Most organizations and jobs that you apply to following graduation want employees to have some sort of professional experience, even for entry-level jobs. In the event that you are a finalist for a position and haven’t had an internship experience but the other finalist has, you may lose out on a job opportunity, so make sure you at least have one internship on your resume before leaving college to give you a leg up on the competition.
An Internship Equips You with More Than Just Technical Skills
No, company demands only business and technical knowledge, they require you to know more skills because no matter how good you are, you won’t stand a chance of succeeding in any profession unless you develop a collaborative work ethic and learn to be a team player. You also need to know how to work under pressure, and why do deadlines matter. To be precise, by doing an internship you not only get to polish your technical skills polished but also get exposed to the challenges of a work environment. These experiences will be extremely useful to talk about in future interviews and show employers that why you will be a good fit for their company. As per LinkedIn Skills Report (2018), 57% of people rated soft skills as being more important than technical skills. Skills, such as communication, leadership, problem-solving, and teamwork can all be learned through an internship and utilized beyond that experience.
An Internship Allows You to Gain a Competitive Edge
We all know, job market has always been very competitive. There may be hundreds of other candidates applying for the same job profile as you. As a result, you need to work on yourself to make yourself stand out in the job market. And, nothing better than an Internship can provide you with experience and skills to help make employers notice you and show them that you would be a perfect choice for their company, if you’re a fresher. It also portrays that you are someone who has the drive and passion and has been motivated to acquire experience outside of just University.
According to the State of Millennial Hiring Report, in US, graduates who complete more than three internships are more likely to secure a full-time job. Most institutions are emphasising that students should graduate with experience. The report also claims that 81.1% of graduates accept that working as an intern has helped them significantly improve their career prospects.
Another report, Sutton Trust’s 2018 report showed that “Completing an internship was associated with higher salaries, for both middle and working-class students”.
Needless to say, internships have a crucial role in shaping one’s career. It not only helps undergraduates and graduates gain real exposure to working environments but also helps them develop the necessary technical as well as crucial soft skills to make them stand out in a saturated job market.