Internships

internships.

Although our internship grant has ended, we will have a small number of grant funded internships available. Below are the joint funded internships which will be awarded to students for the summer of 2008.

2008 Funded Summer Internship Opportunities

Accounting Intern, Crossroads Bank, Wabash IN

Intern, Education for Conflict Resolution, North Manchester, IN

Manchester College PR Intern, North Manchester, IN

Marketing Intern, Wabash County Solid Waste Management District, Wabash, IN

Timeline for the Summer 2008 Internship Program*:

February 22, 2008 Student applications for internship positions are due

Feb. 25-Mar. 3, 2008 Employers review applications and selected students to interview

March 2008 Employers conduct interviews with student applicants

March 31, 2008 Final selections are made

April 1, 2008 Those students who have been chosen as grant and scholarship recipients will be contacted

* This timeline only applies to internships available through the Grant-Funded Summer Internship program coordinated by OCS. Other internships may have different deadlines and application procedures. Check the "Listing of Available Internships" for other deadline information.

Why Internships are Important

Internships provide you with professional experience in your field, improving your chances of finding a great job after graduation. Internship experience can make you stand out among other job applicants. Employers report that 59% of their new hires have internship experience (NACE Job Outlook 2004).

Internships may lead to full-time employment after graduation. Employers rate internship programs as the most effective recruiting method they use for hiring new graduates (NACE Job Outlook 2004). Companies offered 56.9% of student interns at their organizations full-time jobs after graduation (Gold, NACE Colleges, Employers Report on Experiential Education).

You may get paid more. “Almost two-thirds (64.2 percent) of employers said they paid new, permanent, full-time hires with experiential education an average of 8.9 percent more than they would have offered a college graduate without that experience,” (Gold, NACE Colleges, Employers Report on Experiential Education).

Internships help you determine a career path. Internships are a great way to explore career possibilities within your field and learn what opportunities you can pursue after graduation.

How to Find an Internship

Timeline: When should you start looking for an internship? As early as possible! A good guideline is to begin your search at the beginning of the semester before you want to start your internship (i.e. for a summer internship, begin looking in early January).

1. Plan Ahead

To maximize your chances of obtaining an internship that you want, you must plan and carry out an organized search.

Consider the basic requirements:

Academic Credit: ___ Yes** ___ No

Compensation: ___ Paid ___ Volunteer

Availability: ___ Full-time ___ Part-time (Approx. ___ hours/week)

Timeframe: ___ Summer ___ Fall Sem. ___ Jan Term ___ Spring Sem.

Location(s): ___________________________________________________________________

** If you want to receive academic credit for your internship, you must work with a faculty advisor from your department from the beginning of your internship search.

Consider what you have to offer an organization

Spend some time to analyze yourself and what you have to offer. This will help you determine which internships match your abilities and interests and will help you write a résumé and prepare for interviews.

o What are your interests?

o What skills do you possess?

o What experience do you have?

o What academic preparation can you bring to an internship?

List your goals & expectations

Once you know what you’re looking for, it will be easier to describe to others who can help in your search and will help you identify which internship opportunities meet your needs.

o What career possibilities do you want to learn more about?

o What academic experiences would you like to apply or observe in professional practice?

o What kind of experience will improve your marketability in your job search?

o What kind of work environment and supervisory style do you prefer?

Meet with an OCS Counselor to plan your search (call x. 5242 for an appointment)

2. Get Your Résumé Ready

For nearly every internship application, you will need a professional résumé.

Check the OCS Website for information and examples of résumés and cover letters

Write a draft of your résumé or update your existing one and draft a cover letter

Make an appointment with an OCS Counselor (x. 5242) for a résumé and cover letter review

3. Pursue Advertised Internships

There are two avenues to search for internship opportunities: applying for advertised internship positions and creating internship opportunities that didn’t exist before. Pursue both avenues to the fullest! Consider all your options. Even if an internship doesn’t appear to meet all of your criteria, it may still be worth investigating.

