Four Reasons You Should Do an Internship for Yourself (Part 2 of 2)

Thanks for joining for part two of "Four Reasons You Should Do an Internship for Yourself." This blog was inspired by my internship, which I am more grateful for every day. The position taught me about my professional value and the importance of being trustworthy in the little tasks, which I went into more detail in part one. Wondering how an internship could benefit you? Continue reading for two more reasons why you should do an internship for yourself. 

Be an actual team player.

Confession: there were times in school when I did more than my fair share on group assignments. Reality: no potential employer wants to hear that.

In an internship, regardless of how small your tasks seem, you are contributing to the team. This was probably one of my favorite aspects of my internship. I had multiple tasks that belonged to me. If I did not get these done, nobody would. Then, I had other tasks that were rotated through the Communications team, like writing articles on behalf of the council members. On top of these, there were short-term assignments for events or, on occasion, natural disasters. In these situations, each of the team members was responsible for key items. We depended on one another. The process was not without challenges, but when the festival was complete or the fire was contained, we shared a sigh of relief and then began discussing how we could do better next time.

That’s team work that you can be proud of and that you can brag about when your interviewer asks you about a time you worked within a team.

Save money or get paid.

Most internships will offer money or college credits. If they don’t offer either, you still get the proverbial work experience. However, I do want to talk about the first two options more in depth.

Student loan debt in the United States is more than $1.47 trillion and 44.2 million individuals are the holders of that debt. Student debt seems like a necessary evil. That was the bitter pill I swallowed every semester I registered for my next assortment of classes. However, having an internship helped.

Due to a number of circumstances, I was unable to use my internship hours for college credits, but that was an option at my college. I highly recommend any students interested in an internship find out about their school’s policy on using internship hours for school credit and to be aware of any deadlines and small print issues. If it can be done, you will be saving money on tuition.

While I did not get credit hours, I was paid, which helped me in two pivotal ways. First, I made monthly payments on my loans while they were still in grace period. Second, I minimized accruing interest. 

Have any questions or comments about internships? Please share in the comment section!