Plan ahead in order to get that critical internship

Come all, from those incoming freshmen to late-blooming juniors, and gather round. Now, keep… Come all, from those incoming freshmen to late-blooming juniors, and gather round. Now, keep your ears open and mouths closed as I tell you some tales that could help you in your continuing or eventual internship search. This is my own war report straight from the front lines of the corporate war.

Granted, I am no master on getting an internship or a job – in fact, I’m currently hard at work on the latter. But, as I’m older – and by default wiser – than at least those just entering into college, I feel the need to pass along this apparent accumulated wisdom.

First off, in the words of my high school Latin teacher in reference to learning, “If you throw enough mud at the wall, some of it will stick.” So, I applied this whenever I was submitting applications for internships. Paint the town red with your resumes and cover letters. Try anywhere and everything.

On the grind: If you haven’t heard of a company but like their website, apply. It can’t hurt to interview and see what they offer. What I’m doing now is applying to jobs in various fields that I am interested in and hoping that some of them will stick. If I don’t like it, I can try something else. That’s partially what internships are for. Do it a lot, do it early and do it often.

Search in every veritable employment nook and cranny. I got the name of the internship I have now through a job fair two years ago that I happened to retain the pamphlet from. Start applying to internships during your freshman year for the summer or during the summer for the upcoming sophomore year. It’ll help you further down the road and show an early dedication on your part when you could easily be partaking in other collegiate “activities.”

Assistance. Look through Career Services for interviewing, resume and cover letter assistance, as well as job and internship opportunities.

Network, network, network. Other than being lucky, networking is one of the basic keys in any business, and although this will be cliched by the time you’re 30 – if it already isn’t – there’s a reason you hear it a lot. It works. Not every time, but if you asked a lot of people how they’ve gotten jobs, a large amount will probably have gotten them from friends, family or someone they met through work. Go through friends of friends and friends of family.

The interview. Make it or break it time. Now, one of my past roommates was an extremely bright and talented young individual, but he had the personality of a footstool. So, he’ll only ge that job if it requires him to sit by himself all day.

This means that you must work on interviewing, as someone with a great GPA and no personality or interviewing skills can lose to the one with an endearing personality and slightly lower grades. The interview is selling yourself, but not in the common street trash form. If you’re not good with questions and talking, practice ahead of time. Just like anything, it’s easy for some and hard for others. So, work at it. Look online for questions to ask, what to do and what not to do. For example, asking your interviewer out on a date falls squarely under bad ideas.

Get a feeling for the company online ahead of time. Is it serious? More fun? You can base your seriousness on this in the interview. If I come into an interview and the interviewer seems easygoing, I crack a few little jokes. If he is a stiff, act accordingly.

The look. No Daisy Dukes, sandals or polos. Dress to impress. If 10 people are interviewed in one day, and one doesn’t wear a suit or nice dress, you can bet your bottom dollar – or the top one, for that matter – that he or she won’t be called back.

Lastly, look in strange places for positions. For example, my mom has her own small faux-painting business. I could technically – although she doesn’t want me to – do her public relations and advertising for her. I could create a website, send out e-mails, go to restaurants, take before and after photos and basically spread the word. This might not make me any money – then again, neither do many internships – but it’ll give me some experience in a field I’m interested in, as opposed to simply making copies and coffee – which is what many larger companies will do to their interns.

Keep your eyes and ears open at all times, and keep on trying to fight the good fight. Blood, sweat, tears and a good resume can take you a long way. Good luck and Godspeed.

E-mail John at jac60@pitt.edu for more internship advice.