It’s that time in your life when you freshly graduated from your college and now looking to carve your path. Truth is, college or university is a significant milestone in one’s life. It marks the end of a chapter and the beginning of a whole new one, but it can also be a daunting time. (Virtually hi5 if you agree) The pressure of finding a job and starting a career can be overwhelming, but one way to ease the transition and gain valuable experience is by securing an internship opportunity. But the question is –
Can you get an internship after college?
Yes, you can get an internship after college. The rough competition in the job market is hard to beat, but internships after graduation can give you the upper hand and if you’re unsure about what to pursue as a career, doing a few internships after graduation may be a viable option, a plethora of companies and organizations host internship programs for youth who have finished college, as a measure to combat shortages of labour and to scout out young talent in the field.
Why should you do an internship after graduation?
- Developing your resume – Many graduates struggle to find a job as they don’t have much experience, internships after graduation help enhance your resume and make you stand out in the eyes of an employer among other equally qualified candidates thus granting you an upper hand over your competition in the highly competitive job market.
- Discover the right field of work for you – Internships after college are a good way to discover core strengths and talents, they provide you with opportunities to gain vital experience in work environments, learn new skills and align interests with a suitable profession. It helps you discover your passion and your interest and your dream job.
- Obtaining valuable insights from experienced seniors – The employees at your internship will be able to guide you through their field of expertise and may share what they have learnt by working in said field which would be extremely valuable if you choose to pursue a career in the field, you’re working in. finding yourself a mentor you can look up to and refer to for assistance would be advantageous.
- Source of income– Although most internships may not pay you, some will for your work. No matter how small the amount is it will help relieve the pressure of looking for a stable job.
- Growing your network – These internships can make you expand your contacts in the field. These contacts may even be able to land you a job after the internship. Connection in your field of work is always beneficial.
- Get hired – Most important of all you may even be recruited if you perform exceptionally at your place of work as the companies select a few of the candidates who they believe have the calibre for working in their organization. So if you work harder than those around you, you may land a stable well-paying and secure job.
4 Easy Steps to finding internships after Graduation
- Decide what you want – Sit down and think about what you want from the internship, and experience in the field. Expansion of your professional network? Beefing up your resume? Putting some thought into it early is advised. If you’re still unclear on the field you want to take up, decide on a field you want to dabble in with the internship you will take up.
- Finding an internship – There are several ways you can look for an internship after graduation, there are search engines available online that you can utilize to find the internship you are interested in, and a few notable platforms such as LinkedIn and Internshala.com are places where you should not only look for an internship but also build up a hefty profile and reach out to all your contacts, especially professional contacts. Also, check out social media pages and websites of top companies such as the INKOMPASS internship program by Philip Morris International as they will post about any internship programs and job opportunities that may be available. You should also try to find internship opportunities from your social circle and any kind of professional network. If you are active in any kind of professional community you should notify everyone that you are in pursuit of an internship after graduation. You could also visit a career counsellor near you who will be able to guide you through the process and help you find a good internship or even a permanent job. Another way is to visit the company website and email the hiring manager personally, this helps establish a connection with an employee whom you may be able to show what you have to offer as an intern and you could also ask any questions and queries about the job you will be taking up.
- Preparing resumes – Preparing specially tailored resumes for every single internship you apply for, edit them to emphasis the skills you have that the company may be looking for in a candidate. Put yourself in the shoes of the employer, and think about what you would want to look for in a candidate and what would specific skills and qualifications would be beneficial to the company and list them in your resume.
(a) Review resume examples from the industry of choice for inspiration and a general idea.
(b) Take note of keywords in the job posting, you may notice certain repetitions in the description, which may hint toward what the employer is looking for in their ideal candidate. Use these keywords prominently and organically in your resume, and actively try your best not to force them in.
(c) Make it simple, straightforward and easy to read as the employer has a short time to read your resume, hence it should be as clear and easy to read as possible. Research shows, hiring managers tend to spend only 6 seconds per resume on average.
(d) Prioritize the most important and relevant information to the top
(e) Do not forget to proofread your resume several times to catch spelling errors as well as grammatical errors. - Apply to multiple internships after graduation – Do not put all your eggs in one basket and apply for multiple internships after graduation in your field of interest, in case of rejection. The more application you put out, the higher the chances of landing an internship after graduation. Remember not to fear rejection as it is nothing but a part of the process of having a successful career, as there may be times when you succeed as well as times when you fail, but keep in mind that both are equally important in a career.
In conclusion, we hope that this article would have helped you in figuring out if you can get an internship after graduation or not and what steps you should take to get an internship after graduation. If you were thinking about finding internships after graduation then we hope we would have been able to help you.