Find internship announcements that interest you. Check the following sources:

___ OCS Website

___ Check with your academic department for job postings, announcements, and internship files

___ Ask faculty members for their ideas (ask about their past places of employment, connections

in the field, alumni, or sites where other students have interned in the past)

___ Check resources in the Office of Career Services (Books, Summer Horizons, Off-Campus Job

board)

___ Check other college career centers at the location where you want to work

___ Browse traditional job postings: newspaper ads, temp agencies, government employment

offices

___ Check online internship sources:

___ For internships in Indiana, create an account and post your résumé at: www.IndianaINTERN.net

___ For internships around the country, create an account and post your résumé at: www.monstertrak.com

___ Consider other website sources: www.summerjobs.com, www.campuscareercenter.com,

www.inroads.org, and http://internships.wetfeet.com

Submit your cover letter, résumé, and other application materials to apply for positions that interest you

Follow-up with a phone call to internship employers to request an interview

Go back to ALL of the sources listed above regularly to look for new opportunities

4. Create Your Own Internship

Pursue internship leads to identify organizations and businesses where you could get the internship experience that you seek

___ Ask former co-workers and supervisors for ideas of internship sites (don’t forget to ask contacts

from volunteer work)

___ Tell everyone you know (family, friends, neighbors, etc.) what kind of internship you seek and

ask for their recommendations

___ Use the Career Network Program from OCS to connect with MC alumni in your field

___ Brainstorm a list of the types of organizations and businesses that offer the experience you

are seeking (i.e. for education consider camps, day care facilities, youth organizations like

the YMCA, etc.)

___ Find those kinds of organizations in the geographic location(s) where you want to work by

searching chamber of commerce listings, yellow pages, and the Indiana Business Directory (available in OCS)

___ Contact professional associations to look for internship leads (find links on the OCS website)

Get the name and address (or email address) for the person in charge of the department where you’d like to work (or the person in charge of hiring – usually human resources)

Send a prospecting letter and résumé to that specific person via mail or email

Follow-up by contacting that person by phone to request an interview to discuss internship opportunities

If you get turned down, ask that person if they can recommend any other businesses or organizations to contact about internship opportunities

5. Prepare for Interviews

Complete a mock interview with an OCS Counselor (call x. 5242 to schedule)

Research the organization and prepare questions for your interview. Learn what kind of job you might be able to do for the employer. Know why you want to work there.

6. Report Back!

Tell OCS via email (jlfisher@manchester.edu) about your new internship

How to Succeed in an Internship

Get Oriented

In order to start an internship on the right foot, make sure you have all the information you need for the first day. Once you’ve accepted an internship position, get in contact with your supervisor prior to your start date.

Find out all the logistical details of your internship arrangement such as start and end dates, weekly schedule, lunch break arrangements, holiday and sick time, and compensation issues.
Learn more about the organization in order to adjust better in your first few days on the job. Ask about company policies, organizational culture, dress code, and your relationship to your supervisor and coworkers.
Before the start of your internship, be sure to complete any assigned reading or do some reading on your own to better understand the history and mission of the organization.

In your first few days on the job, you’ll likely get an orientation of some kind. Be prepared to introduce yourself and take note of the coworkers and other staff members you meet throughout the day. Now is your time to ask questions, so speak up and get clarification if you’re unsure about how things work.

If you don’t receive any kind of orientation, create your own! Arrange meetings with key people in the organization to get a better idea of what they do and how they contribute to the organization’s larger mission. Ask questions about company culture and expectations. Try to participate in any workshops, seminars, conferences, or meetings that will help you learn. The main goal of your orientation time is to better understand the organization and your role within it.

Put it in Writing

It’s up to you to make a positive impression, to learn as much as possible, and to develop new skills. In order to achieve this, consider and write down your goals for the internship. Discuss these with your supervisor and explore ways to achieve your goals. In turn, ask your supervisor what he/she expects of you and discuss the resources and training that you will receive in order to meet those expectations. Formalize your goals and your employer’s expectations in a learning contract. List your regular duties and responsibilities as well as major projects. Using the contract as a tool, you can evaluate your progress toward your goals and redirect your internship progress if necessary. After several weeks on the job, you may wish to add goals or ideas to your original list. Your contract should be flexible; discuss any additions with your supervisor and continue to shape your internship so that you, and your employer, get everything you want out of the experience.

