Unexpected Internship Realities, Part II

This is Part II of a three-part series discussing unexpected situations that could arise during your internship and how to persevere and handle them professionally.

It’s easy to build castles in the air when you picture life in your internship. It’s your first venture into the workforce, and you’re ready to strut your stuff!

Suddenly, you may find yourself hunched over a file drawer organizing hundreds of papers. You may be stuffing, sealing and addressing a 700-piece mailing. If you get yourself into a particularly intense internship like I did, you may even end up out in the rain at 4 a.m. on a Saturday setting up for an event (several times, actually).

Wait, this isn’t what you signed up for! This isn’t utilizing that higher education you’re paying for!

In each internship, you should have plenty of opportunities to do projects that make a visible difference. You should accumulate plenty of “meat” for your professional portfolio. However, there’s a good chance it’s not going to be glamorous all the time.

Nobody wants to do the menial jobs, of course. But when you’re called upon to do something unpleasant or boring, complete the task with as much effort and enthusiasm as you would any other project. Those tasks are often just as important to the organization’s operation as the high-profile projects.

For example, at one of my internships, I was responsible for compiling and distributing media kits so reporters could cover the event. At one point, I had to sit down and punch holes, one at a time, in hundreds of thick, plastic media badges with a hand-held hole punch. My hand was literally bruised afterward. But what an experience for me to play a role in working with local and national media! You never know what you might be able to take away from even the smallest of projects.

At the same time, you need to make sure that you’re getting plenty of opportunities to hone the skills you’re learning in the classroom. If you reach a point where you feel an unfair percentage of your time is dedicated to administrative tasks, talk with your boss to see if there are any back-burner projects you can take over.

Remember, your purpose for being an organization’s intern is to be helpful. Make sure there is a healthy balance of small-scale work and big-picture projects, because ultimately, an internship should be a learning experience for you.

Look for Part III in the coming days, where we’ll discuss ways to rebound if you make a significant mistake during your internship.