A friend recently reached out for advice for his son, a university student in a STEM field who wants to find a summer internship. This was not an unusual ask. I’ve had a number of parents, older brothers and sisters, a doting aunt, and several concerned uncles ask how they can help their young person in college find a career-enhancing job or an internship.
When this happens, what always comes back to me is how ineffectual the campus career center was when I was an undergrad (and even as a fresh MBA) – and apparently still is for many college students. (There are, however, some really good ones, so not totally bashing – just saying there is clearly room for improvement!)
On a similar note, when one of our kids finished a data science boot camp at one of the major University of California schools a couple of years back, the career placement assistance for graduates of that program was definitely lacking. It’s a head-scratcher!
So, mom, dad, doting aunt, concerned uncle, caring big sis or big bro, get ready to help your younger comrades with stuff you’ll find in this month’s Career Corner. At the end, I have tacked on additional resources from past columns that will be useful, too.
A cool, not-so-hidden agenda here is that internships are a phenomenal way to introduce college students to digital trust career roles. Let’s empower the next generation with the information on how to do the research, understand their goals, craft their elevator pitch, interview, and win the internship of their dreams!
The fundamentals
When to start: Some sources say students should begin their internship mission pretty much at the start of the new academic year. Sound advice. If your student’s school year is already at that point or a bit beyond, it isn’t too late. Early birds will have done a lot of research, relationship building, and applying for roles that have been already advertised. Given that, it is important to have an efficient, effective and competitive plan when starting now. Students wanting internships on campus or academic research project participation during the 2024 school year will want to get working on this early in their academic year.
What the student needs to know about themselves and what they want BEFORE they start looking
- Where do you want to work geographically? (Most internships are not remote.)
- How much time can you dedicate to the internship?
- What do you want to do?
- What are you looking to learn?
- Drawing on Points 3 and 4: Why? What is the basis for your interest?
- What is your goal for the internship?
- What is your career goal and how does the internship support that goal?
- What technical skills do you already have that you can bring to the table?
- How are you going to contribute?
Let’s talk about Items 2 through 7 in more detail.
Time available, schedule, duration: These issues must be nailed down before the student starts applying and interviewing.
Business managers, professors and PhD students (who are often the ones hiring for project team members) need to know how much time the student realistically has, consistently week-to-week, and also in terms of months.
Why? Profs and PhD researchers have project milestones they need to hit and they need to know they can count on the students hired for their team to show up and get the work done.
In business, the amount of time the student has and their goals for the internship will likely determine how the hiring manager structures the internship experience.
Dr. Nick DiRienzo, a former assistant professor at the University of Arizona and a senior data scientist with a major transportation company, who hired interns in academia and now in his current industry role, says that “if the student is just going to be with us for a semester, we scope the role quite differently than if they are hoping to be hired on after they graduate.”
What do you want to do? What do you want to learn? Why are you interested? How does all of this fit with your career goals?
A common reaction on the part of students is, “Whoa, it’s a lot! I don’t really know the answers to all of that!” But, to get a great internship, the student has to take the time to develop their answers because the folks doing the hiring will base their decisions on these very questions. Those students who have clarity about what they are doing and why will be the competitive candidates.
As you can see, this comes down to Interviewing 101. And that’s where you can really coach and help because you’ve been through myriad interviews. You know where this is coming from. The hiring leader – the business manager, professor, grad student – needs to base their hiring decision on figuring out who is going to be a great fit and who is going to deliver ROI to the internship or research project.
Create a “personal pitch” for WHY they are a great candidate for the internship.
A good pitch comes from being thoughtful. From looking inside. From being authentic. From being clear about goals and objectives. By putting thought into the questions above, and developing insightful answers, the student can write a paragraph that outlines who they are, where they are trying to go, and why their interests are well-aligned with the internships they are seeking.
This pitch is the basis for both personal networking and actual internship applications. This is the work that must be done if the student is serious about getting an internship. And it is absolutely essential if they are going after very competitive internships with big-name companies or prestigious organizations.
Where to look for internships and how to apply
Critical to the mission is being proactive and creative. Here’s what students can do:
- Start with the Campus Career center.
- Talk with the professors whose classes they have taken and enjoyed (and hopefully did well in)!
- Talk with their teaching assistants or section leaders!
- Research the websites of the businesses, government agencies and non-profits in the target geographic area.
- Talk with people they know who may have intel and may even be able to refer them for an internship, including classmates, roommates, church friends, sorority sisters, fraternity brothers, parents and relatives – the list goes on and on. No stone unturned!
- College clubs may have information on internships. Go to the meetings, meet people, and ask.
- Go to talks on campus that are in their major or area of interest. Research the speaker. Ask a smart question during the Q&A. Go talk with the speaker after the talk and make an introduction hitting the highlights of their personal pitch (if appropriate).
- Find the professional organizations for their field of interest (like ISACA!). Find the student liaison and reach out.
Research is super important!
Whether the student is looking for an internship with a company or to join a research project, an absolute must-do is in-depth research – about the company, its products, its mission; or about the research project, its key questions and objectives.
The student needs to research the hiring leader on LinkedIn. Read interviews with the CEO and other executives at the company, and read detailed articles about the company and its strategy in the business press.
For academic internships and research project roles, a first step is for the student to look up the researcher on Google Scholar. They should then read the researcher’s highly cited papers. Look at their lab’s website. Know their research program.
This kind of research is not optional. Doing the research will enable the student to write a compelling, tailored, and thoughtful application for the internship, whether in business or academia.
