Five Tips For A Successful Internship
07/06/14
So after months of resume preparation and interviewing, you’ve now secured your dream internship.
That’s great news but you’d be amazed at how many people fail to complete their 12 week internship due to a number of workplace faux pas.
Make sure your dream job doesn’t become a nightmare! Follow these simple steps to ensure that, you will not only pass your probation, but you will also be regarded by your manager and peers as a valued and respected member of your team.
1. Be punctual and reliable
A common reason why many people fail their internship is because they are regularly late or have a lot of sick days. Now of course there are going to be times when public transport is a nightmare and things happen that are out of your control, which is fine. However, if you are late for reasons such as this, make sure you call your employer to let them know the reasons you’re going to be late and give them a rough estimate as to how long you are likely to be. Generally as rule, you should ensure that you time your journey so that you are at least 5 minutes early for work.
Similarly, it doesn’t look good if you call in sick. Of course if you are genuinely ill your Supervisor will be compassionate but you will be expected to provide a Doctor’s note for your absence.
2. Don’t be afraid to ask questions
It’s scary starting an internship. You don’t know anyone, you’re working with a new team and manager, and you may be asked to do things you’ve never done before. That’s ok, don’t panic! It’s fine to ask questions if you’re not 100% certain of what is expected of you. Your Supervisor will want you to show your eagerness to learn and to generally get things right so be sure to speak up if you’re not sure.
3. Be proactive
There may be quiet periods during your internship. If this happens you should always find out if your supervisor or colleagues need any additional assistance. Common complaints made by companies who have decided to end a student’s internship early is that many interns take or make personal calls, send a lot of personal emails or are constantly surfing the internet during ‘quiet’ spells, and as such show little initiative or pro activity.
4. Wear appropriate clothing
Most work places will have a dress code. This doesn’t necessarily mean you are expected to wear a suit to work every day, however, ‘smart dress’ is almost always expected. This normally means smart trousers, a knee length skirt for women and a smart shirt/top. Singlets, thongs, hoodies and shorts are not appropriate.
5. Last but not least… be careful when it comes to social media
If you have a Facebook, Twitter and/or Instagram account you need to be sensible. If you have a social media account you definitely should keep this page private.
Many companies now use social media, Facebook especially, to market their business. If your organisation has a social media group which you choose to join, again be smart and make sure that you mark your personal profile as private. If you don’t, every member of that group will have access to the content of your page and there may be things on there that you do not want the whole world to see!
Although you may have a private social media account, it is important to understand that personal information can be shared fairly easily amongst people. If you have any inappropriate photos, status updates or have joined any offensive groups it is absolutely essential that you remove these from your account.
Good luck with your internship!
Make the most out of every opportunity that your internship provides. Remember that 44% of our interns get employment with their host company!
