Intern blog post : Benefits of doing an internship in numbers

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So let’s start with the first thing every one of us has heard about before. Employers are looking beyond the GPA.

This blog post was written by Tina, our student services intern. Tina will be interning at the Vancouver Internships office until early fall, 2012.

They are interested in experiences that set us apart from other applicants and make us even more outstanding. But how can we make ourselves exceptional? Doing an internship could be an opportunity – the chances of being hired after doing an internship are as high as 67%. It shows to a prospective employer that we are able to adapt to different environments easily, we are proactive about our career as well as that we are willing to learn.

I see it myself; an internship is a chance to learn what we were never taught while studying. Of course, we will need our knowledge and skills that we have learned in university but the internship is a way to put it all into practice. It is like a preparation for the “real world”. It is different from being a student but we will benefit from an internship in multiple ways. It gives us a new perspective, more self-confidence as well as it is an opportunity to see if we have chosen the right work field. It’s really worth trying since there is nothing to lose, only to win.

Source for internship statistics: National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) report: 2011 ‘Internship & Co-op Survey’ http://www.naceweb.org/2011-intern-research-brief/

 

Internship Interview Practice: Why should we hire you?

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One of our projects this spring is to put together new videos showing how to answer common internship interview questions.  Here’s the first of those videos – we’re not 1000% committed to the format yet, but it’s our first one in the series, so you know …

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Pictures can´t capture everything

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Incredible – This might be the best way to describe the journey I took last week. Being a real city girl, I never thought of how amazing and fascinating nature can be. Since I had to visit students in Banff and Lake Louise who are currently doing an internship there, I had the chance to travel to the Rocky Mountains. Taking the Greyhound bus was quite a journey but all worth it. The scenery is just breathtaking and the towns of Banff and Lake Louise just cute, special, and traditional.

The students who are staying in the Rockies absolutely love it. They really enjoy their work at the hotel. They surely had to get used to the cold but now, in March, when it´s starting to get warmer, it´s very nice. Of course, the snow still stays so the Rocky Mountains seem to be the place to be for all kinds of winter sport activities. There are lots of tourists snowboarding, skiing, snow walking, dog sliding, or just visiting different sights within the towns. So when one works there in the Rockies means meeting a lot of people from all countries from all over the world. Just walking through the streets made me recognize all the different languages spoken.

An absolutely unforgettable experience is to go on the top of the mountains. You take a gondola up to the summit of Sulphur Mountain and there it is – the gorgeous, untouched nature all round you. It is absolutely breathtaking and you literally feel like you were on top of the world. Unfortunately I didn´t see any wild animal but one squirrel. But I guess that might just be one of the many reasons to go back there one day.

FYI: To introduce myself to you– my name is Tina and I’ve been interning at Vancouver Internships for three weeks now. I am a Sociology student from Germany who is living the Canadian experience. After staying in the United States for one year when I was 16 years old I wanted to experience what is like to work in North America. To extend my living and cultural experience I decided to come to Canada.  I’ve found it so much more different from the US than I expected. I am going to stay here in Vancouver for five months before I’m going back to do my Masters.

Electrical / electronics engineering internship testimonial

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Carlos is just finishing off his internship in electrical / electronics engineering – he worked with one of North America’s Top 10 EMS Providers.  Before doing the internship, Carlos studied for 6 months at Kaplan-PLI.  Here he is talking about improving his skills during his placement:
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Internship practice tips for ESL students, part one of eleven (seriously)

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Being new in Canada myself I know it can be a new and exciting experience to actually have a job interview here. Some questions might not be entirely different from what we are used to at home but the most challenging part in that matter might be the language itself. But do not get too stressed out. The intern host company knows about it and invited you because of your skills, education, and work experiences you made in the past. Just make the best out of it.

Since it is always challenging, be aware of some points and you will do just fine:

  • Be prepared and think about possible questions the company may ask and answers you can provide.
  • People talk about first impressions – this is not just a saying but the entire truth. As everywhere in this world it is not just the outfit that matters but also the smile and the eye-contact.
  • Stay polite and show your interest in the company and their business by getting some information about them beforehand.
  • Listen to questions carefully. Sometimes the vocabulary might be new so it is easy to misunderstand and you might give an answer that does not fit the question. So feel free to ask for repeating.

So in conclusion stay positive and do not get discouraged. Every interview is a chance. You will learn from it and I am sure each one of us finds an internship that just suits us best.

NB: Tina is our new intern here at Vancouver Internships. She is assisting with Student Support Services.  She is currently working on revamping our interview support materials.  She will be posting videos on that in the coming weeks.

 

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