Internship season is upon students and recent graduates. It is exciting to think that an internship can potentially lead to a full-time job after graduation. Plus, it will give you skills and experiences that you would not have had otherwise.
Students start applying for internships as early as the beginning of the fall semester and all the way through the spring semester. If you’re planning to seek out an internship, here is some advice for finding the right one for you:
1) Take the internship that might be unexpected but includes all your interests.
2) Take the internship that will make you smile and laugh even on the toughest days.
3) Take the internship that makes you proud, excited, and ready to conquer it all.
4) Get those resumes ready if you haven’t already, get excited, and show those organizations what you’re made of.
To back up this advice, here’s a personal story. In January, I got on to the Walter Center for Career Achievement website and found an open marketing and operations internship for the Indiana Cutters, a semi-professional football team based here in Bloomington. I love sports, but I was honestly looking for an internship in Colorado Springs or in Indianapolis. However, I knew that I wanted to work with athletes in my future career, so why not take the chance and apply? Long story short, I got the internship and it has been an experience I will never forget.
Seriously, when I tell people that I worked with grown men (18-37 years old) from around March until our season-ending game in September, they look at me like I am crazy. What could I have possibly gained from doing this? Easy—I gained a whole new family consisting of the football players, coaches, board members, and their families. I was the only female intern (peep the shortest person in the lineup/huddle), but boy that didn’t stop me. I worked hard, kept game day running smoothly along with my fellow interns, John and Joe, and reinforced my hopes to work with athletes in the future. I’m a part of this team and I will never stop talking about how awesome they all are.
Being a marketing and operations intern for this organization has been nothing short of amazing. When I tell you that an exciting internship is the way to go, I mean it. I was nervous but excited. Now when I see the team, I feel at home. What makes it even better is I’m coming back for the 2018 season.
Must I repeat that taking an intern position for a company you do not necessarily see yourself being happy with, even if only over the summer, is a bad idea? Yes, I will repeat: you should take the unexpected and exciting internship.
Bailey Tingley
Psychology Major and Cutters Intern
Hey guys! I'm a senior Psychology student with an undeniable passion for life. It's rare to find me completely out of sorts and feeling down on myself. I am a lover of adventure, the medical field, German soccer, and Cutters football. When I'm not completely immersed in sports, school, work, internships and volunteering, you'll catch me laughing at ridiculous jokes, making a blog post for We Are IU or attempting to sleep.
