You don’t have to be Wonder Woman to do it.
The two words that give me a stomachache starting around the month of February are “summer internship.” As a sophomore, I have mixed feelings about summer internships in general. I recognize that they are great ways to gain experience in my field of interest, but a large part of me feels like my time to be a kid is running out faster than I would like. I entertain the idea of picking cherries at an organic farm in Michigan and then I receive yet another email from the Career Center. And as my summer plans remain up in the air, each email activates a neuron in my brain that pushes me to investigate a “serious” summer plan. So I have accepted it. Farewell to the daydreams of being an au pair in the south of France, or being a waitress on Cape Cod, and hello résumé builder.
Even though I started thinking about my summer plans in February, I only recently secured an internship. So fear not, ladies, you have still got time. And luckily for you, through my avid and extensive pursuit of a summer internship, I discovered several extraordinarily helpful websites. (Personally, I find the Career Center’s website to be rather hard to navigate, but there is always that oldie-but-goodie to fall back on.)
Indeed.com – This website is great if you are looking for an internship in a particular location. You type in a “what” – for example, “public policy summer internship” – and a “where” – “New York City” (if you want to be near me!) – and click Find Jobs. You can specify your search by job type, or even salary estimate (aim high, why not?). Your search will generate a ton of potential internships, so you may have to spend significant time sifting through the results.
Ed2010.com – This is a great website for any girls (like me) hoping to one day work in the magazine industry. From the homepage, click on “Ed on Campus” located at the top, and then “Internships” on the lower left side. I got giddy just looking at this website – so many internships at such cool magazines!
Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism – Sorry if my website preference is revealing a trend. This website lists a ton of internships, and includes a description of the internship, the ideal experience of an applicant, and how to apply. I was told to check out Berkeley’s website specifically, but I bet many universities provide a lot of internship information online.
Idealist.com – I have not used this website, but a friend recommended it to me. Similar to Indeed.com, at Idealist.com you enter a location and keyword. It seems like idealist specializes in non-profit and volunteer opportunities.
I think I must have sent out at least nine cover letter-résumé combinations over the past couple months, and I only heard back from one location[1]. I do not tell you this to dishearten you, but because I think it is important to continue applying to places until you hear back. Once you have polished your résumé, then it should not take too long to compose a sincere cover letter for each individual application. The Career Center is always there to help, too. And if an internship does not work out for this summer, picking cherries and working on your tan alongside a cute farmhand is not a bad alternative!