You're almost there! It's nearly- or already Senior year and you're almost ready to pursue a career in your selected field! But there's one last thing you should definitely do before you move that tassel.

Networking, networking, networking! It is the key to moving up the corporate ladder that the majority of new graduates struggle with most. Internships are a great way to gain these new connections and expand the reach of your LinkedIn profile, which, in turn, gets more recruiters eyes on you for future opportunities.
​

Internships are a great opportunity to make friends. I joined CME with a group of three other interns, and it was amazing how we all became fast-friends in the shared experience of beginning to venture into our respective career paths. It helped me feel less anxious about starting my professional career, to talk with other interns who were feeling the same way as well. 
​

If you are still working towards your degree, doing and internship is a great way to take the information your learning in class and put it to practice in a true work environment. Another bonus is when you apply what you learn in class, your more likely to remember what your learning and will get better grades.

​Something else to consider is that while technical knowledge will help you have the right information, practical knowledge gives you experience to draw upon when making decisions in the field. That "gut" feeling isn't something you are born with, its cultivated from past experiences that help you recognize what the right path to take is.

Hard to swallow truth; Having a degree on your resume only gets your foot in the door.

You need something extra to beat out your competition in today’s market. Internships are a great way to gain experience, specific to your field, that you can proudly display on your resume. So, when your interviewer asks, "Why should we hire you", you are prepared to list field-related experiences that an employer can easily translate to the needs of their own company. 

Bonus points for completing an internship at a small business, where you are most likely going to wear many hats and get experience in a variety of field-related tasks. While internships at large companies can be a great foot-in-the-door to the specific company, they can be very specific and you might be pigeon-holed into one narrowly-defined job.
​

Check out our career page for internship positions you can apply to today in Tampa Bay FL.
 
Otherwise, you can search for internships through:

• Indeed 
• Glassdoor 
  
• Monster 
• LinkedIn 
• College Recruiter 
  

Another avenue you might want to explore is a career page specific to your university. Your university will likely have their own career search page. For example, I used USF Handshake to search for an internship, while getting my degree. If you're not sure what your university's career page is, contact your university's career services department to find out more information.

What do you think is the best reason to do an internship? Share your experience with internships below in the comments!