Dr. Sonja Wild, a post-doctoral researcher at UC Davis who hired project team members for her PhD research in Australia on dolphin behavior, said she was stunned when applicants to her research program wrote things like “I love going to Sea World” or “Ever since I was 5 years old, I have loved dolphins” as the reason why they were interested.
Dr. Wild went on to say, “Being fascinated by dolphins is a good start, but not enough. The interest alone does not qualify the applicant to conduct the research with dolphins in Australia where there are long days spent on boats collecting data, working with equipment and doing field observation!”
Nailing down the WHY of the student’s interest in the company, department or research program, WHAT skills will be brought to internship or project, and HOW one will contribute are all critical parts of the formal, written application. Once there is an interview, the ability to articulate these points verbally is essential to being a top prospect for the position.
An additional success tip contributed by Dr. Wild, and echoed by other hiring managers and professors, was the need for attention to detail in the application. The student needs to execute on the asks in the application process carefully, correctly, and on time. All of that is, in fact, a test. Can the applicant follow directions? Can they be timely?
Building relationships and approaching hiring managers, professors or PhD researchers
A university offers an ideal ecosystem for building relationships with professors, teaching assistants (TAs) and researchers. Students seeking internships (whether academic or in industry) will want to make it part of their college experience to build those relationships.
A lot of students are still opting to attend classes remotely. That’s not ideal. Over the past few years, many of us have found it is harder to build connections with people via an online platform. But it’s easier if we have been out working for a few years and are coming with the experience from that previous in-person work environment.
For college students, going to class and seeing their TAs, seeing their professors – and having their teachers see them – is an important way to build relationships. If one has been to class, it’s often much easier to then go to office hours, or to set up a meeting to talk about an internship.
Chelsea Ortiz-Jimenez, a PhD Candidate at UC Davis, has been a teaching assistant and also hired a small army of students for her field research project on the influence of human presence on behavior of the California ground squirrel. She commented that when students come to her about joining her research team, she is more favorably inclined “if they have been vocal in class and ask questions; if they stay back after class to talk about ideas; if they come to office hours; if they do the assignments and do well on tests. Basically, showing up. It’s just not that hard.”
Important point: Students should do well in classes taught by professors or TAs they might want to work for on projects, or who they might want a reference from for internships in industry.
For some professors, TAs, and business leaders, good grades are everything; for others grades are one factor that weighs into the overall consideration of the applicant and the applicant pool. Given that the student may not know how the criteria are weighted, it’s best to study hard in general, but especially in those classes that align with internship or research interests.
When no position is formally posted, it’s OK to reach out directly, via email or LinkedIn. This is deemed appropriate by hiring managers, professors, and researchers in the US, Asia, and Europe. Many hiring leaders view direct outreach as a good signal of the student’s ability to be both proactive and brave, which are great traits to bring to any work situation.
When reaching out cold or even with an introduction from someone the student knows, it’s important to be respectful. The student should opt for formality until they know how the professor, researcher or hiring leader wants to be addressed.
The email should offer a bit of introduction (year, major, area of interest, a cool part of their experience that relates to the company or project), and then get to the point. They are looking for an internship or to join the project – is the manager or professor hiring?
A direct approach is appreciated by many. As Dr. DiRienzo noted, “It gives me a quick way to answer back with a timely reply such as, “Sorry we’re not hiring this summer” or “Yes, we are looking for interns, you’ll need to submit an application online.”
Students should follow up with a short thank you email when they get a reply. Thank you notes are a must-do after interviews. (See Resources below for help with thank you notes.)
The student needs to guard against getting discouraged if they don’t hear back or if the company or team is not hiring. Like any hiring situation, it’s a numbers game to an extent. One has to be patient and stay on track with applying and reaching out.
Internship success factors
For this article, I spoke with hiring managers, researchers and professors from major universities in the US, Europe and Asia to compile a list of behaviors that they have seen in their best interns and research team members. Here’s what they had to say:
- Have a conversation during interview (expand beyond yes/no answers)!
- Demonstrate the ability to articulate ideas.
- Ask good questions, in the internship interview, and after joining the team.
- Be punctual.
- Be willing to learn new things with the team and on your own.
- Be proactive about finding out what skills you need to acquire and then work to build those skills (e.g., statistics, data analytics, programming, using specific equipment).
- Offer ideas for how a process might be done better or how a problem can be solved.
- Take notes! Lots of notes. Refer back to your notes.
- Execute on tasks as directed.
- Communicate if you are struggling and need help; communicate around vacation scheduling, being ill, heavy mid-terms, etc.
- Be a leader when appropriate; know when to hold back and let the boss make the decisions.
- Clarify expectations of the internship role: the role of the boss, the style of work, and so forth. It’s a good idea to get on the same page right from the start. Ask about this during interviews!
Dr. Osamu Sakai, a researcher from Kyoto University who studies animal personality, noted that from a Japanese perspective, “politeness and diligence, together with an enthusiasm for research and a keen interest in the study field, are the most important characteristics for a successful candidate who will be engaged on the team.”
With regards to negative behaviors that could sink an internship or the interview process, clearly that would be doing the opposite of the 12 success factors noted above. Additionally, a big negative that came up time and again was not being sincerely interested. When a student gives the impression that they are just trying to fulfill a requirement, that’s a major turn-off.
As Dr. DiRienzo said, “The prospective intern needs to be able to articulate why they are here applying for the role. Are they really wanting to be on this particular team or are they just ticking a box for med school and they need a semester of research?”
So, there you have it – background, concepts, global perspectives, and practical how-tos – that you can discuss with the young people you know and care about to help them achieve their internship goals. If luck is with us, perhaps some of them will pursue internships in digital trust and get fired up enough to consider digital trust their career of choice!
Additional resources