Adopt a Winning Approach

Regardless of the skills and knowledge you bring to the organization, success as an intern is dependent upon the right attitude. A balance of confidence, willingness to learn and a hard work ethic is a formula for a great internship. Make the most out of every experience.

Read all paperwork that comes across your desk (correspondence, memos, bills, meeting minutes, forms, etc.). Consider what these items teach you about the inner workings of the organization and its mission. If you have extra time spend it reading organizational material like annual reports. The more you learn about your employer, the better you’ll be at your job, the more you’ll understand about the business and the industry, and the more you will learn that can help you in future positions.
If you’re answering the telephone, listen carefully. You can learn a lot about clients or customers who interact regularly with your internship site. Again this gives you better insight into the organization and may inspire ideas for ways you can be more involved or challenges you can tackle.
Be proactive about learning! Ask to attend meetings, conferences, client presentations, and lectures in order to get a better sense of your organization and how it compares to others in the industry. Watch your coworkers and ask a lot of questions; not just about their jobs, but also about their career development and advice for you. Observe how others network and build business relationships.

Communication

Whether in an internship or a full-time job, good communication skills are essential to success. The learning contract is a great tool to get you started, but good communication takes ongoing effort. When communicating with your supervisor, try to understand his/her preferred methods of communication. How often should you meet? What time of day works best? Does your supervisor prefer emails, phone conversations or face-to-face meetings? Does he/she like to hear the basics or all the details, your opinions or just the facts? Learning your supervisor’s style early on will better equip you to communicate your ideas and needs throughout the internship.

Also be sure to find out how you will be evaluated at the start of your internship and ask for regular feedback.

Turn an Internship into a Career Position

It’s often easier to pick up an internship or summer job these days than a full-time career position. But a temporary job can lead to a regular position, particularly if you make the right moves. Here are tips that may help you move from a temporary position to a permanent job.

Dress and Act Like a Professional – Create the impression that you belong in an organization by dressing as well as anyone who works there; this alone may help you stand out. Carefully watch how the permanent employees who are well respected and successful speak and act and try to emulate their style.
Interact with Colleagues and Superiors – Be as friendly as possible with fellow workers and supervisors. If you seek a career position, your supervisor’s recommendation may be a big help. Don’t fawn over the boss, but don’t go into your shell when opportunities arise to communicate with him or her. Don’t hesitate to raise questions or ask for help.
Stand Out and Show Initiative – It helps to be known by as many people as possible, so seek assignments that offer exposure, particularly to higher-ups. Volunteer for special projects if you get the chance.
Try to Obtain Helpful Work Assignments – If you have some choice as to your work, the best job assignment may be in one of the major areas of the employer. Top leadership in organizations often comes from those with backgrounds in the most significant units.
Try to Enrich Your Résumé – Whether or not you eventually go to work for your internship employer, it’s always helpful to have work assignments which will look good on your résumé.
Seek Evaluations – If you are not covered by a formal evaluation system, seek feedback on your performance from supervisors. The fact that you want to be evaluated attests to your seriousness about a career. If your rating shows some weaknesses, improve on those areas as quickly as possible.
Keep in Touch – After you have left the job, maintain contacts with your fellow workers or supervisors. At a minimum, they may be able to provide you with references. At the maximum, they may help you with names of potential employers or even encourage their organization to offer you a job.

Source: Career Opportunity News, Ferguson, An imprint of Facts on File, Inc., March/April 2004

Reflect on Your Experience

Consider ways to record your internship experience. Keeping a journal, writing down reactions to specific incidents, or keeping a log of various tasks completed can help you to identify what you learned and the skills developed. This will help you communicate your skills and experience on your résumé and in future job interviews. It also helps you to process your experience and learn from it – internships are a great time to observe and make mistakes. Be sure to keep examples of your work, such as brochures you designed or articles you wrote, to develop a work portfolio. These might come in handy for interviews or writing sample submissions.

Check "How to Get the Most out of Your Internship" for more information.