Career Planning >> Browse Articles >> Internships

Land Great Internships for College Students

Internships for college students help build a work experience that sets you on the right foot down your career path.

Featured Author:

Ariana Finlayson

Hey there! My name is Ariana Finlayson and I've been chosen to be your FastWeb College Senior Student Columnist for the next five months. I'm from South Jersey (there is a difference!) and my school of choice is Hofstra University. Located on Long Island, N.Y., I'm about two and a half hours away from my stomping grounds and 25 miles east of New York City. I am one of the lucky ones who knew what she wanted to study from junior year of high school and stuck with it all throughout college. I wanted to change my major a bunch of times, but alas, print journalism and I made it out through thick and thin. My minor is in psychology--that means I only like it a little bit. At Hofstra, I'm a Resident Assistant as well as a Student Ambassador. As an Ambassador, I do outreach to prospective students who think that "the Hof" is pretty cool and might want to come here. I'm a staff writer for the newspaper, The Chronicle, and a section editor for the magazine, Pulse. My friend and I are trying to start up a fashion/beauty section within the newspaper to give it a bit of flair, but mostly I just write features. Pulse is the birth child of the Magazine Production class here, but really, any students can contribute. My spare time is spent going into the city for concerts, getting a great bargain at any retail store, tearing through my monthly magazines, eating ice cream with friends much too often, and working out. I love Apple computers and I abbreviate words way too often. Music is my best friend. Since this is my senior year, I'm sure I'll have a ton to share from both past and present. I'm totally psyched and can't wait to hear your feedback!

More articles from this author:

• Room(mate) With a View: Tips on Handling Roommates
• The Grass is Greener on the Other Side of the Quad: Living Off-Campus
• Stop Living in the Past

If you had asked me four semesters ago, I definitely would not have thought I was capable of doing half the things I have. That’s what is pretty neat about getting older: You have the opportunity to reflect back on where you were in your life, and compare it to where you are now. And usually, you see a lot of growth!

As a print journalism major, I’ve been fortunate enough to have held internships at CosmoGIRL!, Parenting and Cosmopolitan, with another internship in the works for this spring.

My major only requires me to have one internship, but I chose to take three. Why? Because for me, it comes down to gathering as much experience as possible, learning different departments of a magazine, and meeting editors and establishing meaningful connections with them.

Below, I’ve crafted some tips for the three stages of “internshipping”:

• Looking for an internship/The internship search
• Interviewing
• What to do once you’re there

1. Looking for an internship/The internship search

• Shape up your resume: Meet with a career counselor or advisor at your school. Many times, Web sites have resume templates or offer tools to build your resume from scratch.
• Use your resources. Often, meeting up with an alum in your career field is a great way to get your foot in the door. If the alum is very fond of their alma mater, they will also be fond of you. Ask your academic advisor is he or she knows of any opportunities. Check around your campus. Is it possible to take your internship without even stepping far outside the classroom? Lastly, scope out networking events that may be happening in your area. If you go, dress nicely and bring business cards.
• Do your research: Make it clear to the employer that you know about their company. When you know about the company, you will feel more comfortable and it will reflect in your resume. Bonus: If you get invited back for an interview, you will already be semi-prepared.
• Take care of your cover letter: Keep it precise and concise! A lot of companies accept cover letters and resumes through e-mail now, so make sure you spellcheck before you send it. (Speaking of e-mail, use an address that isn’t “HotTstud4U@blahblah.com.”) Your cover letter will be your point of entry, so let them know your availability, major, school year and experience, but be careful not to repeat your resume. Tell them about your strengths and how you can help them.