Try A Summer Internship Or Co-op Program, Here's Why You Should
Many companies, big or small, offer internship and co-op programs to undergraduate students
. The programs are offered to students in fields that are an integral part of the company?s operations, and provide opportunities for both the employer and students.Normally a summer internship is a 10 to 12 week program of full-time work during the summer break. Assigned in actual departments within the company relevant to their field of study,work is usually 40 hours per week, with students working on real assignments. Of course, a nice advantage of an internship is that you get paid ? not handsomely, but certainly well enough to make it a worthwhile job.
You will be placed in a position and department or division within the company related to your field of study, when you join a company as an intern. So that they get an all-round picture of the career path they have chosen, most companies provide the opportunity for students to work in a few departments within a particular field. Payroll, training, industrial relations and other areas is where you would find a Human Resources intern, for instance. This way you get a better of idea of exactly what your chosen career entails and you gain a better idea of what sort of job you may look for after your graduate.
The student intern also gains the experience of working for a particular company, one that might ultimately hire them after they graduate. You will get a chance to experience the company atmosphere, get to know the staff and figure out whether this is a place you would like to work.
Whether you eventually seek employment there or not, a summer internship gives you some good work experience to put on your resume when you start looking for full-time employment. Many fields offer internships such as accounting and finance, marketing, human resources, operations, engineering, and more.
A co-op program is more or less similar to the internship, but gives more of a part-time employment while the student is studying. The work hours will be flexible so you can fit it in with the schedule of your classes. Co-op programs may be as long as 6 months, offering similar advantages to an internship. You earn some money, become familiar with the company, gain valuable work experience, and most importantly, you gain a better understanding of the kind of work you can expect to do in your choice of career.
Summer internships and co-op programs provide companies with the opportunity to find prospective full time employments from a selection of hand-picked students. The company gets to asses your abilities, competencies and talents, and if you are what they are seeking then they will offer you full-time work when you graduate. You can take the position fully aware of what you are getting into because you have already been an employee in that company and this often results in lower staff turnovers, another perk for the company.
Often supplemented by mentors, additional training and other programs to provide a full experience for students, most companies provide real work assignments for interns. To give a different perspective of work life, while interacting with different people from other areas of the business, most interns are required to join corporate responsibility programs.
A summer internship or co-op program can give you the insight and experience that could prove to be invaluable once you graduate and start looking for full-time work, even though it may initially feel like giving up your summer is a lot to ask.
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