Internships are no longer considered summer jobs that you work for pocket money. And no, you shouldn’t get one because your college professor said so.
An internship could actually make or break your career prospects. And with every kid these days scrambling for one, a good internship could set you apart from your college gang when you finally graduate.
But what if yours is just a waste of time? Read the signs, before it’s too late.
1. Your primary responsibilities are fetching print-outs and making coffee.
If all you do are insignificant tasks that could well be done by the office peon, you may want to rethink this internship.
2. You have limited interaction with other employees and are, more often than not, ignored.
Sure, no one really rolls out a red carpet for interns, but that doesn’t mean you should be totally sidelined. It’s important for you to be able to interact and learn from senior employees.
3. The department you are interning with has no major impact on the company’s bottom line.
If you want to be a graphic designer, wouldn’t it be better if your internship were with a firm that makes its money from the artwork of their graphic designers and illustrators?
4. There’s not a single person in the organisation who could be your mentor.
An important part of an internship is finding a mentor who you can learn the ropes from, who can give you some amount of counsel and who takes genuine interest in you. If there isn’t anyone like that around, you are wasting your time!
5. This internship doesn’t look that great on your resume.
Would you be proud to say that you did this internship? Or would a potential employer consider you better qualified for the job because of it?
6. There’s no chance of ever getting full-time employment with this company.
A job prospect within the company can definitely sweeten the deal. Of course, this isn’t really a deal breaker.
7. You aren’t able to give college assignments and exams any importance because this internship takes up all your time.
A good internship is one that takes into account that you are still studying while trying to get some hands-on experience, which means that your boss would allow you some amount of study leave and time off.
8. The company thinks you should feel utterly privileged just to be accepted as an intern, and uses that as a means to exploit or ignore you.
You definitely should feel privileged to get an internship with a reputed company, but that doesn’t mean sitting in a corner doing nothing is worth that privilege.
9. At the end of each day, you are not quite sure how you spent your time.
You spend several hours a day at your internship, but you are still not sure of what the job profile is. That’s a red alert.
10. You haven’t acquired any new skill nor are you headed towards it.
If there’s no one training you on any particular task, it’s about time you got out.
(Lisabelle Gonsalves has recently turned freelance writer, after a 10-year career in lifestyle journalism. A travel blogger with a borderline unhealthy love for shoes, when she isn’t writing for her favourite beats – fashion, food and travel – she’s daydreaming about boogying with Meghan Trainor. Don’t judge.)
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