Flickr user UGA College of Ag & Environmental Sciences
Every internship opportunity is unique. Some companies pay their interns, others don’t. Some go out of their way to contribute to their intern’s experience, while others leave the interns to figure things out for themselves. Some will assign work to you, while others won’t. With so many disparities between opportunities, how do you know what to expect from your internship?
The fact is, despite the differences, there are a few things that remain similar. These are a few things you can expect from your internship.
Expect To Have Limited Responsibilities
No matter which company you are interning with or the role you have been hired for, you are almost certainly going to be the junior-most employee there. As a junior employee with no little training or work experience, most bosses will be reluctant to entrust you with certain high-level jobs. You can expect to spend most of your time on the job doing low-level clerical and administrative tasks; such as scheduling appointments, sorting out files, answering the phone, or doing data entry.
Don’t be disheartened if that’s all you end up doing during your internship. There is value in doing even the most mundane jobs in the office. In addition to getting first-hand work experience in the field, you will also hone your communication, time-management, critical thinking, and interpersonal skills.
Expect To Work On A Single or Short-Term Projects
As an intern, there are limitations to the kind of work you can be assigned. Your boss knows you are going to be working with them only temporarily and they will be careful to assign you work that you are sure to be able to complete before your term is up. It would be counter-productive to ask you to work (or at least be the lead) on a long-term project if you are not going to see it through to the end.
Expect To Be Proactive
Typically, in the workplace, all employees would have been assigned specific duties. When you join as an intern, you may find yourself spending time at your desk after you’ve completed a task. It could be that your boss is preoccupied with other things or has just forgotten. Don’t be tempted to use the time to surf the net or watch videos on your phone. Be proactive. Go to your immediate boss and ask if you can help out with something.
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