How to land an internship 101

If you have landed on this page, chances are you probably just saw a new LinkedIn notification on your mobile lock screen which read, ‘Congratulate Mike Ross on starting a new position at Pearson Specter Litt’. And I agree, finding internships or opportunities seems like a tough job. Especially while starting out or when you have no connections and you see your fellow peers acing at finding new internships, diverse roles and pursuing stuff which you wouldn’t have even known if not for those LinkedIn notifications.

So, without further ado, lets see how you can land a good stint in college internships and test all possible ways to bag one.

--Online Job Portals.

Now, I know, you will say that they are almost all choked up with advertisements and seem phony but trust me, the chances of you scoring an internship are pretty high if you are motivated enough and apply to the diverse selection of portals. A quick google search entry will show you all the job portals available. You have Indeed, Naukri, Angel List, Glassdoor, Internshala, Intern Theory, Google for Jobs to get started. You must in keep in mind while applying for an internship that consistency is key. Especially when it comes to job portals, one must keep checking for new openings at least weekly. It’ll only have been a matter of time before you land an awesome internship.

--Cold E-mailing.

There chances of you landing a stint via cold-emailing may not be very large, as a result, I’d suggest that you make a list of all possible e-mail ids of the HR personnel or managers of the companies you are interested in, via official websites or social media and at the end of a week, send out a cold-email to all the e-mail ids you have collected and hope for the best. I’ve come across some people who have written long cover letters in their emails but haven’t heard from the company whereas some, have barely stated their desire to work with the company and landed their dream internship. It’s safe to conclude, that cold e-mailing is tough luck but if it works for you, it’ll do you wonders.

--Direct messages and social media.

This may not be a conventional route of going about contacting your future employer, however all companies now have an active social media presence and show all-time online availability. Here, you have some assurance that your message doesn’t get entirely dismissed. You will definitely get a few responses, polite ones if they are not looking to hire. When it comes to social media, another aspect is the story ad promotions where companies themselves who are looking to hire interns post them. Once you spend time on either of the stories and check the company out, based on their algorithm, Instagram will itself show you more such posts and stories. Keep a look out for them and apply for the positions you are interested in.

--LinkedIn is the way to go.

Today, networking, especially social media networking goes a long way in widening your opportunities and making connections. And to its benefit, LinkedIn is a prime hot-spot especially in times when you are stuck indoors and a major chunk of companies are operating on a hiring freeze. With a freemium model pricing system, one can connect with industry hot-shots, engage in thought stimulating conversations in groups, apply for internships and jobs, undertake courses or simply only engage in posts and see what’s trending.

So as much as the notification may seem haranguing with all your peers starting a new position somewhere, a strong LinkedIn profile will open up multiple avenues for you to explore and grow.

A college internship is one checkbox every student wants to check in his list of college experiences. It largely comes out experimenting and finding out what you like and helps you decide your future career path.

There is a reason why college memories are incomplete without someone asking you,

“Ae, how much stipend did you get in your internship? Undergrad interns ko toh dete hi nahi kuch!” and it won’t be long before you will be asking someone just this if you diligently explore the above mentioned avenues!