Being an intern isn’t always is never glamorous. Even if you landed the internship of your dreams with a luxury hotel group or prestigious firm, chances are you will still do your fair share of coffee- and lunch-fetching, on top of all the tedious work that no one else likes to do. Not to mention the tiny – if any – paycheck. So why does anyone bother getting an internship? Because at the end of the day, no one can argue that a great internship can make your entire career if you manage to work hard, stay humble and keep the big picture in mind (even on those coffee runs).
hosco.plus has you covered with five tips on how to turn your internship into a full-time position.
1. Pick the right internship
Yeah, we know we said that no internship was glamorous, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t good ones and bad ones. Choose an internship where there will be actual work involved—beyond taking lunch orders and filing.
How to find out? Do some research on the company; during the interview, ask questions about specific projects you will work on and about what the day-to-day responsibilities are; contact former interns to ask about their experiences (find them on LinkedIn or just ask HR directly). If you can’t get any clear answers on specific duties and planned projects, you may want to consider applying for a more relevant internship.
2. Don’t act like an intern
Instead, act as if you are already the best full-time employee your company has seen: fully own your responsibilities and be accountable; show up early and leave late; dress and act like a professional, not like the office baby. Need advice on how to dress appropriately for your job? Read our post on tips to getting your dress code right at work.
3. Network
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: Networking is one of the most important things you can do to land a job. Treat networking like it’s part of your job description, and budget time for it each week. Take full advantage of your colleagues—eat lunch with them, ask them about their jobs, offer your assistance on a project. Outside of work, don’t miss company events that you are invited to, and don’t be shy about asking to tag along with colleagues to industry events.
Hate to network and not sure where to start? Read our post on no-fail conversation starters for networking events.
4. Take initiative
As an intern, you have a distinct advantage—you are there to observe, and you have a fresh set of eyes. See something that’s not working perfectly? Take initiative and work on an action plan, then present it to your supervisor.
For example, formulate a plan to improve guest feedback scores or employee satisfaction surveys.
5. Learn something real
While your internship may indeed be part of your university credits or school curriculum, resist the urge to simply “check it off the list” before graduation. You are not just serving an employer as an intern, you are serving yourself, so get as much out of your hard work as possible! During your internship, take full advantage of the resources you have—ask questions, request challenging work and, most importantly, pay attention!
At the end of the internship, be sure to have a meeting with your supervisor to discuss what you have learned and ask for critical feedback. From there, you can segue into questions about full-time opportunities and request a letter of recommendation.
