By Tim Crandall of college-works-painting.net
Some consider an internship as just as important as the courses they take as part of their college’s academic program. Not only does it give the you something to put on your resume, it allows you to develop real world job skills, network with people in a given industry, and may even land you a job offer following graduation. But which internships are more likely to lead to employment? How can one tell whether an internship is likely to earn them a job offer?
For one, ask! A lot of companies will make it known that their interns may be offered employment at the end of the program, or once they graduate. Many will hold off on guaranteeing employment, of course, as an internship may be used by the company to see if the student is a competent, hard worker who will be an asset to the company. Some interns may be offered a job, others may not be depending on how well they perform during their time with the company.
If the company does not advertise whether job opportunities are available after the internship program, it doesn’t hurt to ask. Most companies will give an answer similar to what was mentioned in the previous paragraph: that the internship may lead to employment in the future, or that some may be offered employment at the end of the program. Ask about criteria used to evaluate intern performance and how it is determined which interns will be offered a job.
If the internship offers you an opportunity to participate in the professional operations of the company, they will likely get a better sense of your potential contribution as a full-time employee. If you’re just filing papers and getting people coffee, they may not get as good a sense of how you’d fit as a professional with their company. Of course, performing such tasks should not turn a student off to an internship, as most people have to pay their dues in the beginning. But a lot of internships allow interns to perform other tasks in addition to the boring, menial ones.
Whatever you do, make the most of the opportunity. Take whatever chance you can to impress your boss or others within the company. Show initiative and a desire to learn and put in the work. Even if the company does not offer a direct internship-to-employment route, putting in the effort may improve your chances of being hired with the company after college.
**Evelyn Edit**
I agree with Bill. If your goal is to get a full-time job within the company, you gotta ask if employment is possible. Do they even have a spot open? Also, in my experience, the smaller the company, the more an intern gets to do. You can reach for the prestige of a big name company, but you may be subject to refilling the printer with paper and answering phones. Small companies have less people, so every single person is vital to the operation. Including us interns. Thanks Bill!
