Three Tips to Land the Internship You Want

As an international student I struggled a lot to get my internship. There are billions of university pamphlets, articles, websites, books, seminars, and YouTube videos with “valuable” advice on how to land that so wanted internship. If you have already seen these tips before: 

·         Edit and proofread your resumes and cover letters

·         Clean up your social media accounts

·         Dress appropriately and be 15 minutes early to an interview

·         Send thank you notes

·         Don’t be too shy, find a way to stand out

·         Look interviewer in the eye and have a firm handshake,

·         Build your network.
Chances are you read and watched almost all of them, like me.

It would be stupid of me to tell you that these things don’t help you, but it is all common sense. If you are not doing these things, you are a little league trying to qualify for the Grand Slams. If this information is new to you I would advise you, to do like I did in the beginning, and go to your university’s career service. Don’t be shy or embarrassed to ask for the career services’ help, use and abuse of all their resources because at the end of the day that’s why they are there for. If you want you can also take a look at my university’s website and discover the Internship Basics.

Like I have mentioned before I have read many articles which gave me advice on how to get an internship, but through my experience and the experience of my close friends in Brazil and in the US, I learned that the real thing is completely different. So here are a few tips I want to share that helped me land my internship:

1.    Find your Passion

Find an industry, position, or company that interests you or something you would want to do even if you were not paid for. Don’t forget the whole point of doing an internship is not only gaining experience, putting it on your resume, and exploring the different career opportunities. It is all these thing, but it is important to remember internships lead to a future jobs.

2.    Do your homework

If you think spending 30 minutes looking at the company’s website is enough research, you are very wrong. Doing so is like looking to through the PowerPoint without going to class and expect to get an A on the course. Research includes not only the products or services offered by the company, but the business itself. Who are the major competitors, minor competitors, what are they known for, what kind of people work there, latest news, etc. Also, get familiar with the products and services offered by them, through in-depth online research, someone who used it, or if possible by using it yourself.

Don’t be afraid to speak up and talk about what you researched, but never lie. What I learned is if you are not familiar with the subject be honest because interviewers know when you are lying. We have a saying in Brazil “mentira tem perna curta”, which literally means that lies have short legs and people will catch up to them fast.

3.    See the Big Picture

What I mean by seeing the big picture is, finding what you and the company are getting from you working for them. What helps me see it is, visualizing my role in the company and what will I bring to the table that can benefit them in a way that no one else can. Once I was able to see it, than it was a lot easier for me to explain my qualities and experience that go along with what the company does.

Hopefully this will help you, like it helped me. Don’t forget to utilize your university’s career services, never lie, and be yourself. If you get nervous… its ok. I actually believe it to be a good thing, because it means you really care about the interview and want the job really bad. Just don’t allow yourself to be nervous because you are not well prepared. If you did everything you should, just take a deep breath and remember that you are as good as you believe you are!
See you next time… Tchau!!