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Internships: Stairway to dream careers- 19-Apr-2016
A recent survey in US putinternships as the number 1 thing employers look for on a candidates resume when hiring fresh graduates even more than your college, field of study, or grades.
If you think about it, it is not hard to understand why. If you were a recruiter and had to choose between a fresh graduate with no prior work experiencewhom you will have to train from scratch vs. a student who has done an internship or two in the field - which candidate would you prefer?Also, someone with an internship on her resume is likely to have better soft skills and a superior ability to work in a professional environment. No wonder survey results were what they were.
Story closer to home in India is no different. Some of the industry reports in past have suggested that only 20% of our college graduates are job ready i.e. rest 80% lack either the technical skills or soft skills required by the industry. Internships are emerging as a powerful tool to bridge this gap between academia and corporate world.
Now lets look at it from a students perspective. Once a student enters the final year of her college; the job hunt starts. Unfortunately, in absence of any practical experience, you have a very little idea of what career is best for you and what skills are needed to succeed in that field. As time progresses, the desperation to find a job increases and you take up whatever job comesyour way and may settle for a less than perfect choice.
Imagine how different this journey would have been had you done a few internships while you were in college. With each internship you would have figured whether you really liked a particular field or not, built practical skills that are in demand, and more importantly made a network of professionals whom you could approach to help you with your job search when you graduate.
Add to that the excitement of earning your first paycheck in form of a stipend while your friends still ask their parents for pocket money; or going to an office wearing formals; or having an official email id an internship gives a boost to your confidence like nothing else can.
About author:Sarvesh Agrawal is founder of Internshala (http://internshala.com)
