How to learn new skills through internships by Estelle Liotard

We live in a time where our education isn’t just defined by how many degrees we have collected during the years of our studies. For many professionals and big companies of all niches, what matters the most is the practical skills and knowledge a potential employee has, rather the university they have graduated from.

Internships might be time-consuming and tiring for most people who decide to go through with them, but they certainly have a lot to offer too. Here are some of the most important reasons why internships can be so very important for your professional as well as personal development.

Gaining experience in your field of work

One of the things that many students lack after they have completed their studies is professional experience. No matter how much you read about the conditions your future workplace might have, you will never truly be able to know what to expect unless you actually experience it.

Gaining experience in your future field of work will help you come in contact with complicated procedures. You will be able to learn how to put your theoretical knowledge to use and how to interact and work with other people in your field in unison.

Networking with other professionals

For most students, networking is consistent with coming in contact with other fellow students and their professors. Getting to know established professionals in your field can be a tough thing to achieve, mainly because you have no easy way to approach them.

“Internships can help you find a great way to come in contact with all the professionals you look up to. Along with that, you might be lucky enough to have a chance to learn from them directly and enhance your knowledge by learning the way they think and work”, suggests Linda Charles, Social Media Manager for Studicus.

The experience these people have in your field is not something any degree or any university can teach you and after the completion of your internship, you will be able to keep these people in your circle of contacts. The only thing you need to do is to work hard, follow directions well and gain their respect.

Building up your resume

Voluntary work and internships sometimes matter more than anything else to a potential employer who will be going through your resume. A student who isn’t afraid or bored to commit their time to a voluntary or low-paying job must be someone dedicated to bettering themselves and learning.

“Working with various employers and for different companies in your field of work will help you add different working experiences in your CV which will catch the eye of many employers in your future career”, advises John Frank, HR Manager for IsAccurate.

By showing them you have past experience in the field and that you were dedicated to learning different aspects of the job, you will be able to present a hard-working young person who will be able to deal with hardships and prove to become an asset for any company that chooses to hire them.

Gaining valuable feedback

Something that many people don’t think about when it comes to applying for internships is the chance to receive valuable feedback from an expert. No matter how good you believe yourself to be, you need to keep in mind that there is always room for improvement, and who better to show you how you can improve than established people in your field of work.

Feedback can be obtained through a variety of ways and it can help you develop both personally and professionally. If an employer comments on your poor communication skills, then you might need to practice your speech and your reactions when it comes to interacting with other people. On the other hand, making mistakes when it comes to a certain task might mean that you have to revise doing it.

You can ask the people you work with to either give you feedback at the end of your working day, the end of the week on a personal meeting or even the end of your internship. In any case, you should be ready to accept their criticism and whether that is good or bad, be able to use it in a productive way.

Exploring your interests

Internships can help you truly understand whether you enjoy your line of work or not. What you learn while in university might truly be different than what you will be doing later on in your life, by experiencing working in your field through an internship, you will be able to see whether you can see yourself doing this for the rest of your life or not.

Along with that, you might also have the chance to find out new things that spark your interest. Whether this means you will have to change career paths or simply the goals you had set for your future, you will still be able to know exactly what you enjoy doing and start working towards achieving it.

Using the internship experience to your advantage

Internships can be tiring and dreaded by many students, but they can truly help you gain valuable knowledge which can potentially shape your future career and personality. The more experience you gain with different employers and working positions, the more you will be able to tell whether you are suited for a certain profession or not.

At the end of the day, excelling in a field will require you to put a lot of hard work and effort into becoming better than good. Maybe a simple internship can become the start of your own journey.

Bio: Estelle Liotard is a professional Content Creator and Editor with years of experience from writing for websites such as EssayAssistant and TrustMyPaper. Her passion for helping students succeed and reach their goals has granted her a spot on the writing team of WowGrade, where she frequently writes about topics such as finding writing motivation and staying focused on achieving one’s goals. In her spare time, she loves reading and spending time with her dog.