How to Have a Successful Summer Internship

Summertime and the livin’s easy, but not that easy… Summer means kicking-ass and taking names during your summer internship or job.

Here’s how to ensure you have a successful summer:

The place

• Get to know your city. You may be moving to a new city for the summer or commuting on a regular basis. Do your research beforehand, and figure out some fun things to do to explore your new stomping grounds.
• Get to know someone in your city. When our team packed up and moved out to California for 3 months for “Y Combinator”, Liz, Campus Job’s CEO, challenged each of us to cold-email one person on the West Coast. Whether it was someone we valued as a professional in the industry or someone we looked up to, we each sent a stranger an email asking to get coffee. And, guess what?! It worked! Over half our team met with gurus in their field or people they’d always wanted to chat with. So, we challenge you this summer to get out of your comfort zone a bit, and do the same. Let us know if you were able to lock down a meeting with someone yourself; we’d love to hear your stories!

The job

• Work hard and stay humble. We’ll be honest here; some internships do involve quite a bit of grunt work. The best way to deal with this? After you’ve gained your boss’s trust, ask if there’s something else you can help out with on top of your assigned duties, whether it’s being the third, fourth or fifth pair of eyes on an email or sitting in on an extra meeting. The more you want to be involved, the more others will want to involve you. Also, though a task may seem menial, you wouldn’t be doing it if it weren’t helping to forward your company.

• Be open to everything. If someone from a different team wants to take you out to coffee, say yes! This internship is your chance to learn as much about every facet of the industry, not just the position you’ve been hired for.

The end

• End the summer right. Build a pipeline, and stay in touch. Figure out who you click with in the office and foster a relationship. At the end of your summer, write each of these people a heart-felt thank you note; we recommend handwritten, if possible.
• Did you love your internship? Are you a rising senior? Make sure to ask about full-time positions for after you graduate. You can ask to have a one-on-one meeting with your manager to bring it up. Ask about the hiring process and how to get a head start.

PS. If you’re in New York City this summer, don’t be a stranger! We’ve got lots of awesome (FREE) events that we would love to have you at; check it out. :)