Last Friday, the Indiana INTERNnet team joined over 50 interns at the Indiana State Fairgrounds for another summer intern engagement event.
Attendees played a round of trivia for a chance to win donated prizes â it was the perfect way to make sure everyone was wide awake and engaged. After buzzing in for questions about Indianapolis, Indiana and the State Fair, the interns were fired up and ready for the morningâs career development session.
Interns exchanging stories about their internships to create their connecting chain of facts.
Samantha Martin, assistant director of the Ball State University Career Center, was eager to take the floor and keep up the energy in the room. To start, she had participants split into groups for a unique networking game where everyone was asked to make a chain of facts that each of their internships had in common. The winning team took home âFair Bucksâ and Crew Car Wash coupons for connecting 66 facts into a story about their shared internship experience!
Following the networking activity, Martin advised the attendees on creating a plan to wrap up their internships in a meaningful, productive way:
Before Your Internship Ends
Start by thanking people that were involved in your internships experience, whether they were a co-worker, supervisor or mentor. If possible, make this thank you personal and let the person know how they impacted your experience with the company. Donât leave out those you didnât work closely with – let everyone know when your last day is going to be. Martin suggested that you should set aside time in your calendar to say your good-byes.
âGet those connections!â She stressed, indicating that connecting with members of the company on LinkedIn is a great way to keep in touch with both the people youâve met and the company you worked for.
Be sure to get feedback or evaluations about your work at your internship if itâs not already built into your program. âFeedback will help you understand, âWhat are your strengths weaknesses? How can you play up your strengths in your career?â It will be practice for later on when full-time jobs provide full reviews,â explained Martin.
Clean your space, both physically and digitally. If you have a full trash can at your desk, clean it out and âbe sure that your work space is as nice as it was on your first day â or even better.â Ensure that your replacement will be able to find all the files they might need by organizing your folders on your computer. Donât forget to save any files you might want for your portfolio.
You can also make a tip list for the next intern, a sheet containing things you wish you would have known on day one. âItâs nice and shows that you care about the company and their internship program,â said Martin.
Once Your Internship is Over
Donât just strut out of the office and never look back. Instead, think about how youâre going to give the company and your supervisor updates about your career. She said that the typical rule is to send an update every six months, but this can differ depending on what you feel is appropriate between you and your former boss.
In the future, you could also follow up by asking about a project you worked on. If youâre interested in working for that company find a way to keep tabs on the companyâs progress such as setting up google alerts.
Reflect on your internship experience. What did you like? What did you not like? For example, did you like the companyâs team atmosphere, its open-concept work environment or the way they managed their employees? Making a pro-con list for yourself can help you narrow your future job search.
Always attend networking events whenever youâre invited. âThis is where you stretch yourself if youâre introverted,â acknowledged Martin, âStaying in your comfort zone prevents you from moving forward.â
Couldnât make it to the Fair? Registration for Indiana INTERNnetâs final summer event, meet@TheChallenge, closes on Aug. 17: bit.ly/2Ku7uaI
