International Internships

Internships are where higher education meets employment; they allow students to gain experience working in an organization while studying at university. They can be paid or unpaid and allow you to work in an organization for a set period, which could be anything from one intensive week, to interning once a week for twelve months. In some courses, such as medicine, nursing and education, which require access to hospitals and schools, industry placements are standard and are organized by the university. Other courses, such as those in the arts, business, engineering, law, information technology and science fields, vary between institutions and may or may not include industry placements or internship subjects, placing the onus largely on the student. Even if your course does contain an internship component it doesn’t mean that you can’t take on another internship at other stages of the course; after all, the more experience you have, the better. It is likely that your lecturers and tutor...

In an op ed in the New York Times earlier this month, Ford Foundation president, Darren Walker, speaks to the value of college internships. Walker noted the personal impact: "As a low-income kid from a small town who entered college without an extended network, my internships equipped me with the skills, confidence and relationships to channel my potential into a rewarding career." Mr. Walker offers a blunt assessment of internships: "Talent is equally distributed, but opportunity is not." He suggests that those who want to improve growing levels of inequality "actually - and often unconsciously - reinforce the dynamics that create inequality in their own lives." His solution is to offer paid internships, with the government stepping in to compensate interns in work settings like the nonprofit community for those students who do not have other established networks to support them. Mr. Walker provides examples of federal programs that could be used to ...

The quality of internships varies greatly. It doesn't really make a difference whether your internship is paid or unpaid. When an organization has a formal internship program, you may have opportunities that you wouldn't get in the absence of one. This is generally because supervisory responsibility and duties are clearly outlined as part of a formal program. In a more unstructured environment, you may find that it's difficult to maneuver without a designated boss and work stream. Both arrangements have pros and cons. If you're lucky, you may be assigned a mentor or supervisor who will take you to meetings and answer your questions. However, you may find that you don't have enough to keep you busy or you may not know who to reach out to with questions. If you are in that position, here are some ways you can get more out of your internship. Find out where your support is. It may be uncomfortable to do or require digging, but you must figure out who can help you. If ...