Much like a Netflix free 30-day subscription, your internship sheds a dim light on what’s to come in your future career by allowing you to experience a casual preview of the best features and not really exposing you to the direct issues that you will certainly encounter after you have paid that 10,99$ standard monthly fee.
There is undeniable irony in considering internships as the free trial to your future career, not only because most of the time you are practically working for free, BUT because much like any trial period, you have the opportunity to experience, explore and ultimately say “no, thank you” in the end without worrying about any long-term consequences.
While internships are often considered as an inevitable requisite standing between newly graduated idealists and their dream jobs, it is important to acknowledge that there is a certain privilege in that of being an intern. Throughout this period designated for internships both, mandatory and voluntary, there is the liberty to experience many different commercial fields and professional avenues. What is even better is the staggering lack of qualifications that you are allowed to have while also being considered for intern positions at some of the biggest companies around simply because you have the motivation.
My personal internship experience was a bit unusual for the fact that I had been working as a temp in the customer service department of the company ETS Global B.V. when I decided to approach them and plead request that they consider me for an internship position in their marketing and communications department. Maybe it was the fact that I was determined, or maybe, it was just my lucky coincidence, but they ultimately agreed to give me a chance and offered me the intern position. I, of course, had zero experience in the field and even less of an idea of how I could begin to apply what I had learned during my Communication Science degree to the commercial aspects of the discipline. However, with time, effort, and dedication from both sides, I acquired various professional skills and valuable practical knowledge pertaining to digital marketing and communication, and ETS Global B.V. acquired a loyal and motivated employee who is determined to work toward the company goals. In the end, the decision to employ yours truly as an intern turned out to be a good one, and the experience proved positive for everyone, however, that is not always the case, and the truth is that you can never know until you take a chance.
Ultimately all internships are built upon blind trust and wide-eyed hopefulness between intern and host. The important part however is to recognize that when you embark on your dynamic journey as an intern, there are exclusively two ways in which your experience will conclude. 1. You will learn, work and flourish to establish your passions for the selected avenue meaning that you have found your future career path and are eagerly taking the first steps OR 2. You will learn, work and grow to discover your passions lie elsewhere, where you can freely go and bring along the knowledge and experience you have gained.
Reflecting on my own internship, I can gladly confirm that I did, in fact, experience one of the two preordained paths. The conclusion – I detest working on social media, but hey…at least I am a pro at it.