We all know the difficulties that can arise from applying or even searching for internships. You begin searching upwards of nine months in advance and find that the internship of your dreams is already taken, the deadline has passed or worse, it isn’t being offered anymore. Time is running out and you need to find an internship before summer and/or graduation.
Don’t fret, while the situation seems impossible I assure you this is not the case. There are a few tips and tricks I’ve learned along the way to help me not only find internships, but what you can do during the semester that isn’t as time consuming as a part time, or full time internship.
Where to look
Finding a reliable source for internships can be one of the hardest parts. Finding these sites can take time if you don’t know what to look for. Checking out the “about” page, sponsors, and success stories on any site can likely tell you if the site is legitimate or not.
Sites
But those sites are basic. What do you really want to do? Travel the world? Teach children in southeast Asia? Oversee marketing and communication for a start up? Maybe write articles for a well known magazine?
If you answered yes to any of those questions and haven’t found an internship, then it’s entirely possible that these sites don’t have what you’re looking for. They’re basic. The most diligent of internship seekers are specific in what they search, and don’t take ‘no results’ for an answer.
Specifics
You, a seeker of internships, will find those three sites when searching for “Writing Internships” or “Engineering Internships”, sometimes when you search by the specific degree you still don’t get much. Being as specific as possible can help you narrow your search down to an internship that will best but your undergraduate work to the test, and help you understand exactly what it is you want to do post graduation
Having specific internships in mind will help you to find the one that best suits your needs. Try thinking of specific jobs you want to do after the internship is over. If your major is photojournalism, and you know you want to be a concert photographer, just looking for the “photojournalism internships” isn’t going to cut it. Searching “concert photography internships” will yield better results.
Search by Site
Now that you know how to get specific, let’s get even more specific. What company, for profit or organization do you want to work for? Taaluma Totes? Instagram? Apple?
Well, all of these companies have ambassadors. Taaluma Totes offers ambassadorship for students that are studying abroad. All you need is a camera, abroad location, one of Taaluma Totes’ products and you’re good to go! You can #CarryACountry with Taaluma Totes reasonably prices backpacks. This ambassadorship is perfect for anyone studying photography, marketing, recreational sciences and much more. For more information on this internship, and Taaluma Totes, click here.
You can make any internship, ambassadorship or volunteer experience work in our favor if you know how to market your skill sets. As an individual who studies English, I don’t know much about health care, but marketing my skills of managing my social media accounts, gaining followers on a weekly basis and knowing how to engage with audiences across multiple platforms is what landed me a marketing internship.
Going to a site that you use often and looking under their careers tab can open up many doors for you. Organizations and companies offer ambassadorships, internships, shadowings and much more, you just have to know where to look.
At the end of it all remember three things: Search early, search often, and search specific. Internships are meant for you to gain experience in the field you want to work in post graduation. Put time and effort into picking the program that's right for you.
