The University of Connecticut Center for Career Development is currently helping students through the search and application process for summer internships.
Students can utilize resources on the Center for Career Development website, such as taking a self assessment to learn more about what types of internships and careers would be a good fit, scheduling an appointment with a career coach or viewing the Internship and Co-op Guidebook with strategies and tips.
Beth Settje, associate director of experiential learning and college to career transitions, said the best way to get internships is through networking, whether that be using personal or professional connections or using online resources such as Handshake or Indeed. Settje added that networking can come from events such as a career fairs or in day to day interactions talking to other people.
Settje added that networking can be a challenging process for students to begin and encourages students to attend the career and internship fairs that are offered on campus to get experience talking to professionals.
There was the annual Internship and Co-Op Fair that was offered a few weeks ago and there will be a Spring Career Fair on April 2 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Gampel Pavilion.
At the fairs, Settje said many employers come out from a variety of organizations but there are some fields where a career fair may not have the recruiters that align with students’ interests. Settje said regardless students should still come out and practice their networking introduction and could potentially find an opportunity they weren’t expecting.
“I think it is always worthwhile for students of multiple majors to go to career fairs to practice this because it will yield positive results in the future,” Settje said.
Another component to the internship process is crafting a cover letter and resume. Settje said the Career Center is happy to help with resume and cover letter critiquing and development and helping avoid common mistakes that students make.
“A big mistake students make with internship searching as well as job searching is they will craft, let’s say a working resume, or their ‘everything’ resume and it is not modified or tailored to an opportunity or an industry,” Settje said.
Instead, Settje said students should craft a resume that is tailored to the field that they are applying to.
“It is much better to take the time to do industry research, and some position research and then make different types of resumes. Look at the position, the company and their mission statement, their values, what skills they are seeking, what dynamics they have within the organization, and then sprinkle keywords and craft your bullet points differently,” Settje said.
It is much better to take the time to do industry research, and some position research and then make different types of resumes,
Beth Settje, Associate Director of Experiential Learning and College to Career Transitions.
The Center for Career Development can also help students once they get accepted into internships, as well as explain the difference between credit-based and pay-based internships.
Credit-based internships must be approved in order for students to receive credit. On the Center for Career Development website, there is a list of which departments offer internship courses and which departments don’t. Settje said the Career Center has its own one credit course if students don’t have the required credits yet to take an internship course in their department.
If students are doing an internship for credit during the school year, it is covered as part of their tuition. However, if they are doing an summer internship, they have to pay the summer tuition fees for the course.
“If a student is doing it during the summer, and wants to earn even one credit for an internship, right now for summer 2024, it is going to cost roughly $800 for the privilege of working at an unpaid internship,” Settje said.
While unpaid internships can be good opportunities, Settje said they do everything they can to help students find paid experiences, which are far more equitable.
Settje said it is not too late for students to begin the internship process. She said students can maximize their time over spring break to work on their resume and internship searching, and that Career Center coaches are available for appointments throughout the week as well.
Although a lot of internship applications are now live, Settje said that many medium and small organizations are preparing to advertise within the next 6-8 weeks and larger ones may find that they have an unexpected opening if a new project recently started, or a previous hire had to withdraw.
Settje said they see students regularly secure internships as late as June for the summer, but she encourages students to start their search as early as possible.
“It is possible to locate opportunities later. These may not be the student’s first choice, or the student will have to adjust expectations, for what is available. And one never knows, sometimes the most unexpected situation can lead to a great opportunity!” Settje said.
Students can schedule an appointment on their website with a career coach to help them get started. Any specific questions can be directed to internships@uconn.edu
unpaid internships are pointless. Read the book Inter Nation. Basically unless there is a business relationship the insurance policies do not cover interns. Moreover if money isn’t involved on any level you can pretty much say whatever you want. What’s the difference between an unpaid internship and volunteering? Who would volunteer for a private corporation? that makes little sense.
Unpaid internships are usually pushed for a a variety of reasons
1) Lack of faculty involvement. It was free an again hardly counts for anything. No background checks, credit checks etc
2) Free labor for the employers involved
3) There is no protected class status.
Besides if minimum wage is too high for an employer to pay what is that *really* saying about them?