Ali Turner is a professional writer and career blogger. She’s also the managing editor of Campuses to Careers, a blog that helps young people make informed career and education decisions. Topics covered on the blog include careers for shy people and how to follow up on a job application.
I am now proud to say that I was a 24-year-old intern. But I didn’t always feel that way. After graduation and struggling to find job prospects in this dismal economy, I decided to take an unpaid internship at an international non-profit. I knew that I needed more experience, and I decided that an internship related to public relations, the field I wanted to get into, was better than something completely random.
My admission to being a post-graduate intern was met with a little shock and even some snickering and eye-rolling. This negativity mostly (but not always) came from members of the older generation that don’t quite understand the challenges young professionals are facing in today’s economy. I fielded questions and comments like “Aren’t internships only for college students?” and “Why would you ever work for FREE?” on an almost weekly basis. Naturally, I started feeling a little ashamed of my new position. Was I wasting my time? Shouldn’t I be making X amount of dollars by now?
After working at my internship for nearly a year, I realized the tremendous benefits I was receiving. Looking at my work made me feel pride, not shame. I saw my writing skills, my confidence, and my overall professionalism improving drastically. I also felt great about giving back something to my community and to the world at large. I learned a lot of about public relations and marketing during my internship, but I also learned a lot of valuable lessons about professional life in general.
Lesson 1: You’re Never Too Old to Learn
No matter how old you get or how much experience you have in your field, there is always more to learn. This might make you feel overwhelmed, but it should actually excite you. There will always be new challenges and new ways to approach problems to keep things interesting at your job. These new challenges will keep you growing as a professional and as a person.
Lesson 2: Networking Rocks
Ok, everyone knows networking is important. But I never realized exactly how important until I did my internship. While working as an intern, I worked up the courage to talk to my supervisors. I didn’t just ask them about who they know at other companies, but instead focused on asking them about how they became successful. I learned so much valuable information about what jobs I should search for, how to write a resume and cover letter, and much more. Even though my internship is complete, I still feel comfortable reaching out to my supervisor for advice on my resume and cover letter any time I need to apply for a job.
Lesson 3: Money Does Not Equal Happiness…or Success
Like many college graduates, I can admit that I used to be focused on salary as being a way to measure if a job was “good” or not. After completing my internship, I realized I learned more working for free than I would have working another job that was paid. A solid unpaid internship can be just as challenging and enjoyable (or even more so) than a paid internship or entry-level job. An internship can often serve as a faster route to a great career than an entry-level job because it supplies you with mentors that are willing to show you the ropes in a lower-pressure environment.
Looking back, I couldn’t be happier about completing an unpaid internship after graduation. The skills I learned catapulted me into my current job, which I absolutely love. More importantly, I learned important professional lessons that lead to a better perspective on my own career goals and dreams.
