If you’re anything like me, you’ve spent the entire semester applying to dozens of internships and anxiously awaiting acceptances. It wasn’t until three weeks before school ended that I finally got offered a couple of them. I sighed with relief because now I have this huge weight off my shoulders, but then I lost sleep over the fact that I am in no way prepared. What is it going to be like? How am I going to be spending my days? What kind of schedule am I going to have? How do I impress my boss?
Do these questions sound a little familiar? Don’t worry; I’ve got the details. I decided to ask around campus, and boy am I glad I did. Some of UF’s own collegiettes had plenty of experiences to share with me, and it made me feel a heck of a lot better about diving into my first “big girl” job.
Dana Orlando – Psychology/Communication Sciences and Disorders
Dana Orlando, a psychology and communication sciences and disorders major, is graduating this spring. Last summer, she interned at Sunbelt Staffing, a company that works to place speech, physical, and occupational therapists into various jobs around the country.
“I had a very positive experience working there,” Orlando said. “I was able to learn so much about my future field of speech language pathology through speaking with professionals already in the field.”
Having found this internship on a whim while Google-searching “internships in speech pathology,” Orlando submitted her résumé and was hired the day of her interview.
“In my experience, my summer internship was more laidback than I expected,” Orlando said. “It was full-time, but being a student and working on the GRE after my grad school applications… They were really flexible with me.” But she did not use this as an opportunity to slack off.
Orlando said students should expect to treat their internship as if it is their real life job.
“Ultimately, you’ll be working towards gaining experience and letters of recommendation, so keep that in the back of your mind at all times,” she said.
Making it a point to arrive 5-10 minutes early each day, Orlando was there before her boss and was already working on her daily tasks when she arrived.
When she finished her work early in the afternoon with an hour or two to spare, she would ask if there was more work to do instead of leaving early.
“Just try to go above and beyond as much as you can, and your boss will definitely notice,” she said.
Alexa Palczynski – Accounting
“I have known since the start of my freshman year at UF that accounting was what I wanted to major in,” said Alexa Palczynski, a senior.
Last fall, Palczynski realized she wanted to do an accounting internship in a bigger city with a larger market. She accepted an offer with PricewaterhouseCoopers as an Assurance intern this spring.
“Moving to Atlanta for 10 weeks was exciting for me,” she said. “I had never lived in such a big city.”
Time in the city was an eye-opening experience, she said. Her internship was great, and she received an offer on her last day as a PwC intern.
“I’m very excited to start a new life in Atlanta,” she said.
Palczynski said her internship was one of the greatest things she’s ever experienced. Her favorite part? Getting to know all of the other interns. It makes the experience much more enjoyable, she said.
Clearly, her internship experience was a positive one because she was offered a job at the company after graduation.
“To other students who wish to have a similar experience,” she said. “I believe it’s important to start making connections with firms very early on.”
She said to be successful at your internship, you need to go into the experience with an open mind and recognize that firms understand you may not have experience.
“The firms don’t expect you to know how to do everything assigned, and it’s okay to ask for help,” she said.
A Quick Wrap-up
- You will learn so much about your future field.
- You’re working for experience and possibly letters of recommendation, so keep that in mind.
- Impress your boss: show up early, get work done early, and ask if you can lend a hand.
- Go above and beyond as much as you can.
- Get to know all of the other interns.
- Start making connections with firms or companies early on.
- It’s okay to ask for help.
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