My Internship Survival Guide
Steps to land your dream internship.
by MIA ROSENZWEIG★ SEPTEMBER 19, 2023
It’s officially internship season! You’re probably thinking, but isn’t summer over? Well, in the corporate world, applications begin up to a year in advance. Last summer, I interned at one of the big four accounting and consulting firms. Here are my tips to make sure your transition into the corporate world goes smoothly!
Step 1: Get yourself out there!
My favorite platforms to do this on are Handshake and LinkedIn. Handshake posts about everyday recruiting events you can attend both virtually and in-person. Most of our campus recruiters are Syracuse alumni, which means they were in your shoes a few years ago. They want you to succeed and, most importantly, are looking to hire. My biggest tip: don't forget that recruiters are people too. During my time at my corporation, “making threads” was emphasized every day. This means, when networking, try to remember a fact about the other person. It helps you get to know your peers and coworkers on a more personal level. Being friendly with the recruiters gives you a huge advantage against other students, as it helps them put a face to your name during application review. LinkedIn is basically the Instagram of the corporate world. Anything you want potential employers to know about you, share! It is highly encouraged to post often to increase engagement and your connections on LinkedIn, and according to LinkedIn statistics, 122 million users have received an interview and 35.5 million have been offered a job.
Step 2: Applications!
Recruitment is like a funnel. As the commitment process continues, fewer people move forward. Having a solid resume is essential to landing that interview. A big “don’t” is having more than one page on your resume. As an undergrad, you want to highlight your best achievements and most relevant work experience only. Although you may have four pages of accomplishments, you want to focus on the most relevant information to keep your resume concise and in line with your goals. A “do” is to show the impact you have in your involvement. Using action words like “sold,” “marketed,” and “identified” shows that you make a difference when you’re involved. Another “do” is peer review! When I first came to Syracuse, I showed my resume to a group of upperclassmen in my consulting club. Let's just say my resume was left covered in red pen. Recruiters don’t expect your resume to be perfect, especially if you’re a freshman. You’re meant to gain experience while at Syracuse, so always be open to new opportunities like part-time jobs or clubs.
Step 3: Interview time!
You finally did it… you got the call to come back! First, celebrate. This is huge in and of itself, and most people don’t even make it to this stage. Now, you need to prepare; you don’t know what to wear and what you’re going to be asked. Many companies have a similar structure for interviews. Group interviews are designed to see how you interact with others and how you work in a team environment, while individual interviews are to get to know you personally and hear you market yourself. What helped to prepare me was using AI to give me practice interview questions. To help revise my answers, I asked my friends to ask me questions. A great alternative is to also record yourself so you can rewind and really see what you want to work on!
Step 4: What’s meant to be will be!
No matter the outcome, getting or losing an internship offer does not determine your intelligence! Even the most successful people have dealt with rejection, but it only made them stronger. Michael B. Jordan didn’t make his first basketball team, and Oprah got fired from the local Tennessee news. Look at them now! The right opportunity will find you when the time is right. Good luck during application season, and have confidence in your new networking skills!