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How Internships Can Help Your Career Growth

. 5 min read . Written by Natasha Shetty
How Internships Can Help Your Career Growth

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An internship can be an important stepping stone in your career. Here is what you need to know about how internships can help you before taking one up!

An internship experience can provide you with vital opportunities to turn your classroom learnings into real-world practice. It can help you fine-tune the skills that are necessary for the job market. Especially when you start looking for employment or wish to launch your own enterprise.

Obviously, your internship will depend on the course you are in, or will graduate from shortly. At either stage, it’s extremely important to take an internship seriously. 

Make a perfect portfolio and get hired for an internship by watching this video: click here.

Here are some benefits of internship you can derive from taking up an internship.

Use Internships to Define Your Career Niche

We all have our strengths and weaknesses, and this holds true when we take on a course. We’re better at some subjects and weaker at others. That’s nothing to worry about because this is where an internship experience can play a key role in crafting your niche and get better at it.

How? By helping you understand whether these strengths and weaknesses translate into your career. 

All you have to do is define the niche in which you wish to create a career or start your own business. The space in which you excel can help you determine your future career. Therefore, focus on what you are interested in and what you can do.

You should work on trying to erase grey areas in your inventory of skills for internship. This will not be too hard, because you’ll be working alongside professionals that have some experience at the work. They’ll be your mentors, albeit for a short while during the internship. Take the chance and use it as a  learning experience from internship

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Develop A Professional Network By Interning

Nowadays, having a good professional network is very important. The reason is simple. A lot of hiring takes place through LinkedIn. In fact, this networking website accounts for one candidate landing a job offer every 10 seconds!

An internship experience will also give you superb chances to develop your own network of professionals from your chosen field.

Learn how to network and get jobs on LinkedIn with Ashi Singhal. Click here to get the hot tips.

It’s possible to include people – including peers and seniors – in your professional network depending on where you do an internship. Having them as connections on LinkedIn, or even Facebook will give you legitimacy. This will help you get better connections with other professionals and a stronger network.

People within your network will also be able to provide excellent references. Once you have finished the internship and start looking for jobs, this will be extremely helpful. You will be able to create your own brand through a LinkedIn network if you have the right kind of connections. A professional network will not only help you get opportunities but also can enhance the learning experience from internship.

Get Job Offers After Internships

job interview

When you do an internship, there’s a chance that the organization might offer you a full-time placement. The first job offer is always your stepping stone to a career. 

By displaying the right skills and aptitude, it’s possible to convert an internship into a launching pad for a brilliant career. Provided, of course, that you exhibit the skills and aptitude, and are willing to exert the effort to perform well. 

Employers are always on the lookout for the right talent. They usually want to hire people whom they have worked with. Given a proper skillset, they will always go for you over someone they don’t know. 

In fact, immediate seniors also recommend interns for job openings to their respective managers. Many interns land their first job at the same place where they do their internship. 

This is an opportunity that one cannot afford to miss nowadays, considering the job market is getting smaller and the competition more fierce. Learning outcomes of internship are immense and can also help you develop skill sets and prepares you for a job offer after internship.

Internships Help Overall Career Development

Stress, Stress at Work, Struggle to feel Happy

An internship experience helps you acquire new skills. You learn inside information about the job. This can’t be found in textbooks! You’ll also acquire vital skills such as teamwork, decision making, troubleshooting, assuming responsibility, and developing a sense of professionalism.

These life skills and professional etiquette will aid your overall career development. Technical skills are great but employers love to hire people who have other functionalities as well. It is an important asset.

I also recommend you check out these important tips when you’re preparing for an internship interview. Get some confidence and answer questions like, ‘why do you want this internship?’

You should take your internship seriously, as the insights above prove! This form of work experience is often underappreciated. The certificates that you get as an intern are essential building blocks for your career. 

I would add that selecting the right company for your internship experience is as important as the internship itself. You need to find a company that offers the right kind of guidance, opportunities for skill-building and personal development, as well as growth. A great combination of stipend and allowances won’t hurt either!

Never rush to seek an internship. Instead, take your time and do proper research. A good internship can be a gateway to a great career path!

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Last updated 25th Aug’2021