Tower Editorial: Intern or Die Trying

Collectively, we at The Tower have spent more time searching for and applying to internships this semester than we care to admit. If you’re in the same boat and internships have you struggling, we feel your pain.

If you’re like us, you have applied to an endless list of major companies that have the perfect program to set you on a track for career success. You have submitted resumes, letters of recommendation, and detailed cover letters, all outlining your glorious accomplishments and skills. You have called each and every HR department hoping to hear that you will be contacted for an interview soon, only to have to leave an uber professional voicemail in an automated inbox that you know must be crowded with messages identical to yours. And then you have waited. And you are still waiting now.

Let’s be realistic. Half of these internships require that applicants have prior internship experince. The other half you only applied for because they fit your stock cover letter.

We aren’t saying that you shouldn’t apply to internships, they really can be a helpful and productive experience. But, it is important to remember to start small.

Apply to smaller internships and use your resources well.

Underclassmen, use this summer to get a small job and fill up your resume. You might even discover a new interest in a field you never considered.

Upperclassmen, it is not the end of the world if you do not end up with an internship. Study for comps or take summer classes. You may not get anything more to add to your resume, but you can spend some time preparing for the next phase of your life.

Don’t fret: this internship search may be bringing you down but CUA is not here to watch you cry and leave you out to dry. On the first-floor Pryz there is an office that could be heaven-sent: Career Services. Career Services means well, they come off intimidating but they’re trained for this stuff. They’ll workshop resumes, cover letters, anything you want. While you may come out of the office overwhelmed just breathe, and pay seventeen dollars for a career aptitude test. And if worst comes to worst, there’s probably a wikihow for whatever job you want.