... But, choosing to take an internship will go a longer way than you possibly think.
Picking up an internship during the summer allows you to dive head first into it. You aren't trying to juggle classwork, extra circulars, and an internship. Yeah, you want time to spend with your friends and there will be time for that but this summer could also be the summer you figure out what you are truly passionate about and how much more you have to learn.
Taking an internship puts you directly into the field that you think you are interested in. Yeah, it's kind of scary what if you hate it but, what if you love it! You never know unless you try and that's exactly what internships are for. They also teach you more than you could ever learn in a classroom. You get real life and real world experience.
Taking my summer internship was exactly what I needed this summer. Yes, I am busy between the internship and two jobs but every minute is worth it. When I took my internship I wasn't sure exactly what direction I wanted to go in my field of study but after just one week, I have learned more than I have in the past two years of classes and I know almost exactly what I want to do.
This experience has made me realize just how important "real life" experiences are. Don't get me wrong, what I've learned from my professors has been awesome and helpful but nothing can compare to being in the field. Being able to have all these situations and materials we learn about in class actually in front of me and being hands on is more than I could ask for.
There are always internship opportunities in every field. Some will throw you in completely in and others allow you to shadow watch and learn and then take action. You just have to ask.
Almost every business is willing to take on interns, volunteers or give you the chance to shadow a professional. Don't be hesitant because you never know unless you try. You could end up falling in love with your field or having your eyes opened to a whole new possibility you never thought of!
