Finding Internships Back Home

Are you from Long Island and are you looking for an internship?  Great! The Career Center can help.  Now, are you NOT from Long Island and looking for an internship for when you get back home for the summer? Well, guess what, the Career Center can help you, too!

I recently met with a student from Pennsylvania who wants a summer psychology internship back home. I showed her our Career Management System, but most of those positions are in the Long Island/NYC area.  So, we needed to get more creative.  I asked her to give me more details about her ideal internship.  What would she be doing?  What population would she be helping?  What area of Pennsylvania would be best for her?  

We then began our search. We were able to identify many organizations that fit with her key criteria and discussed strategies such as sending a target mailing to those companies.  A target mailing is sending your resume and cover letter to an employer, even though that company may not have a job or internship listed anywhere.  Many employers have never even considered hiring an intern.  Your letter may convince them that an intern would help their organization.  I know people who have gotten full-time positions from target mailings, too.  Your resume may arrive just at the time someone has resigned, or when a brand new position is opening up.

I also discussed networking with this student.   I asked her to think of people she knows back home who are in her field of interest.  It is also important to tell everyone that you know that you are looking for a full time job or internship, as you never know who will know someone who can be of assistance. 

The truth is, we may not have that perfect dream job for every student.  However, our job as career counselors is to teach you the skills that you need in order to find a great internship or full-time job.  Those skills include resume writing, successful interviewing, networking, industry research, and a whole lot more.  Whether your job search will take you to a different state, or even a different country, we can help!  

~Darlene Johnson, Career Counselor