This way you know which companies you are applying for an internship at. Great! The next part is to fill out those online application forms and start selling yourself.
Part 1: Your resume is your story
While there are many ways to structure and curate your resume, here are a few key tips to keep in mind so you can wow your employers from the start:
#1 The Basics: First, enter your name, city, email address, and phone number. If you have it, consider adding your LinkedIn or personal website.
#2 The categories: Three categories are must-haves for students applying for an internship: Education, Work and Internships, and Extracurricular Studies. If you have no previous work or internship, you can skip this category.
#2.1 Education: List your university and college education, state your achieved or expected grades, and don’t be shy about listing any academic awards you may have up your sleeve. If you don’t have much to write in this section, an alternative would be to list specific courses you’ve taken to show that you’re capturing the basic blocks.
#2.2 Work and Internships: While it can be tempting to list all of the work and internship roles you’ve previously held, think about their relevance. If you’re applying for a bank internship, how relevant was your position as a part-time employee at a bubble tea shop? Of course, if there are specific transferrable skills you want to emphasize from your part-time job, go for it.
#2.3 Extracurricular: Include a range of extracurricular activities if you are active in them. This is a great way to show that you are involved in your community and very good at managing your time and effort between studying and life outside of university.
#3 Reverse chronological order: You would be surprised at the number of people who forget to organize each category in reverse chronological order. Essentially, you want to list your most recent experiences first and go backwards from there.
#4 bullet points are your best friends: Keep it short and concise. Three bullet points per experience or position should suffice.
#5 Action Verbs: Begin each bullet point with an action verb. Example: “Redesigned the Society’s official website to feature event reports, sponsor and partnership briefings, and committee briefings to attract stakeholders and third parties.” Need ideas? Check out page four of Harvard’s Resume Guide and thank me later.
#6 Quantify: The little prince put it best: adults love numbers. Wherever possible, provide statistics of your performance. Were you the social media manager of your fraternity? Tell us the percentage growth in followers over your tenure.
#7 You are only human: While resumes are mostly professional, don’t forget to give a little hint of your personality. No, I don’t mean telling employers you know how to have fun when Friday comes. If you have space, add a section about the languages you speak or even your hobbies. Today’s recruiters are looking for more than just a robotic person to get the job done right, they want to see how you could fit into the company culture.
Part 2: Filling out the forms
I know, maybe the hardest part of it all. Nine times out of ten, the first stage of applying for an internship involves filling out endless sections of personal information. Take your time and make sure you answer each question honestly. Most importantly, double check your email and contact information to ensure recruiters can reach you should your application move to the next phase!
Certain applications also include short or long answer questions to understand your motivation for applying and your technical skills. This is your chance to shine. You don’t have to wait until the last interview to show who you are, what you have to offer and what you want to learn. Maximize these open-ended questions where appropriate and possible to differentiate yourself from other candidates. Just because this question is asked in the first phase of the application does not mean that you should take it lightly.
Part 3: Ring, ring! I call cold
Remember those companies you’d like to apply to but might not be hiring at the moment? Still, try emailing them — you never know what might come of it. Here are a few things to include in your email:
- State your field of study and the name of the university
- Express your interest in gaining practical experience in the X industry
- Make it clear that you’ve researched the company, but remember to show it instead of saying it; Consider talking about how impressed you were with the company’s mission or vision
- Briefly mention what you would like to learn if you do an internship with this company
- Explain that you are interested in this specific position or department (perhaps it matches your skills or interests).
- Demonstrate your current skills and what you can bring to the table
- Thank the recruiter for his attention
The best part? You can use the same tips when writing a cover letter.
Part 4: Put to the test
So you’ve been invited by a company to run a series of tests so they can get to know you better. If you’re equal parts looking forward to the test and dreading it, that’s normal. While tests will vary depending on what you are applying for, some common ones are aptitude tests, technical tests, behavioral assessments, case studies, psychometric tests and numerical reasoning.
We’d be here all week going through each individual test, but here are some general tips that apply to all tests:
- answer honestly; Don’t worry about the kind of responses employers want to see
- It’s better to get most questions right and miss a few than to run against the clock and end up with a handful of mistakes (most tests are designed so you don’t expect to answer them completely! )
- Read the questions and information carefully; Sometimes additional information is snuck in just to confuse you
- Apply what you already know; These tests will rarely go so far as to test you for something you don’t know about. So think about the basics you have and use them
- Look for patterns; train your brain to recognize patterns (just like the kind of questions shown in IQ tests)
- Practice, practice, practice! There are countless practice tests that you can take online before taking the actual test
Did you receive the last invitation to an interview? Well done! Next is my final part, Internship Insider #3: The Interview Impression
