Knowledge protects us while we need to protect our money.
Money has always been an attractive concept until we understand the quote mentioned above. Money might eventually be gone but your knowledge in your particular field of study will either stay or keep getting better.
In college, students come across various internship opportunities. They often find it confusing when it comes down to short listing the type of internship one should go for. Some Internships do contain a stipend while some don’t. You will find many mentors discouraging you to go for an internship which doesn’t offer a stipend. They consider it to be “free labour”, failing to understand that genuine internships relevant to your field of study provides invaluable experience and networks.
Most of the students aspire to get a good placement after college, which is possible only if one has a strong foundation of the necessary technical skills. Therefore, it is important to focus on mastering your skill set and implementing it through internships in the college days itself. There might be internship offers that involve execution of a skill that you are already good in, these internships have nothing but money to offer.
Undergraduates should essentially place money lowest in a priority list, containing ‘learning’, ‘experience’, ‘networking’ and ‘getting mentored’. Only during college days we are motivated enough to get involved into a professional workplace with a “learner’s licence”, we are free to make mistakes, learn from them and most importantly ask for help or guidance without hesitation.
Once you are a full time employee, you’re expected to be a perfect professional who works efficiently for the desired output. You won’t have extra time to develop a particular skill which, in turn, will result in disappointed superiors. When you possess an exemplary and updated skill set developed by determined efforts towards learning it and it’s applications, money will follow. You will climb up the corporate ladder faster and make more money as compared to a person who got fixed on internships that offered nothing but money.
Currently, even though your conscience will guide you towards a better learning environment, your heart will always urge you to take steps towards the internship offering good cash. Human wants can never be satisfied, the only thing that can satisfy you in the long term is achieving your goals by prioritising them over any other materialistic item. A well paying, secure and enjoyable job further leads to a wholesome life which can only be attained by working towards it during college instead of sprinting after any company which offers you more money.
It takes courage and clarity in your vision to follow the path that leads to ultimate success and reject temptations. Furthermore, be mindful of not getting swayed by the ideology that money is not important and becoming a victim of companies getting free work done by you in the name of internship. It is necessary to evaluate all opportunities that you receive and determine if you should accept it. In order to assure it, let’s list out the necessary criteria:
New skill or advancements upon your skill involved:
Check whether the internship is offering you work which will push you to indulge into new skill development and understanding different parameters of the skill set you already possess.
Exposure:
Many Internships provide an undergraduate with a great deal of exposure and if you do not choose your internship wisely you might be stuck with a boring internship while the industry could have not only offered a thrilling internship experience but also checked in your box of granting exposure. Check if you will be exposed to meetings, webinars, talks or any other entity from where you could take away something substantial.
Good networks:
Check if you will be able to meet, interact and maintain the connection with experienced professionals or any other influential person.
Reputation or credibility of the employer:
The organisation or the individual has to have some credibility, otherwise there is no point in doing the internship. If it is a progressive start-up operated by established and reliable people, you should not hesitate in taking it up. Start-Ups offer you an ocean of knowledge to drink and they are the best way to kick start your professional training.
Good mentorship:
The company must have good superiors who are always ready to clear your doubts or to help you with your work. During the internships, mentorship holds a lot of importance as this is what pushes you towards the correct path. Nobody can guide you better than experienced professionals of your field.
How will it fit in your resume:
The internship must be relevant enough to be mentioned in your resume. If you want to try out new skills or job experiences or transition smoothly to a different field of work, there is nothing better than indulging in an internship. Therefore, the internship should not be something that you do randomly. It should be related to your passion so that it can push you towards your success and dreams.
Relevance to your field of study:
The internship must be a place where you can apply all the knowledge that you have gained in your theory classes. Real time application of theoretical concepts is necessary as it provides an individual with a fantastic hands-on experience. This will make settling into a full time job much simpler and easier to achieve.
Whether it supports a transition into a job (if that is your goal):
If you wish to transition from one field of work to another, an internship can help! Occasionally, internships also come up with transitioning the interns to full-time employees. If that is your aim, you can check for the same in above mentioned points.
Understanding market dynamics and tactics:
If you want to have your own startup or want to learn more about the upcoming or emerging skills which will be required in the market, you can easily get a taste of it by working as an intern for a company.
Checkout Cuvette’s internship page(/internship) to apply for internships that will boost your learning along with a good stipend!
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